LOVE can CONQUER GREED and CAPITALISM!

Many of us tend to overuse the word love even when we don’t really mean it.  Think about the many times throughout the day that you say, “I love (fill in the blank)”  We love clothing, cars, televisions, television programs, songs, artists, art, houses, boats and other material possessions.  These material possessions provide a temporary form of love and gratification that is somewhat meaningless.  These possessions are reason that there is a widening income inequality gap between the masses.  Is that really love?

Why are so many of us so preoccupied with wanting and needing instead of helping and giving?  We are all so conditioned to follow – get an education (if you can afford it), find a life partner, get married, have children, buy a big house (beyond your means and necessity), buy a car (or two, or three), buy a vacation property, save for your future/retirement, save for your children’s education and then die.  I understand the desire to want the best for yourself and your family – but so many people have become desensitized to the realities of our world, so many just don’t care about the wellness of others and will only act out of greed and their desire to want more material possessions, money and wealth.

Capitalism – an economic and political system in which a country’s trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.

Corporations are nothing without the consumer.  We are all contributors to all the issues the world faces today.  People are so concerned with status and having the latest gadgets, the biggest houses, and the best cars that our planet and our humanity is paying the price for.  All of these gadgets and our demand for product is taxing the earth’s natural resources.  Corporations don’t want you to see the negative impact YOUR demand is having on the planet and the people who create these materialistic things.  Is the destruction of our planet worth the price the planet has to pay for the next iPhone or iMac – aren’t these products already doing what they are supposed to do?  Why do we need the latest version(s)?  It’s simple – to make outstanding profits for shareholders and CEO’s.  Household appliances, cars, televisions and many other products are produced to have short ‘life’ expectancies because they want to ensure people continue to buy.  Shouldn’t a car be made to last 15 to 20 years instead of 5 to 7?  Why must a new model entice us every year?  To ensure wealth for the auto industry CEO’s and shareholders.

Personally, our society today makes my head spin.  I am astounded at how many of us are distracted by the greed or corporations and how they buy politicians in order to sustain their wealth and to dictate legislation.  It shouldn’t be the BIG oil companies, auto industry or pharmaceutical companies that dictate what we should do or what we should think.  We know that drilling for oil in the Arctic would wreak havoc in that area should their be an oil spill (and there will be).  We know that fracking (the process of drilling and injecting fluid into the ground at a high pressure in order to fracture shale rocks to release natural gas) takes 1 to 8 millions gallons of water to complete each fracturing while there is a shortage of water globally.

http://www.dangersoffracking.com

We must review our priorities and we must curb our need to want and need.  Future generations will pay for the decisions we make today.  Do we not love the planet enough in order to make the hard decisions today in order to save our planet and future generations?

I love my mother – I love her tremendously.  She is my hero.  She provided love and nurturing that made me the man I am today.  Shouldn’t our greatest love be the mother of us all?  Our mother – EARTH,  she cares for us and she provides us the breath of life, the food we eat and the water we drink and how do we show our gratitude?  We pollute her waters, poison her soil and cut her forests down in an alarming rate in order to build bigger houses for people who are slaves to the corporate world.

Let your love for life be the catalyst for positive change in the world.  Make conscious choices in what you buy, who you buy it from and what type of impact it will have on our planet.  Ask your government for renewable and sustainable energy options for our homes and our cars.  Support companies that plant trees instead of removing them.  Support housing developers that don’t clearcut in order to build their sites and use sustainable materials.  Eat vegan/vegetarian meals as often as you can.  Sign petitions to stop BIG OIL companies from drilling in eco-sensitive areas in the world such as the Arctic.  Don’t contribute to landfills by buying things you don’t need.  Support auto companies that are making commitments to build cars that use clean energy sources.  Show the planet your love and make a difference for good.

