Compassion In Action~

We are the living graves of murdered beasts, slaughtered to satisfy our appetites. How can we hope in this world to attain the peace we say we are so anxious for? --George Bernard Shaw
Cruelty: can be described as indifference to suffering and even positive pleasure in inflicting it. Cruel ways of inflicting suffering may involve violence, but violence is not necessary for an act to be cruel. For example, if another person is drowning and begging for help, and another person is able to help, but merely watches with disinterest or amusement, that person is being cruel — not violent.
Cruelty usually carries connotations of supremacy over a submissive or weaker force. The term cruelty is often used with regard to the treatment of animals, children and prisoners. When cruelty to animals is discussed, it often refers to unnecessary suffering. According to Ian McEwan, the Booker Prize winner in 1998, "novels are not about 'teaching people how to live but about showing the possibility of what it is like to be someone else. It is the basis of all sympathy, empathy and compassion. Other people are as alive as you are. Cruelty is a failure of imagination'." (definition from wikipedia)
Male calves—“byproducts” of the dairy industry—are generally taken from their mothers when they are less than 1 day old. The calves are then put into dark, tiny crates, where they are kept almost completely immobilized so that their flesh stays tender. The calves are fed a liquid diet that is low in iron and has little nutritive value in order to make their flesh white. This heinous treatment makes the calves ill, and they frequently suffer from anemia, diarrhea, and pneumonia. Frightened, sick, and alone, these calves are killed after only a few months of life. “Veal” is the flesh of a tortured, sick baby cow, and a byproduct of the milk industry.
Cows produce milk for the same reason that humans do: to nourish their babies. In order to force the animals to continue giving milk, factory farmers impregnate them using artificial insemination every year. Calves are generally taken from their mothers within a day of being born—males are destined for veal crates, and females are sentenced to the same fate as their mothers. Does this seem cruel to you? If so, please so no to dairy! Go soy instead.
"Over 1.3 billion human beings could be fed each year from the grain and soybeans that go to livestock in the United States.This means that the entire population of the United States could be fed (without losing any nutritional value) and there would still be enough food left over to feed one billion people.In a world where millions of people die each year of starvation, that type of food excess and inefficiency could be considered unethical.It takes 7.5 pounds of protein feed to create 1 pound of consumable hog protein; and it takes 5 pounds of protein feed to create 1 pound of consumable chicken protein. Close to 90% of protein from wheat and beans is lost to feed cycling.This means that an enormous amount of resources are dedicated to producing wheat and soy just for the purpose of feeding it to animals, which will be slaughtered as "a source of protein"--even though they only provide about 1/5 of the amount they consume.Not only can the production of meat be considered an injustice against animals, but it can also be considered an injustice against human beings, as well as the environment."
--15.3%of children ages 6 to 11 were overweight in 1999 and 2000, more than triple the average of 4.2 percent from 1963 to 1970.
--More than 75% of children ages 6-11 do not eat the minimum of 3 servings of vegetables or 2 servings of fruit daily.
--The economic cost of obesity in the United States was about $117 billion in 2000.
http://www.vegsource.com/
Animals on today's factory farms have no legal protection from cruelty that would be illegal if it were inflicted on dogs or cats (ie: Michael Vick national outrage- perfect example of our societies schizoid relationship with animals). Animals EVERYDAY on factory farms endure: neglect, mutilation, genetic manipulation, and drug regimens that cause chronic pain and crippling, transport through all weather extremes, and gruesome and violent slaughter. Yet farmed animals are no less intelligent or capable of feeling pain than are the dogs and cats we cherish as companions. Why do we allow this? Why is our compassion selective? Especially when it's something as simple as changing our dietary habits.
"Until he extends the circle of compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace." --Albert Schweitzer
~Animal Acres in Acton, CA~ (www.animalacres.org)
Pictured below are some famous vegans. Although there are (and have been throughout history) countless well known Vegetarian's (Einstein was one- think about it!) - the ones pictured below have taken that extra compassionate step towards relieving animal suffering, improving their health and making a huge, positive impact on the environment (a vegan driving a hummer would contribute less greenhouse gas carbon emissions than a meat eater riding a bicycle). Please let me know if I should add more faces to the list.
"As long as people will shed the blood of innocent creatures there can be no peace, no liberty, no harmony between people. Slaughter and justice cannot dwell together." --Isaac Bashevis Singer