I Ate A Dead Bird

Hi all

The title reads correctly. Yesterday I ate a dead bird. Obviously, I did not choose to do so - but rather, did so in blind innocence and the kicker is that it tasted so much like Mock Meat, I did not even notice the difference. My friend and I ordered two Vegan Chicken Burgers at East Brunswick Club (Herein EBC) on Lygon Street in Melbourne. For those who are unaware, EBC are a very laid back, casual pub who serve delicious vegan pub food dishes. Yesterday, however, they slipped up.

As Cheryl and I waited for our burgers we eyed off the possible vegans sitting around the venue and checked to see if there were any good looking men. There weren't. We were, however, greeted by a lovely chap emitting a strong waft of alcohol and rather unpleasant bodily odour who tried to offer us coke from his half empty 600ml bottle. Anyone who calls me Senorita and does not pronounce it properly, offers me coke from their half drunk bottle and does not wash - is out of the game.

Anyway back on track, Cheryl got her burger first and started to eat. Ten or more minutes later I recieved mine. The waitress stated "Here is your Vegan Chicken Burger". Naturally, I would assume it is indeed a Vegan Chicken Burger. Quarter way through the burger I noticed a difference in the colour of mine as opposed to Cheryl's. We studied, taste tested again and concluded mine was indeed a dead bird. So, we called the waitress, she confirmed it was and apologised.

So, what compensation did EBC provide us with for this huge mistake causing immense pain and suffering for my fragile brain? They gave us free Peanut Butter Choc Chip Cheesecake. Enough? I suppose.

But this made me feel funny. I have rambled on before about where you draw the line when you consume something and how I treat it as a case by case basis. Well, in this case, I was more than happy for them to throw it away and give me a new one. I felt sick. I felt disgusting. I felt unnatural.

Though, mind you, the funny thing is - now that I have tasted both I can confidently say that yes, the vegan version tastes much better. Its texture/contents was just so much tastier than the 'real' thing.

Moral of the story? Meat eaters really cannot use the 'meat is tasty' excuse and free cheesecake is delicious.

Above: Peanut Butter & Choc Chip Cheesecake that Cheryl and I got. I did rather like it, reminded me of Snickers.

x
A

Why I dislike PETA

PETA bother me for two main reasons:

a) They promote 'happy' meat and a welfareist approach. I disagree with the notion of 'humane' exploitation. Exploitation on any level is unacceptable. It is like being against Pedophilia by only touching the child in less intimate places so it emotionally damages them less.

b) Turning a serious subject into a peep show is useless. It generates the wrong kind of attention. Meat & dairy production are at the highest rates that they have ever been, and numbers are growing in the US. Clearly PETA's campigns are not working. (Sure, some may have become vego from PETAs efforts...but im talking on a grand scale). PETA needs to learn to first show respect for humans. Carol J Adams mentions in her book "Pornography of Meat" how animal rights movements are corrodded by the attitudes of people who do not truly respect human beings. This is true, how do we expect to respect other species, when we dont even respect our own and portray them as meat itself? Campaigns embodying sexism cannot and do not lead to a shift in consciousness about speciesism. Subconsciously in ones mind the women being presented as meat in fact perpetuate the exploitation of animals. Many vegans and vegetarians i know say "oh yes but PETA do so much for the animals!! theyre not perfect and their campaigns get attention at least!". Sure, their ads get attention. But the wrong kind. Facts speak for themselves.

I am all about female empowerment through our sexulality, dont get me wrong - but the women in PETA ads are for the most part portrayed as vulnerable pieces of meat. The 'I'd Rather Go Naked than Wear Fur' campaign is the best example...

I felt like blogging this now as i had been thinking about it today.

Anyway, it is 2.30am...bed time, I think!

Moral Schizophrenia

Francione coined the term "Moral Schizophrenia" (aka "Pet the Dog, eat the Cow" condition), referring to the notion that meat eaters tend to be morally inclined to show compassion for some animals yet happily eat and support violence against others. 

Today I witnessed a perfect case of Moral Schizophrenia.

As I was walking towards my car, I saw a little baby fox sitting next to one squinting at me - I stopped. We stared at each other for a while and i made a move towards him and he moved closer to me, i clearly piqued his interest. I then inched closer and he moved back. We ended up playing a game of chasey. I was feeling inclined to try and catch him to take him home to help him as he was in terrible shape. He was covered in severe scabs, bleeding and puffy eyes, bleeding tail, very injured legs, major hair loss and several cuts. After about 5 minutes he ran away and to my despair, I could not find him.

When I told someone I know about this, they responded saying "I hate it when innocent little animals are hurt. I love animals so much." (This someone also happens to be a meat consumer) 

Me not wanting to be the annoying-in-your-face vegan did not say anything but my first thought was "Hang on, you dont like animals being hurt yet you happily and thoughtlessly consume them? How hypocritical and double sided."

And it is.

Similar case would be the Michael Vick Dog Fighting scenario. Thousands upon thousands of people found Vick's actions barbaric and distrubing, yet they blissfully consume billions of animals annually. The Humane Society of the United States and PETA both stood up and said; "Today, we sound a clarion call to all people: Stand up for what is right, and speak out against what is wrong. Dogfighting is unacceptable. Hurting animals for human pleasure or gain is despicable. Cruelty is just plain wrong." Yet neither of these organisations promote a vegan or nothing message - thus making that statement really meaningless. 