Some resources to create positive change:

http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

https://www.worldwildlife.org

http://www.peta.org

http://350.org

http://www.davidsuzuki.org

http://climaterealityproject.org

http://citizensclimatelobby.org

LOVE OUR MOTHER

Images from the internet.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

SUPERBOWL XLIX

I don’t mind competitive sports – or the fact that many professional sports athletes train so hard to achieve their wildest dreams.  Let’s take a look at how much professional athletes get paid or what their contracts are worth…..

FOOTBALL

1. Matt Ryan ($43.8 million)
2. Matthew Stafford ($33 million)
3. Peyton Manning ($27.1 million)
4. Darrelle Revis ($23.8 million)
5. Geno Atkins ($22.4 million)

BOXING

1. Floyd Mayweather ($105 million)
2. Manny Pacquiao ($41.8 million)
3. Wladimir Klitschko ($28 million)
4. Canelo Alvarez ($21 million)

SOCCER

1. Cristiano Ronaldo ($80 million)
2. Lionel Messi ($64.7 million)
3. Zlatan Ibrahimovic ($40.4 million)
4. Gareth Bale ($36.4 million)
5. Radamel Falcao ($35.4 million)

BASKETBALL

1. LeBron James ($72.3 million)
2. Kobe Bryant ($64.7 million)
3. Derrick Rose ($36.6 million)
4. Kevin Durant ($31.9 million)
5. Dwayne Wade ($29.9 million)

These salaries and endorsements for these athletes totalled $838.2 million dollars, according to Forbes:

http://www.forbes.com/athletes/list/#tab:overall

Here are some statistics for this years Superbowl – Superbowl XLIX:

• 118.5 million viewers watched the halftime show
• 120.8 million viewers in the 4th quarter

**Above statistics from Nielson Ratings**

• $4.5 million – cost to run a 30 second ad during this years Superbowl.

The NFL is listed as a not-for-profit who’s commissioner was paid $44 million last year.  Taxpayers are losing $10 million due to the tax exemption the NFL is granted as a not-for-profit….does this make sense?

Couldn’t $4.5 million be used to fight poverty or feed the hungry?  The brands that are paying these professional athletes – are they allocating the same amount of money to charities as they give to athletes as endorsements?  Is it justifiable to give athletes millions of dollars in salaries while those who are committed in saving lives receive a fraction of that?

In a world that is continually being divided due to income inequality and the tax breaks that big businesses receive – is it any wonder that world citizens are craving for a revolution?  The distribution of wealth, corporate greed, corrupt governments and politicians are the reasons why people are at a breaking point. 

Would 120 million viewers be as engaged if they were exposed to commercials about the violence animals face on a daily basis?  Would people be more concerned about the planet if they understood the implications of how these same brands are polluting and destroying the earth in order to advertise and sell their products? 

It would be fantastic to see a PETA, Greenpeace or WWF ad during the Superbowl.  People need to be made aware of what is happening in our world and commercials from these real not-for-profit organizations would definitely engage them to act.  Maybe it’s time the NFL start thinking about creating real positive change in the world.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

 

 

PEOPLE YOU NEED TO KNOW…

I have so many people I respect and look up to, people like; Louise L. Hay, Roseanne Barr (the writer, actress and more importantly – politician), Jesse Ventura, Al Gore, Leonardo DiCaprio, Marianne Williamson, and Eckhart Tolle just to name a few.  Here are other individuals in the public eye that I admire and why I admire them:

Ingrid Newkirk

You may know her as the animal rights activist and PETA president but what you may not have known is that Ingrid has a passion for Formula One racing and sumo-wrestling.  Ingrid wasn’t always a vegetarian and did enjoy meat until she began her work in the ethical treatment of animals.  Ingrid’s mother volunteered for Mother Teresa in a leper colony.    You can see the Matthew Galkin directed movie called, ‘I Am Animal’, which is about Ingrid’s life.  Ingrid Newkirk is the president and co-founder of PETA (Peta for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).

