From the Mouths of Tweens

I ran into these banana slurpee drinking, hipster-in-training, bike riding young men at a gas station and stopped to chat with them about why they were interested in becoming vegetarian…

We laugh at the end; I laugh because if I could have paid my new friend, Ron, to tell people not to eat chickens (or their eggs) or to at least cut down on their consumption, I would have, but he came up with that statement entirely on his own.

Sometimes the youngsters know better than the oldsters.

*Update: change.org just posted this footage of the standard practice of killing male chickens at birth. Haven’t watched it yet because I’m horrified. Give me a few days…

Deathless

Human Nature is Human Habit

We look to animals as our role models for how we should behave – animals kill other animals for food, so therefore humans should do the same.

And yet, we justify killing animals by categorizing them as a lower form of life whose lives are not worth as much.

So how can we view animals as both our role models and our inferiors?..

Coup d’Etat

Seize the State of the Plate

The Coup is a vegetarian restaurant in Calgary that has been around for a few years and is just getting busier. Although some pronounce it “coop” like chicken coop, the restaurant is actually named after the event that occurs when a small group overthrows the government. Of course this Coup is not talking violence, it’s talking about (cutely and quietly) overthrowing the mainstream meat-based restaurant trend. So far, the restaurant really is re-defining meat, with its new sibling restaurant, Meet, next door (more of a tapas lounge), the reason for this addition being that The Coup was literally bursting at the seams with hungry veggies. I usually run into at least a few people I know here… then start eyeing their table as I wait for a spot to open up.

The Coup offers dinner dishes like:

The Field Trip

organic greens with a yogurt dill
dressing, surrounded by a Mediterranean
tahini spread, sesame date yam
dip, sundried tomato hummus,
sunflower-seaweed pate, served with
organic foccacia and lavash

The Wild Rose Smoke Stack

fresh greens, pan seared
portabella mushroom, smoked
balsamic tahini eggplant, quinoa,
sautéed greens and shallots, fresh
organic tomato topped with
sprouts and hemp oil

…and here are some photos of lunch dishes below.

Supporting local, organic, biodynamic farming, The Coup can overthrow my government any day.

If I Hear the Word “Passion” Once More…

“From the dawn of time

They taught her why

Not to ask those questions…”

Sarah Slean, John the 23rd

Top 7 Defense Strategies

to Avoid Talking About Animal Rights

I used to be comfortable being a quiet vegetarian who rarely brought up issues surrounding factory farming (and such) so as not to alienate people. But in making the activist switch, I have pretty much thrown this taboo subject out the window of a formerly-known-as WTC building, and now challenge people to think about the animal products they’re eating.

Here are some knee-jerk reactions I’ve drawn lately when the subject of factory farming is breached:

1. That’s your mission; I have other things to do.

The problem I have with this statement is the “your”. Animal rights are not my mission. They are our shared responsibility as a planet. I’m sure as hell not doing it alone, and I’m not doing it for the glory. Different people have different paths. You don’t have to become an animal activist to live compassionately, you simply have to question your current consumer choices and examine if there are more  humane choices available.

2. It’s great that you have beliefs you’re so passionate about.

O_m_g. Firstly, the way animals are currently being treated in the world has nothing to do with belief. You can choose to believe it or not – doesn’t change that it’s happening. Secondly – if I hear the word passion once more I will passionately *snap*</>. Speaking out for animal rights is not something people do because they are passionate about it, but because they have seen things that have disturbed them to the very core and cannot go on living their lives with this knowledge. Passion is for hot guys – not abused, exploited animals. That would be called: compassion.

3. Vegans are all pale and anemic.

Mmmkay… I know a few vegans who could kick pretty much anyone’s ass. *You know who you are…

Comments like this are almost parallel to racism to me, because it’s making judgments of people based on the color of their skin and or other physical traits. It’s the generalizing that’s dangerous. Thinking of the palest person I know, she’s a rampant meat-eater. Not all vegans define themselves exactly the same (eg. honey), but generally, eating a diet free of most-to-all animal products has the divine by-product of being somewhat guilt-free – and that’s attractive. Sure not entirely guilt-free, we all have our crosses to bear. But we all have the option as to whether we want to contribute to suffering and that’s empowering.

