It’s been a long week of being busy, perhaps you’ve been busy too?  Spring has been peeking her head all around the country and new life is starting to take hold.  For anyone with a home and a yard, this means lots of manual labor cleaning up branches, leaves, and other reminders of winter.  The birds are out in full force, some just starting their nest, others already with clutches of eggs.  If you’ve been caught up in the season and haven’t had the chance to read all the thoughtful editorials we’ve had on YDV this week, no worries.  I’ve rounded them up and put them for you here.  Enjoy.

From The Daily Vegan Spin

Why Gassing Canada Geese Is a Bad Idea

Because the geese molt every year, from mid-June through July, they can’t fly. This makes it easier for them to be caught – adults and youngsters alike. According to HSUS, “trappers set up portable pens and simply herd geese inside. Then geese are picked up one or two at a time and carried to a gas chamber or a crate.”

Happy Arbor Day: Please Quit Cutting Down Fucking Trees

When I think of deforestation, I think of my neighbors.  I remember back to when I first bought my house.  The backyard was lush with trees so dense you never saw the back neighbors.  The canopy of trees provided my yard with delicious shade for those hot summer days and homes for more animal species than I can name on two hands.  I remember the feeling I had the first time in the backyard looking up into the trees as I stood directly underneath them, it was glorious.  I watched squirrels run from tree to tree, woodpeckers hopping along the bark picking out ants, with nuthatches following directly behind them.  I saw red-tail hawks sitting majestically in the trees, comfortable in their position of power.  I saw life happening and it was beautiful.

Lawn & Garden Month: Who’s Producing Your Food?

Being completely ethical with our food choices is challenging, but every single person can make changes that seriously impact our contribution to an unjust industrial food system.  First and foremost, for the human and nonhuman animals, GO VEGAN.  Second, grow your own food, whether in your own yard or in a community space.  Third, aim to purchase foods that are fair trade or that you know have been produced using fair practices.  Together, we can make ethical food choices that will improve this world for all life.

Ditching Dairy: Might as Well Face It, You’re Addicted to Cheese

In Dr. Barnard’s book, Breaking the Food Seduction: The Hidden Reasons Behind Food Cravings, he discusses cheese and its effects on the brain. Research shows that milk – any animal’s milk – contains casein, a protein that, during digestion, releases casomorphins. What are casomorphins? Opiates! Casein is concentrated in cheese production. Let me repeat myself: concentrated proteins are releasing opiates into your body during digestion, folks! One molecular chain of casomorphins is one tenth as potent as morphine when it comes to pain relief. It’s believed that the opiates in milk cause a calming effect for the nursing infant. Victoria Moran’s Main Street Vegan breaks it down: “Human milk has only 2.7 grams of casein per liter. Cow’s milk has 26.” This is yet another example of why another species’ milk is not meant for human consumption.

Lawn & Garden Month: Leaving Animals Out of the Equation

I think the Food Not Lawns movement is incredible.  US History shows us that a small portion of the population can make a significant difference in local food production by growing a garden. I want this movement to spread far and wide.  I just hope that rearing animals doesn’t go with it.  Growing our own food can reduce our support to the unjust industrial food system, decrease our personal carbon footprint, decrease our consumption of chemicals, and feed our communities…but in order to make the biggest differences, animals must be left out of the equation.

Earthlings on Earth Day

Change is important. Compassion is necessary.  Humans love to talk about the “food chain,” even as they’ve bastardized it into an industrial, political, scientific, and yes, environmental downward spiral. This is why Earth Day must be every day. This is why we must keep talking; keep learning; keep doing.

The Latest from Ask Anya

What are omega-3 fatty acids, and why do I need them?

Omega-3 fatty acid, also known as alpha linolenic acid (ALA), is considered an essential fatty acid.  It is essential because the body does not produce it and is the first “ingredient” in a chain reaction that yields docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).  Aren’t you now wishing you paid a little more attention in Biochemistry?  These fatty acids are renowned for their anti-inflammatory properties and in turn, aid in reducing one’s risk of illnesses such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Vegan Stories from Around the Globe

Statistics: 55% of Population on Mainly Vegan Diet by 2020 Predict Vegfest UK. “Organisers of Europe’s largest Vegan Festivals Vegfest UK have predicted that most people in the UK could be predominantly vegan by 2020 if the present surge in interest in vegan diets continues.”

Humans Passing Drug Resistance to Wildlife in Protected Areas in Africa. “A team of Virginia Tech researchers has discovered that humans are passing antibiotic resistance to wildlife, especially in protected areas where numbers of humans are limited.  In the case of banded mongoose in a Botswana study, multidrug resistance among study social groups, or troops, was higher in the protected area than in troops living in village areas. The study also reveals that humans and mongoose appear to be readily exchanging fecal microorganisms, increasing the potential for disease transmission.”

Animals blasted into space on Russian science mission. “Mice, geckos and gerbils, amongst other creatures, were blasted into orbit above the Earth today on a mission to test the effects of long space flight. The scientists say that while the animals should survive the mission and return to Earth, they will then need to be put to sleep humanely so the experts can get the tests they need.”

Photo Credit: Guerito via Flickr