To make donations or to further educate yourself on what PETA accomplishes, please visit: www.peta.org

David Suzuki

David Suzuki is recognized as a world leader in sustainable ecology.  He is an award-winning scientist, environmentalist, broadcaster and author.  Host of the CBC television program, The Nature of Things.  He has written more thank 52 books, 19 of them for children.   David Suzuki’s daughter, Severn Cullis-Suzuki, In 1992, at age 12, raised money with members of the Environmental Children’s Organization (ECO )to attend the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.  Along with group members Michelle Quigg, Vanessa Suttie, and Morgan Geisler, Cullis-Suzuki presented environmental issues from a youth perspective at the summit, where she was applauded for a speech to the delegates.  The video has since become a viral hit, popularly known as “The Girl Who Silenced the World for 5 Minutes” on YouTube.

For more information about David Suzuki and the David Suzuki Foundation, please visit:  www.davidsuzuki.org

Bob Geldof

Much more than lead singer of the Boomtown Rats, Bob Geldof is a humanitarian.  In 1984, he organized Band Aid with Midge Ure, lead singer of Ultravox.  The single “Do They Know It’s Christmas”, became the fastest selling single in U.K. history and raised over £8 million worldwide in funds for emergency aid to Ethiopia.  In 1985, and building on the momentum of Band Aid, the dual Live Aid concerts in London and Philadelphia were held on July 13.  Over a billion and a half people worldwide watched the 16 hour event on television, in which over 60 of the biggest stars in rock music performed, and over £100 million was raised for African famine relief.  Musical and political history was made. 

July 2005, Bob Geldof organized Live 8 to coincide with the 20th anniversary of Live Aid – the show was to help pressure world leaders to drop the debt of the world’s poorest nations, increase and improve aid and negotiate fairer trade rules in interest of poorer countries.

Band Aid Thirty’s and the new version of “Do They Know It’s Christmas” purpose as pointed out by Bob Geldof was and is to maximize pressure on politicians, raise awareness and raise money to fight Ebola in Africa.

For more information about Bob Geldof, Band Aid, Live Aid and Band Aid Thirty, please visit the following sites:  www.bobgeldof.com and www.bandaid30.com

Jane Goodall

At the age of 26, Jane travelled from England to Tanzania  and began her amazing work and research on chimpanzees.  She was equipped with nothing more than a notebook and a pair of binoculars.  Today, Jane Goodall continues to inspire action on behalf of chimpanzees, and to encourage people to do their part in making our world a better place for people, animals and the environment.  The Jane Goodall Institute works to protect the famous chimpanzees of Gombe National Park in Tanzania.

To donate to the Jane Goodall Institute or for further information about Jane Goodall and the Jane Goodall Institute, please visit:  www.janegoodall.org

Ellie Laks

Animals provide so much  for so many people – comfort, unconditional love and a means to relieve stress in a very hostile and aggressive world.  For Ellie Laks, her love for animals became her passion.  She founded the Gentle Barn in Tarzana in 1999 to help teach children kindness, compassion and empathy for all living beings.  The Gentle Barn has rescued over 170 animals and their ultimate goal is to open Gentle Barn’s across the country so that every animal and child can have a place of healing and safety and where they can be seen for the perfect beings that they are.

To donate to the gentle barn and to read their further successes, please visit:  www.gentlebarn.org

Lizzie Velasquez

Imagine how difficult a life we would have if we didn’t have the same facial features as the majority.  We are bullied, harassed and made fun of….that was the case for beautiful Lizzie Velasquez.  Lizzie was born with a very rare condition (only 2 other known people have).  Despite her condition and being called ‘World’s Ugliest Woman’, Lizzie rose above and became an amazing motivation speaker and author.  Lizzie provides inspiration to so many through unconditional love, perseverance and determination.

You can find out more about Lizze at:  www.aboutlizzie.com

Elizabeth Warren

We have all dreamed of politicians who hold big corporations and banks accountable for their lack of action to help the consumer and the working class.  That has changed in US politics with Elizabeth Warren.  Elected in 2012 as the first-ever female senator from Massachusetts defeating incumbent Scott Brown.  She taught law at Rutgers School of Law, the Universities of Michigan, Texas, Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School.  She introduced the ‘Bank on Student Loans Fairness Act’, which would allow students to take out government education loans at the same rate that banks such as Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan Chase pay to borrow from the federal government.  Suggesting that students should get “the same great deal that banks get”, Warren proposed that new student borrowers be able to take out a federally subsidized loan at 0.75%, the rate paid by banks, compared with the current 3.4% student loan rate.