4. I come from a meat-eating background.

So did basically everyone. Pretty much all past cultures have included meat in their cuisines, but with the same amazing technology that allows farmers to monitor their cows’ health via cell phone, we can now prepare things like Tofurky sausage that are just as tasty as guts (even my brother’s dog Busta Rhymes  seemed to like the taste of Tofurky this morning and I’m fairly sure he comes from a meat-eating background).

5.  Meat isn’t sustainable because there are too many people in the world.

Well, okay – let’s say we’ve surpassed the magic number of people that should be on this planet. How can we mend this sticky situation? Well, first we have to feed everyone here. Oh – wait, we can’t do that with meat. Meat-eaters use WAY more water a day than veggies, use WAY more  fossil fuels, emit WAY more carbon dioxide, and are indirectly eating way more in general because of how much grain it takes to feed a single animal. Let’s deal with the situation as it is, not as it should be, and let’s work on keeping the people we do have in this world healthy and happy so we can make responsible collective decisions about the future of our procreation.

6. The environment concerns me just as much as animal suffering.

So then we’re agreed on saving the rainforest. Aside from the info mentioned above, raising livestock takes up a lot of precious  space and contributes to deforestation. Not only that but animal waste is polluting our water systems at an alarming rate and stinking up entire counties in a mass-crime against fresh air! (cough* Coalinga *cough)

7. I need to eat.

Food = meat. So what do you want from me?

I certainly understand why people see animal products as the be-all end-all of food. We are a society of habit and pattern and have been taught to prepare certain foods and not others. Fair enough. All I ask is that people be open to trying new things and consider seeking plant-based alternatives. That doesn’t need to happen overnight. You develop a taste for new things with time. I no longer see ground beef as food, for example, especially when it’s shoved in my face on TV like raunchy, plot-less porn. “Food is an art,” my friend, Keith, was telling me last night, and art constantly needs new methods to progress and stimulate.

Make It So

Cause-Effect vs. Intention-Manifestation

A new way to look at goal setting in our attempt to find balance between being active and allowing the universe to do its thing.

One of the key models for goal achievement is that of cause and effect. This model says that your goal is an effect to be achieved, and your task is to identify and then create the cause that will produce the desired effect, thereby achieving your goal. Sounds simple enough, right?

However, the main problem with this model is that nearly everyone seriously misunderstands it. And that misunderstanding comes from not knowing what a “cause” really is.

You might assume that the cause of an effect would be a series of physical and mental actions leading up to that effect. Action-reaction. If your goal is to make dinner, then you might think the cause would be the series of preparation steps.

To an outside observer, that certainly appears to be the case. The scientific method would suggest that this is how things work, based on a purely objective observation.

However, within your own consciousness, you know that the series of action steps is not the real cause. The actions are themselves an effect, aren’t they?

What’s the real cause? The real cause is the decision you made to create that effect in the first place. That’s the moment you said to yourself, “Let it be” or “make it so.” At some point you decided to make dinner. That decision may have been subconscious, but it was still a decision. Without that decision the dinner would never manifest. That decision ultimately caused the whole series of actions and finally the manifestation of your dinner.

Where does that decision arise from? It might arise from your subconscious, or in the case of conscious decisions, it arises from your consciousness. Ultimately your consciousness is the greater power, as it can override subconscious choices once it becomes aware of them.

Missing this very simple distinction has contributed to quite a number of failed goals.

If you want to achieve a goal you’ve set, the most crucial part is to DECIDE to manifest it. It doesn’t matter if you feel it’s outside your control to do so. It doesn’t matter if you can’t yet see how you’ll get from A to B. Most of those resources will come online AFTER you’ve made the decision, not before.

If you don’t understand this simple step, then you will waste a lot of time. Step 1 is to decide. Not to ruminate or to ponder or to ask around and see whether or not you can do it. If you want to start your own business, then decide to make it so. If you want to be married and have a family, then decide to attract a mate. If you want to change careers, then decide to do so.

