The news from Japan has had a somewhat paralyzing effect on me. I feel helpless to make a difference. Ultimately, there is no particularly profound revelation to follow this statement. However, in small ways, I believe in the potential goodness that can come in the wake of such disasters. For me it's been a natural time to consider how blessed we (me, my family, many Americans, pretty much everyone reading this blog) are and also to think about certain parts of life I take for granted. For one, eating meat. (I try to keep the verbiage to a minimum here on A City Mouse, so excuse the occasional jolt-y transition.) I don't become a vegetarian by the end of this post, I'm talking about blindly taking for granted a seemingly unlimited supply of shrink wrapped animal flesh.
Before I got the chance to snuggle up with some crudite and re-read my Michael Pollan books I happened upon Carol Kaesuk Yoon's article, "No Face, but Plants Like Life Too" in the New York Times. The title kind of sums it up, a bit wackadoodle to be blunt. Similar to my experience of reading Pollan's book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, I went away from this article feeling like there were no solutions, only problems, since perhaps plant eating is f@#'d as well. From there, somehow I stumbled upon an article about proposed legislation to make taking photographs or video of commercial farming a felony offense. Which led to watching a video on the Humane Society website about the continued use of gestation crates for pigs at Smithfield Foods (this video seems to be commonly cited as a prime reason why pro farm industry types would want covert documentation outlawed). I will spare you the link to that gruesome video and take you straight to the punch line: considering there are choices when it comes to buying meat, if you haven't already, if wouldn't hurt to learn about where your meat is coming from and shop according to your level of comfort with how the animals are treated.
(stepping off soap box, sort of)
Excess verbiage be damned, I am officially rambling. After the Smithfield video, I was pretty depressed. Then I came across Mark Bittman's piece, Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others (again in the NYT - I don't get out much). The topic is the twistedness of a young woman getting arrested for allegedly killing a hamster when "Common Farming Exemptions" allow for all manner of mistreatment and torture to be inflicted upon animals raised for food. R pointed out that Bittman should have elaborated further on the economics - i.e. if the animals we eat were universally treated more humanely, meat would likely be more expensive and less would be consumed. Short term commercial interests aside, this would be a good thing. One of these days, I will have a Bittman love fest on this blog, because he is generally great.
Most recently, I read the article about how the spike in American and European quinoa consumption has skyrocketed its price - making it unaffordable to many natives of Bolivia, where quinoa is grown. So Bolivians are eating a lot less nutritious quinoa and more cheap processed food. Are you kidding me? I guess it's not just the Japan news that has my head spinning.
Enough with the problems.
My mother suggested petitioning to have the Indian Point Energy Center (the nuclear power plant in Buchanan, NY) shut down.
The first of "three easy ways to make a difference", from Peter Singer's website:
1. DO SOMETHING FOR THE WORLD'S POOREST PEOPLE Donate some of your spare income to help those in great need. I support Oxfam, an organization that works directly with local grass roots organizations in developing countries, and supervises the way its money is used to prevent corruption and waste. http://www.oxfam.org.
Your suggestions are welcome.
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