Follow Elizabeth Warren via:  www.warren.senate.gov

David Miller

David Miller was elected the 63rd mayor of Canada’s largest city (Toronto, Ontario) in 2003 for a three-year term and re-elected in 2006 for a four-year term.  He became the 2nd mayor of the newly amalgamated Greater Toronto Area.  In 2013, he was appointed as president and CEO of WWF Canada, the Canadian division of the international World Wildlife Fund.

For more information about WWF Canada or to donate, please visit:  www.wwf.ca

Think about those who inspire you and share their stories with your friends, family or anyone who you feel would like to create positive change in our world.  Let your role models inspire you to create positive change no matter how big or small.  It only takes one story to make a significant difference in the world.  What is your story?

Together we can make the world a more positive one!

 

 

 

SOLDIER OF LOVE

What is a soldier of love?  When we think of soldiers we think of men and women going off to fight for freedom, democracy and to stand up and liberate those who can’t stand up for themselves.  Mostly, we think of soldiers in an almost negative way – death, dying, fighting, conflict and blood.  That is not the soldier I want to talk about.

The soldier that I want to talk about is one that is passionate and committed to creating positive change into our world.  An advocate for love, for compassion – someone who acts with kindness and without judgment.  This type of soldier will do anything for their significant other, they love life, the environment and fight for a cause that does not create conflict but rather diffuse it.  A soldier who will resolve to protect the living  – whether that is man or animal, without raising a gun.

I believe that most countries engage in conflicts that are in the best interests of corporations who are bought and paid for by our governments.  I don’t want to see more soldiers dying for wars that have no positive resolution for the country they are trying to liberate or for our world.  Maybe it is time to let countries fight their own battles?  Needless to say – I do have the out most respect for those men and women who offer their lives to insure we have the freedoms we do today but I am in no way and advocate for violence and war.

I am a soldier of love – and I want to recruit more soldiers.  Soldiers who will not engage in violence and only promote wellness, peace, love and positivity throughout the world.  I want a REVOLUTION OF LOVE – a revolution that will not think in the mindset of yesterday and deal with issues that matter for today’s generation and the generations to come.  We need a new world community that will not wait for governments to act to create positive change but will evoke that change themselves.  We will peacefully demonstrate and advocate for policies and change that will make our world a better place – for the people and not for greedy corporations.  This revolution will fight for the protection of our planet – clean water, clean air, natural and nutritional foods that are not genetically modified or coated with pesticides.  We will fight to free animals in distress that only know a life of cruelty and violence.  We will protect environmentally fragile spaces – the Amazon, the Arctic, the Great Barrier Reef and so many other places around the world that are almost at the point of no return.

The REVOLUTION OF LOVE will not raise a gun but we shall raise our voices for the only thing that matters – THE PLANET because without it, there is nothing else.

How can you become a soldier of love and join this revolution?  Here are several suggestions:

• Join or donate to Greenpeace – defenders of our planet against corporate and government greed.  www.greenpeace.org
• Join or donate to the protectors of our environment such as the World Wildlife Fund or the David Suzuki Foundation.  www.wwf.ca (Canada) or www.wwf.org (international) www.davidsuzuki.org
• Ask companies, churches, financial institutions to divest from ‘dirty oil’ – Get more information at:  www.350.org
• Contact your member of parliament and ask them how they have advocated and instilled policies to protect our environment.  How are they promoting renewable and sustainable energy?  Are they on the side of companies that continue to deplete the earth’s natural resources or are they promoting solar, wind and other cleaner resources?  If not – DON’T GIVE THEM YOUR VOTE!
• Educate yourself on climate change – get the facts from reliable sources not corporate media (Greenpeace, WWF, 350.org, PETA and the David Suzuki foundation)
• Get real news and not the corporate sponsored (and censored) news from Fox, NBC, CBC, ABC and CNN – check out www.projectcensored.org or www.jessieventura.com or check out the YouTube channel – Breaking The Set.
• Understand how raising cattle and eating meat impacts global change by getting the facts via www.peta.org
• Educate, educate, education yourself about climate change:  http://know.climateofconcern.org/index.php

Are you ready to become a soldier of love? 