It blows my mind that people think that something else has to come before the decision. People waste months trying to figure out, “Is this goal possible?” And this makes a lot of sense to do so if you’re at a certain level of consciousness. But all you’re really doing is creating delay, and you’ll simply manifest evidence to suggest that the goal is both possible and not possible. You think doubt in your head, you find doubt in the world.

Time and again I’ve seen evidence that not only people, but the universe itself, can sense a lack of commitment to a goal. Have you ever heard someone tell you about a goal of theirs, and you can just sense how wishy-washy and uncertain they are about it? They say things like, “Well, I’m going to try this and see how it goes. Hopefully it will work out OK.” Is that evidence that a clear decision has been made? Not remotely. Are you going to help this person? Probably not — who wants to waste their time on someone who isn’t committed?

But what happens when you sense total certainty in the other person? Will you help them if they ask for it? You’re far more likely to help a committed person because you can tell they’re eventually going to succeed anyway, and you want to be part of that success. You even feel more energized and motivated yourself to contribute to the success of people who are very clearly committed to a goal that resonates with you and which is genuinely for the greatest good of all.

Mecca Lecca Hi Mecca Hiney Ho

Don’t you think this process works the same way within your own mind? If your consciousness is divided against itself, do you think it will commit all its internal resources to your goal? Will your subconscious give you all the energy and creativity it possibly could, or will it hold back? Think of your subconscious mind as a multi-tasking computer processor. What percentage of resources will it devote to a task that you’ve told it to execute with the words, “Run this for a little bit and see if it works, but quickly dump it if it seems too difficult”? Now what if you gave that CPU a process labeled, “Run this now”? The universe itself works on the same principle. Think of it as the superconscious mind. When you’ve made a clear, committed decision it will open the universal floodgates, bringing you all the resources you need, sometimes in seemingly mysterious or impossible ways.

Whenever you want to set a new goal for yourself, start by setting it. Take the time to become clear about what you want, but then just declare it.

Say to the universe, “Here is the goal. Make it so.”

Do not ask the universe for what you want. Declare it. Don’t ask. This is very similar to prayer, but you are not praying FOR what you want. You are praying WHAT you want. You are simply saying, “Here it is. Make it so.” It is like planting a seed in the ground. You do not say to the ground, “Here is the seed. Please, can you make it grow?” You simply plant the seed, and it will grow as a natural consequence of your planting and tending to it. It is the same with your intentions. Simply plant them. There’s no need to beg.

Intend that your goal manifest in such a manner that is for the greatest good of all. This is very important, as intentions that are created out of fear or a sense of lack will backfire. You may get what you want, but it will yield a bitter aftertaste. Or you may get the exact opposite of what you want. But intentions that are genuinely made for your own good and the greatest good of all will tend to manifest in a positive way.

After I declare my intention, I wait for the resources and synchronicities to arrive. Usually they begin to manifest in 24-48 hours, sometimes sooner. Sometimes these synchronicities appear to be the result of subconscious action. I just happen to notice things that may have been there all along, but now I see them in a new light, and they become resources for me that I never noticed until after I declared my intention. But many times it’s nearly impossible to explain such synchronicities as the result of my own subconscious action, even if I step back and try to look at them purely objectively. Sometimes they come in such unusual avalanches that I can only explain them as the result of superconscious action. On some level the universe itself is aware of my intention and is doing its part to help manifest it. I also find that the more inviting I am of these synchronicities, the more easily they flow. Right now I typically experience about 10 per week on average, and I think that’s because I have many different intentions in the process of manifesting, so there’s a constant flow of resources coming to me.

The mental and physical planning and action steps come later. That’s how I organize the resources that have arrived. Once enough resources have come to me, I can begin to see how they all fit together to achieve the goal. But if the path seems too complicated or difficult and I don’t like what I see, I put out some new intentions to make it the way I want it to be. I declare, “Let it be simpler.” I again wait for the synchronicities to arrive, and a simpler approach becomes clear. Usually for an approach to be simpler, it means I have to get past some personal block within me. I have to grow on some level in order to be able to take advantage of a simpler solution. Or perhaps I have to learn a new skill first. So while it might be simpler, it might also be harder on a personal level. For example, by putting out the intention to do more to help people, I had to develop my communication skills. That makes the goal easier to achieve, but it’s more work up front.

