Articles

Is it ethical to keep pets?

Is it ethical to keep pets? That is the question a sociologist at the University of Kent in England is asking. Her answer is “No.” Though Professor Wrenn admits that “we love them, care for them, celebrate their birthdays and mourn them when they pass,” she argues that, “The institution of pet-keeping is fundamentally unjust as it involves the manipulation of animals’ bodies, behaviours and emotional lives.” She notes that one of the problems is…

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Are Avocados, Almonds, Coconuts & Palm Fruit Vegan?

Animal Rights Philosophy in the Age of Social Media Clickbait (by Nathan & Jennifer Winograd)   Are avocados, apples, and almonds vegan? What about coconut-based, non-dairy cheeses or butters made with palm oil? To some, these may seem like odd questions with a self-evident answer: Yes. After all, almonds, apples, avocados, palm fruit, and coconuts all come from plants. But for those who embrace veganism for ethical reasons, like we do, the answer has to…

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Do we have to feed animals to other animals?

We can avoid doing so and as a society, we invariably will. Reprinted from The Huffington Post, Dec. 14, 2017 The Los Angeles Board of Animal Services is considering a proposal to give the dogs “vegan kibble in all six of the city’s animal shelters.” The proposal was met with derision in some circles. It shouldn’t have. “I had no idea this would end up being as big a deal as it has,” said Roger…

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Articles PETA

Why PETA Kills

Why PETA Kills is available on Amazon. From now until Sunday, December 3, it is available as a free download. Why? Why does PETA kill thousands of dogs and cats every year? Why are PETA employees instructed to acquire animals by any means necessary – which has included lying and theft – in order to kill those animals? Why do they encourage others to kill them? And why do they embrace and defend even abusive…

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Brave: A Review of Welcome Home

My wife and I wrote a book that will have plenty of frenemies, but few real friends. Welcome Home is a book that challenges the position promoted by the loudest voices in the animal rights movement that living with dogs and cats, no matter how much we may care for them, violates their rights. We disagree: dogs and cats want to live with us, chose to live with us, should live with us, and where…

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Welcome Home

 An Animal Rights Perspective on Living with Dogs & Cats I am pleased to announce that Welcome Home, our new book, is now available on Amazon by clicking here. For the vast majority of people, the bond they share with their dog or cat companion is a familial one, born of love and mutual affection. Indeed, interspecies relationships in the world are not rare and they are relationships that humans generally celebrate as evidence of…

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Are Coconuts Vegan?

It seems like a silly question, since a coconut is a fruit (technically, it’s  a  drupe), but it’s a question that has me more and more upset. Over the last several years, Jennifer and I have watched with increasing alarm the prevalence coconut products have begun to play in the promotion of the vegan diet: Daiya cheese, Miyoko’s butter, Beyond Meat’s burgers, and more. It is in almost all shampoos and conditioners. In shaving creams…

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Resisting the Revisionist History of Bay Area Forests

By Jennifer Winograd The most effective way to destroy people is to deny or obliterate  their own understanding of their history. — George Orwell The wrongs done to trees, wrongs of every sort, are done in the darkness of ignorance and unbelief, for when the light comes, the heart of the people is always right. — John Muir In our work to protect the trees of the East Bay now under attack by native plant…

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Articles Corruption PETA

Direct Action Everywhere: Stop Embracing Dog & Cat Killers

Updated January 17, 2017 A Letter to the Leadership, Activists, & Supporters of Direct Action Everywhere Direct Action Everywhere Organizing Principles:  ‘WHAT WE BELIEVE:  Animal Liberation: We believe that every animal (human or non-human) has an equal right to be safe, happy, and free…  Truth: There are times in history when uncomfortable truths must be said; we will say them…  HOW WE OPERATE:  Integrity. Choose the ethical route over the easier one…’ ‘Thursday, Dec 29,…

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