Dogfighting is unacceptable and people involved in such acts will go to jail - but the slaughter of over 53 billion animals a year is A-OK - as long as 'legistlative standards' are met.

This is just another example of how our society is morally schizophrenic on a vast amount of animal related issues.

Honestly, what is the difference between dog fighting and eating pigs or cows that makes one act justifiable? They are both undoubtedly unnecessary.

It is just a double standard for us to stand around pointing fingers at people like Vick for being part of dogfighting whilst happily chewing on our chicken deluxe burger. Can we not make, through logical deduction that essentially it is the same concept? In the end, a sentient being is being killed for our mere pleasure and profit. 

Why can we not see that cruelty to any being is unnacceptable? Then, once we realise this, why can we not see that we are being highly speciesist to assume we are superior thus giving us some inherent 'right' to exploit another being for our personal gain? It is incredible how much this reminds me of sexism and racism and then that just reminds me of how backward as a species we really are.

This superiority complex of ours is destroying the planet. We think that the animals are the ones beneath us, yet we act like outright irrational savages. Really is just one big painful joke.

Accidental non-vegan consumption. Where do you draw the line?

As a vegan, I do not consume animal products. We all know this. 

But at what point is a product consumed? This varies person to person. I, for one find the act of purchasing - paying money to the source for the product as the point of actual consumption. But then once you have bought the item, what if you find it is not vegan due to an oversight? There are a few options here - you can either physically consume it yourself as planned, throw it away or give it to someone else. Each option has pro's and con's but it is also circumstansial. 

Recently I accidentally bought a tofu simmer sauce containing 'scallop'...heres thinking it actually said 'shallot' as was hidden under a little sticker. Completely my fault for not being thorough. But nonetheless, I bought it so had to deal with the consequences. I ended up making it at Vegan Tuesday.

So back to my three choices. I could have thrown it away but then the resources/pain/damage caused during the process of production would be a complete waste and I would be uncomfortable being a part of such waste (this is especially prevalent with dairy/meat). It also could have been given away to someone - but realistically we had nobody to give it away to in a hosuehold full of vegans, it would ultimately be thrown away. So through logical deduction that leaves us with the option of eating it. Why eat it? Because as vegans we KNOW we do not support consuming these products, but eating it - even though it tastes good, we will not want to buy it again. The food has no influence over our lifestyle and moral beliefs, it merely is being consumed to remove it without being wasteful. Whereas if we were to give it to a non vegan they may go "mmm delicious" and be prompted to buy it again (thus we are encouraging consumption). I would much rather give a meat eater vegan food to showcase the lovely foods we get to eat!

But this whole scenario got me to question - where do you draw the line? I ate a sea creature which has a central nervous system...and a penis! Oh my god. What if it contained chicken, cow, pig, cow milk or eggs? 

Would you still consume it if it were meat in order to stick to the logic of not wasting/encouraging the practice? I think I would avoid it at all costs but it depends - as I said, it is circumstansial. 

If it were meat I would most probably feel inclined to throw it away or give it to someone else, to hell with logic. After a certain point the reasoning stems into emotional reasoning. My mind knows that meat/dairy apart from being unnecessary for human health - is morally absurd and barbaric. I cannot handle the thought of the kill floor of a slaughter house hurting precious beings for our whimsical want. It enrages, saddens and deeply upsets me. 

So I guess I do not know where I draw the line if I accidentally purchase a non vegan product. In the end it just comes down to being a case by case scenario and doing what choice feels like the most morally and ethically sound one at the time.

Cheesecake

Yesterday I made my first vegan cheesecake. It turned out very well! It passed the ultimate test, which is, of course, did the omnivores give it the stamp of approval? Well, they did! In fact, it was to a great disbelief for some that the cheesecake was made with tofu. Sigh!

Vegan Lemon and Blueberry Cheescake

Tip! Make the base first

BASE:
350g Mcvities HobNobsDigestive Biscuites (or any other digestive biscuit thats vegan!)
1/4-1/2 cup margarine melted
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350F.
Blend biscuites into crumbs, put into bowl and pour in melted margarine and sugar. Mix. Make sure they all bind together well. Grease baking tray then place mixture into it to form approximately 1/2cm thick base. Put into oven at 350F for 15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool.

CHEESECAKE MIXTURE: 1 -14 oz package firm silken tofu	1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 -8 oz package Better than Cream Cheese	2 tbsp cornstarch
2/3 cup sugar	1 -9 inch pie crust
1/4 cup lemon juice Half cup Blueberries

Preheat oven to 350F.
Place silken tofu and vegan cream cheese in the food processor. Process for 1 minute, then add sugar. Process until smooth and no sugar granules remain, 3-5 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine lemon juice and almond extract. Whisk in cornstarch. Pour mixture into the food processor and process until very smooth. Pour into prepared crust (chuck in a handful of berries in mixture first) and bake for 45 minutes. Place decorative berries on cheesecake when cooling.
Allow to cool at room temperature for 2 hours, then refrigerate overnight.
Serves 10

To make things easier: 1-8 oz of cream cheese is nearly a whole tub of tofutti better than cream cheese

My very first....

Hello all

So this is my very first 'blogger' blog. I recently came to the realisation that I have enormous amount of ambiguous rants lingering in my head which I need to write down in order to simplify for my sanity.

So keep checking here for my occasional rant fest.