In truth this is a simple and direct process. But our minds are so cluttered with the flotsam and jetsam of social conditioning that we have a hard time thinking on this level. We get so attached to seeing our goals manifest a certain way because that’s how they manifest in TV shows or in movies. Or maybe that’s how our parents or friends did it. But this attachment to a particular “how” blocks us from allowing our goals to manifest far more easily. If we could loosen up a bit on the “how” and just learn to allow the manifestation to occur in its own perfect way, goal achievement would be far easier.

So often I see people sabotage their own goals because they do not understand the power of intention. Realize that EVERY thought is truly an intention. Every thought. So most people manifest a cluttered mish-mash of conflict in their lives because their thoughts are in conflict. They simultaneously set a goal and then unset it. “I want to start my own business.” “I wonder if it will work.” “I wonder if I’ll succeed.” “Maybe this won’t work.” “Maybe John is right, and this is a mistake.” “No, I’m pretty sure it will work just fine.”

If you are trying to achieve goals on the level of action-reaction, meaning that you’re purely focused on the action steps, while at the higher level of intention-manifestation, you’re putting out conflicting thoughts, then you’re sabotaging yourself. If you go on a diet and exercise like crazy, while all the while thinking, “I’m fat. This is hopeless. This is taking too long,” then your higher level intentions will override your actions, and negative or incongruent results will follow.

If you want to achieve a goal, you must clear out all the “hopefully” and “maybe” and “can’t” nonsense from your consciousness. You cannot allow yourself the luxury of a negative thought, and that is an intention to manifest what you don’t want. This takes practice of course, but it is the essential art of learning to use your consciousness to create what you want. When you are congruent in your thoughts, your goal will manifest with ease. But when you are incongruent in your thoughts, you will manifest conflict and obstacles. As within, so without.

Why is it you’re able to do this? Because you have that power. Not believing in yourself simply means you’re using your own power against yourself. You’re like a god saying, “Let me be powerless,” and you don’t even realize it. If you think/intend weakness, you manifest weakness. If you project your power outside yourself and onto the external world, you lose your power.

You don’t need anyone’s permission to do this. It is a natural human ability. But it takes practice to develop your consciousness to the level where you can apply it and especially to learn to trust it.

What happens if you decide to manifest a really, really big goal, one that seems physically impossible? The process will still work. It’s just that there will be a lot more steps, and you may be led through various synchronicities for years before you’ve reached the point where your ultimate goal can manifest. It might take longer than your human lifetime if the goal is so big. But you will certainly make progress if you use this approach. So what is your goal? Say it out loud right now, and let it be for the greatest good of all. Then say to the universe, “Make it so.” Wait for the synchronicities and unusual coincidences to arrive. Follow them where they want to lead you, even if it seems strange at first. Allow your goal to manifest.

Laser Beams In My Dreams

Skip the Brazilian, Go For the Beam!

dawnofanewera chats with Collette from Midwest Cosmetic & Laser Surgery Centre to delve into the magical process of laser hair removal.

Laser hair removal works through the process of selective photothemolysis, causing permanent damage to the hair follicle by targeting darker areas of melanin, while not heating the skin.

“The anagen phase is when the hair is most vulnerable to the laser,” Colette explains.

Why Laser Hair Removal?

In comparison to electrolysis (electricity delivered to each individual hair follicle), laser hair removal is faster, more efficient, and less painful. Although electrolysis can be a good solution for fair hair. Generally, people also feel that laser hair removal is less painful than waxing and it’s definitely more effective long-term. It’s very satisfying and liberating.

What Are the Typical Results?

Genetic pre-disposition is always a factor to be considered, but generally you’ll see a difference with each treatment – with the hair becoming softer, the shaving issue is 100% improved. The back can be more difficult because it’s an area of thicker skin, but the bikini area responds wonderfully, as well as the chin and the upper lip.