Together we can make the world a more positive one!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING (CANADA)

Another Thanksgiving holiday has come and gone.  I thought that this would be a great time to list everything that I am thankful for.  Hopefully it will inspire my Canadian friends to think about the things that are important to them.  The United States will not be celebrating until November 27 – I hope that this blog post inspires all the U.S. readers to think about the things they will be most thankful for.  Here are mine:

• Thankful that I am alive
• Thankful that I have my health
• Thankful that I have the best husband and friend anyone could ask for
• Thankful that I don’t eat animals
• Thankful for this beautiful planet
• Thankful for being capable of forgiving those who have caused me pain
• Thankful for doing my best to help in the fight against climate change
• Thankful for a wonderful and understanding family
• Thankful for great friends
• Thankful that I have a job I enjoy
• Thankful for freedom
• Thankful for all the love that I receive
• Thankful for all the love that I give
• Thankful for the universe
• Thankful for my willingness to learn

What are you grateful for?

Together, we can make the world a more postive one!

HOW MUCH PLASTIC IS OUT THERE?

I am amazed how many people I see using or buying items that will end up in a land fill, in our rivers, lakes and oceans and even on the side-of-the-road.  Cigarette packages and cigarettes ends, fast-food wrappers, plastic bags, plastic water bottles, styrofoam containers, beer cans, pop cans, etc.  Are we really that distracted to even consider the consequences of our actions when we purchase such items?  Because of our demand for such items, we have been depleting earth’s natural resources to a degree that shifted the climate patterns.  These products are not made out of thin air, we have to use something to create them, so what big companies turn to in order to meet our consumer demands – the earth.  Well, our planet can not take it any more.  She is crying out for help and is at the brink of a catastrophic meltdown.

I know that images are more effective to making a point but I thought this time, I will let statistics speak for themselves:

Total number of plastic bags used worldwide annually	1 trillion
Total number of plastic bags China consumes everyday	3 billion
Total number of plastic bags used every minute	1 million
Total number of years it takes for a plastic bag to degrade	1,000 years
Total amount of plastic bags that were discarded in 2008	3.5 million tons
Total amount of plastic floating in every square mile of ocean	46,000 pieces
Average amount of plastic bags consumed per family in 4 trips to the grocery store	60
Percent of plastic made every year that will end up in the ocean	10%
Total amount of plastic bags used by U.S. citizens every year	100 billion
Average amount of plastic bottles a U.S. household will use each year	500 plastic bottles
Percent of household waste that is plastic	11%

***Take notice of the blue high-lighted stats***  *** above statistics obtained from:  http://www.statisticbrain.com/plastic-bag-statistics/ ***

What can we do about this?  In terms of plastic bag usage, do what California did and ban them.  Ban plastic bags worldwide.  We don’t need them.  Companies make canvas or nylon bags that can be reused.  The majority of grocery stores always have reusable bags at hand.  Reusable bags are available almost everywhere, so why the need for plastic?

Plastic bags are not the only problem.  How about water bottles?  Here are some statistics on water bottles:

• Making bottles to meet America’s demand for bottled water uses more than 17 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel 1.3 million cars for a year¹. And that’s not even including the oil used for transportation.
• The energy we waste using bottled water would be enough to power 190,000 homes.
• Last year, the average American used 167 disposable water bottles, but only recycled 38.
• Americans used about 50 billion plastic water bottles last year. However, the U.S.’s recycling rate for plastic is only 23 percent, which means 38 billion water bottles – more than $1 billion worth of plastic – are wasted each year³.
• The recommended eight glasses of water a day, at U.S. tap rates equals about $.49 per year; that same amount of bottled water is about $1,400.
• Antimony, which is found in PET plastic bottles, in small doses can cause dizziness and depression; in larger doses it can cause nausea, vomiting and death.

