Vegan News 8.29.11

American Burying Beetle - Pretty and Protected

• Another journalist that takes a huge, unplanned, misguided try of veganism.  Surprising no one, he fails on every level.  My so-called vegan life a diatribe of drivel.  Typical, boring, and uninspiring- with a bit of sighing, eye-rolling, and head shaking thrown in.

• Maine lobstermen harvested 94.7 million pounds of lobsters in 2010, worth roughly $313 million.  According to a paper by researchers, communities and the state of the economy are now caught in a trap, where the short term profit outweighs the long term social and environmental risks.  Lobsters are freaking cool and deserve better.

• Insects use antibacterial secretions to protect young. That’s amazing.  Burying beetles, named for their habitual burying of small animal carcasses to lay eggs in, use secretions from their anal glands to coat the fur or feathers (of the dead) to guarantee the carcass stays germ-free and fresh for their young to live on.  Without it, the beetle’s young would fail to gain weight and eventually die.

Fun fact: The American Burying Beetle are an endangered species.

• WTF is this?  What 40-year vegan breaks his fast with a McDonald’s cheeseburger? No seriously, WTF is this about?!