How Much?

Bikini is around $125, underarm area is around $125, and full leg (both) is about $650 (which includes bikini and feet). Nobody wants to be a hobbit!

Who’s Doing It?

Anyone from their 20s to 60s, mainly.  We all have dormant hair follicles that are prone to becoming active if certain hormones are triggered through things like pregnancy and menopause.

Those with light skin and dark hair are the best candidates for Laser Hair Removal. But those individuals with darker skin can have coarser hair and can therefore also benefit from it. The LightSheer laser works the best for those with darker skin tones.

Does It Hurt?

Some people say it feels like an elastic band snapping against your skin. It’s a little more intense than this – a bit sharper than an elastic. But everyone’s pain threshold is different. If it’s pain-free, it’s not doing what it’s supposed to.

Any Way to Ease the Pain?

Suck it up! It’s over fairly quickly. Some people are more apprehensive and choose the EMLA, a topical anathestic cream which costs about $40 and is put on  60-90 minutes before the treatment. It doesn’t take the pain away, but does take the edge off. Tylenol can help take the edge off, too.

(*Collette uses a special trick of of placing the climax of her stories at the climax of the pain.)

What Can Go Wrong?

The most common problem occuring with laser hair removal is hyper-pigmentation because the laser is attracted to pigment. If you’ve been out in the sun, the laser gets a little over-excited and can discolor the darker area of the skin. 80% of hyper-pigmentation goes away, but it can be permanent. Improper technique can burn the skin and cause small blisters so choose your clinic wisely and choose a technician you’re comfortable with.

Or… you could just be a

Just saying : )

*Title in reference to a cheer we used to do at the YMCA Camp Chief Hector. The 12-13 year old group was called the Kananaskins, and we sang a cheer that went a little something like this…

(stomping and clapping)

We’re the ones from Kananaskins

We’re the ones who have the fun

We’re the ones who act like asses *donkeys* (this was a Christian camp…)

Put the others on the run.

Second verse same as the first

Whole lot louder and a whole lot worse.

(Repeat lines 1-4)

Chorus:

Laser beams – woo, woo (twirling gesture)

In my dreams – woo, woo

Laser beams – woo, woo

In my dreams – woo, woo

(…there was more to the cheer… something about a chicken train that we were riding all day… Crazy Christians.)

He’s Got Your Crazy

Okay, so we all know that Alec Baldwin is a bit of a nutjob, having made such poor choices as calling his daughter, Ireland, a “rude little pig” on an exposed answering machine tape. But in Baldwin’s “save the celeb” article for the Huffington Post about forgiving  Michael Vick for the horrific dog-fighting facilities found on his property in 2007 , Baldwin brings up some good points about  how the real villains in animal rights are those who are able to let their eyes glaze over when discussing matters like vivisection and animal testing, etc..

Dogfighting is undoubtedly sick, but so are many of the processes by which we obtain our goods in this animal product based world. The real villain was the teenage girl on West Broadway the other weekend who looked directly at the photographs of ducks being force-fed, and replied (insert Regina-from-Mean-Girls-white-privileged-parents-fucked-this-girl-UP tone): “they’re gonna die anyway!”

Here are some excerpts from Baldwin’s plea:

On rehabilitation:
What Vick did is, obviously, senseless and reprehensible. But I believe Vick, as a wealthy and talented athletic superstar who performs his job out in the open before crowds of amped-up and highly opinionated fans, suffers an unfair disadvantage as compared to, say, the heads of a meatpacking plant or the directors of a medical research lab where animals are suffering the cruelest imaginable abuses behind walls and doors that remove them from our sight and, therefore, judgments. Vick did horrific things and he deserved to be punished. He served his time and now I wonder what good does it do to exile him in shame and not let him show his example of how one can be rehabilitated after that kind of behavior. If Vick returns to his true form as an NFL pro, that platform can mean real progress for the animal rights movement. Or do some people really not want to open that conversation? Vick is one man who, along with his friends, brutally tortured and killed many innocent dogs and called it a sport. Each day in this country, millions upon millions of animals are suffering lives of daily abuse in factory farming, but we turn away because that animal, unlike Vick’s dogs, ends up on a grill and then on our plates. Animals that are not raised as pets suffer in ways that you and I don’t really want to know.