***above statistics obtained via:  http://www.banthebottle.net/bottled-water-facts/ ***

So what can we do about this?  Here are some suggestions:

Plastic Bags:  Don’t buy them anymore.  You really have no use for them.  Reuse the ones you already have and once they can no longer be used, use cloth bags. 

Water Bottles:  I don’t know why anyone would buy plastic water bottles in this day and age.  Like plastic bags, they are polluting our lakes, oceans and parks, they are harming wildlife and ending up in landfills instead of recycling depots.  Buy a reusable one, preferably glass.  I use mason jars to drink and store my water and I also have a reusable water container.  I buy reverse-osmosis water and go to a water depot to refill my bottles regularly.

Fast Food Containers:  Fast-food isn’t good for you.  It is always best to make or cook your own food.  If you do go out to eat – go to a restaurant that uses metal cutlery and reusable plates or visit a restaurant that has a great recycling program and separate’s food waste, compostable material and plastic.  There is a massive shopping mall in downtown Toronto called the Eaton Centre that has adopted the use of reusable cutlery and plates in their food court.  As far as I know, the fast food restaurant that isn’t participating is McDonald’s.  This initiative was great as it creates jobs and is sustainable.  Why is this initiative not used in shopping malls across the nation and around the world?  Demand it at your local shopping mall and be the change you want to see in the world! 

If I ever purchase meals that come with plastic cutlery – I never throw them out.  I wash them and reuse them as long as I can.  (You won’t believe how much I have collected and have been reusing). 

Each time you buy any of the above items or any other items that have access packaging – remember what you are contributing to:  the massive garbage heaps in our oceans, the depletion of earth’s natural resources, the increase of garbage in landfills and the death of all types of animals.  It is time that we really look at the consequences of our actions and it is time that we change to ensure the survival of our planet, wildlife and our humanity.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

VIDEO RE-VISIT

Do you still doubt that animals have feelings?  Do you still think that they can’t express or feel joy, love, empathy or pain….well, think again.  I hope these images and videos help you understand why I advocate for animals and why I made the decision not to eat them or willingly support any company that inflicts cruel and unethical pain and misery on animals.

I hope that you are moved and that you will at least think about how your actions today can affect the livelihood of animals tomorrow.  Be more proactive in choosing the companies you support and let them know that the inhumane treatment of animals is not acceptable in this day and age.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

INNOCENCE and FREEDOM

Forget Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Beyoncé – the following videos have evoked so much emotion from me that I want to share them again.  I don’t need to explain much as they are pretty self-explanatory.  I have renamed them to names I find are much more appropriate.  Here they are with my ‘made-up’ titles:

INNOCENCE

So simply put – what a wonderful mother to appreciate the beauty of her son’s innocence.

FREEDOM

The womam at the beginning got all choked up talking about why they decided to start their foundation.  So emotional and so beatiful when people see the beauty, intelligence, and respect the lives of animals.  The people in this video are true heroes and I am grateful they and so many like them exist in our planet.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

 

WHAT ARE YOU MOTIVATED BY?

Many of us are motivated for various reasons – love, money, fame, fortune, greed, boredom, etc..  Have you ever asked yourself what motivates you to do the things you do?

Let me share with you why I am motivated to do the things that I do.

There was a time in my life where the only thing I cared about was myself.  What looked like, how I acted, who I chose as my companions, what I bought, where I ate….and so on.  Today, I have no concerns for any of these things.  The things that I find important have nothing to do with me but the well-being of those who are suffering.  So what are those things?  Human rights issues, animal rights and environmental protection.  Don’t get me wrong, I still care about my job, my husband and having clothing, food and shelter – but not in excess.

So how am I motivated for human rights issues, animal advocacy and the environment?  Let’s take a look.