On the real problem:
Vick is easy to target as a villain. But the man who should have been setting an example for his young fans about how to comport oneself off the field can still do so. Donating a healthy figure from his enormous salary to any mixture of animal rights groups seems like a good start to me. I have a list for Vick when he is ready. But to ban Vick, to cast him aside and simply hate him, knowing that someone in his position stands potentially ready (and I do stress potentially) to effectively serve the interests of the very groups and individuals that he most offended, would be a mistake. Especially when there are enterprises operating in this country who will torture and kill more animals than a thousand Michael Vicks ever could, but you can not buy a ticket to watch them perform their job on a Sunday afternoon.

On forgiveness:
Vick deserves another chance. One chance. Just like all of us who eat meat, drink milk, attend rodeos, circuses, zoos and horse races and yet find it easier to hand Vick the bill for all of the other, more systemic abuses in our society may find ourselves needing another chance one day. Just like Michael Vick.

What role does forgiveness play in reforming the world’s treatment of animals?

Fuck You

The title of this post is in reference to the video below…Not everything is about you.

Hard to criticize Poppa Pitt when he’s active for so many good causes (the legalization of pot, gay marriage, anti-religion…), but it is necessary  to question impactful individuals who acknowledge some oppressive systems but not others.

Let’s take it a step further Brad and examine speciesism!

Then we’ll vote for you.

Go Back To Europe

CrimethInc. Convergence Gathering In Pittsburgh Disrupted By Racial Fury

During the last week of July, CrimeInc. held its annual Convergence gathering in inner-city Pittsburg in an attempt to transform an urban space into an anarchist community (as opposed to previous gatherings which had been held in rural outdoor areas). At the end of the week-long gathering, a disruption took place where several APOC (Anarchist People of Color) who had attended the gathering stormed the space and began ravaging people’s belongings demanding that they leave the city (!)

This terrifying racist behavior is disappointing and unsettling, as I considered attending this gathering and will likely attend one in the future. Below is a summary of what took place at the convergence.

This is a brief statement followed by personal accounts detailing the events of a controversial disruption that happened at the end of the CrimethInc. Convergence in Pittsburgh this July. These texts have been written by some anarchist people of color who participated in the convergence and were present the night of the disruption. There has been some discussion about it on the internet, but we hope to offer people more context from our perspectives about that night. Still, mostly questions remain about how to proceed. Hopefully at least, these accounts will provoke honest, open, humble conversations about all of the issues raised, so that we can figure out how to move forward as radical communities in struggle.

There is so much ground to cover to convey what happened throughout the weeklong convergence. Check back soon for further reportbacks about the rest of the convergence.

Brief Statement

What seemed like an awesome, performative disruption—a reclamation of space, an expression of anger, an opening up of dialogue—shifted quickly into something else entirely. At the end of a night of Cabaret at the CrimethInc. Convergence in late July, about half a dozen anarchist/autonomist people of color—some who had participated in the convergence all week and some who came into town just for this “action”—stormed into a hall full of people, reading a statement about gentrification and white supremacy, while screaming slogans.

People watched in silence, uncertain of how to respond to such intense aggression from this small group of friends. With no provocation, the disrupters* started grabbing people’s backpacks and sleeping bags and throwing them out into the hallway, under a rallying cry of, “Get the fuck out of here! Get the fuck out of Pittsburgh! We’re not fucking kidding!” They cleared people’s bags from the shelves, from off the ground; they grabbed lamps, chairs, anything they could get their hands on. Tossing everything out of the room, people’s belongings were dumped into jumbled piles everywhere. The disrupters screamed that white people were gentrifying the neighborhood the Convergence was in—neighborhoods everywhere—and that they wouldn’t stop what they were doing until all of the white people from the convergence were out of the building, out of Pittsburgh. It was the middle of the night, and almost everyone had been staying in that building. With nowhere to go, many people started to leave.