Human Rights

Everyone deserves to be treated equally and have the same basic rights as everyone else.  The right to clean drinking water, food, shelter, equality, employment and health care.  Currently, the distribution of wealth favours those who already have huge sums of money.  They don’t struggle with health issues, losing their homes, losing their jobs or going hungry.  How is it that we still can’t protect women who seek to better their lives through education in some countries, homosexuals are subjected to imprisonment or even death in many countries around the world, why do we allow mass genocide in various countries around the world?  Why are so many impoverished men, women and children still without clean drinking water?  I meditate, I sign and share petitions, I donate and I education myself on many human rights issues so that I directly and indirectly create some positive change in the world.

Animal Advocacy

Animals do voice their concern – whether it is a loud cry from violence inflicted against them or grief from losing their kin.  They feel, they sense, they understand and have emotions as we do.  How is it that we respect and call dogs ‘man’s best friend’ and in the same breath eat the meat from a fish, pig or cow?  Cats and dogs are domesticated and farm animals are just that – farm animals.  I stopped eating meat for mostly ethical reasons (have you ever heard rabbits scream?) and a minor health issue.  I continue to learn about the amazing things animals do and am a proud PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) supporter.  I have learned to tone down my advocacy (even though those who eat meat continue to snicker and mock my lifestyle) but continue to share posts/blogs with others regarding the torture and violence that many animals continue to endure at the hands of humans.  What I learn – I share because, even if my message only reaches one person, that saves a life of an animal some where.

The Environment 

Without clean water, food and breathable air – there is no earth and there is no humanity.  End of story.  In the last hundreds years and throughout the industrial revolution, we have managed to wreak so much havoc on the planet that has allowed us to change the climate.  Our dependency on dirty oil has modified weather patterns across the globe.  The oceans are more acidic due to the increase in water temperatures, deforestation has allowed the increase in temperatures around the globe.  We are now witnessing more severe and destructions hurricanes, tornadoes, monsoons, wildfires, ice storms, floods and so on.  What is the solution?  Less.  Less of everything.  No more big SUV’s and trucks, less televisions, less materialistic things (they use much of earths resources), less meat consumption (the greatest environmental threat is factory farming), less travel, less polluting, less of everything.  Drastic, absolutely!  Necessary, you better believe it!  What am I doing to help our environment?  Well, for starters, I no longer contribute to factory farming as a vegan.  I am currently investigating and will be investing in solar panels for my major source of energy.  I will be buying an electric car as they don’t rely on dirty oil.  I make it a point to support companies that invest on green technology and sustainable energy.  I share and write blogs about corrupt companies who only care about the bottom line no matter at what cost.  I don’t support governments or political candidates who continue to support things such as the Alberta Tar Sands or drilling in the Arctic.  I don’t support and will cease to support any company that contributes to deforestation and polluting our waters.

My motivations are not due to greed, distraction, envy, the need to be famous, rich or powerful.  My motivations are directly linked with empathy for those who are less fortunate than I am, those who cannot speak for themselves and for a planet that is pushed to its limits.  I am motivated by my need to create positive change in my community, in my province, in my country and for my planet.  That is all.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!

 

 

 

ANIMALS ARE SENTIENT

You don’t have to be a scientist or zoologist to know and understand that animals have feelings – they don’t like to be chained, they cry out in pain when you hurt them, they don’t like to be alone and they would tell you all these things if they could talk.

Sea World is under much scrutiny due to the way they treat their whales and other captured mammals.  Circuses are under investigation for the use of bullhooks – a cruel method in training elephants and pharmaceutical laboratories and educational institutions are being forced to stop cruel and unneccessary animal testing.

People are not aware that factory farming is the biggest challenge to climate change – you need land, which causes deforestation, you need food to keep these animals alive and hormones to make them fatter.

Do people even think about how their food ends up on their plate – do they think about the treatment animals endure to become food, clothing or used for entertainment?  Animals are amazing creatures that can feel, think, and let us know when they are in discomfort….all you have to do to see this, is to look into their eyes:

Much can be said about a person in the way they treat and think of animals.

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!