The disrupters became increasingly aggressive with the people in the room. They got up in people’s faces, and yelled at them to leave, “Go back to Europe! I’m sick of looking at your white fucking face!” Provoked into fear and panic, many people left the room, tears streaming down their faces. Others responded with a variety of racist comments demonstrating just how far a lot of people have to go in terms of understanding white supremacy and privilege. The disrupters used thinly veiled intimidation and threats, like screaming, “Get the fuck out of here! I am not a pacifist!” while pulling bags out of people’s hands; they muscled past the people who tried to block the flow of backpacks and purses out into the hallway, thrusting the belongings into people’s heads, backs, and other parts of their bodies.

In an attempt to deescalate the situation, people eventually started encouraging everyone to leave. Convergence attendees poured out onto the sidewalks, and started organizing alternate housing and carpools. Many people’s belongings were still lost and strewn all over the convergence space, but with the police arriving to investigate the scene, everyone had to go somewhere. By nearly 2 am, all of the people who did not identify as people of color—and all those too traumatized by the aggression of the disrupters—were out of the upstairs, yet the disrupters still refused to leave. Some people of color from the convergence called a caucus with the disrupters, but after an unproductive attempt at dialogue, finally, the disrupters left.

Apparently, a few friends of the disrupters had known about the planned disruption beforehand, but afterwards, everyone apologetically explained that they had expected the disruption to have a radically different character. Some people mentioned the feminist disruption of an anarchist gathering in the UK where women hijacked a meeting to screen a movie about feminism when describing what they had imagined. We certainly hope people would have intervened if they had foreseen the aggression and violence the disrupters chose to employ.

–from people of color who attended the convergence and oppose the disruption

*We are referring to this group of people as “the disrupters” because the only way they referenced themselves was as people from APOC (anarchist people of color). However, they were certainly not acting on behalf of all APOCers. And like with any decentralized group structure, when a few people do fucked up things under a banner that many people feel affinity with, those people risk delegitimizing the whole movement rather than bearing the responsibility for their own actions. To be clear, this disruption was NOT an APOC action.

The other side of the “Smack a White Boy” attack can be read here. Disrupters admit to moving the belongings of attendants and physically evicting people. Here is an excerpt:

We were not open to negotiation and stated such. There is no negotiation for colonization. As we were approached
with physical force one of us responded with,

“Don’t try to fight us, we are not pacifists, we will defend ourselves!”

This is not anarchy.

Anarchy is the end of oppressive behavior.

Dolphincide

The Cove

Japan’s Shame Exposed

Can I Try It Really Quick?

The Tiger Truck Is On the Prowl

Ex-hunter Steve Hindi of SHARK (Showing Animals Respect and Kindness) has pimped his ride into an indestructible armored truck with four inescapable hundred-inch video screens to expose animal cruelty, educating people all over North America. The ferosh vehicle is named  “The Tiger” because it’s always on the prowl.

“The Tiger gets you coming and going. That’s just the way SHARK likes it.”

Camden Courier-Post, February 24, 2005

“The video looped repeatedly, showing scenes of cattle being violently jerked from their hooves in rodeos.

Far from entertaining, the film was meant to shock – and it did, slowing traffic Wednesday evening outside Campbell Soup Co.’s headquarters.”

Thrown objects of ignorant passerby are easily deflected by the truck’s bullet-proof siding.

Activists Joanne Chang and Anthony Marr had one request for Steve Hindi on his interview on Co-Op Radio FM102.7 yesterday:

bring it on home!

The truck’s presence is requested at next year’s Calgary Stampede – the pinnacle of the year for the BTT  (Behind the Times) city of Calgary, Alberta. 4 animals died this year in the Calgary rodeo and there is no proof more solid than this to show that the “sport” is inhumane.

Real sports consist of willing participants.

On behalf of the entire compassionate population of Calgary, I would like to summon the Tiger Truck to crash the massive hick fest that is the Calgary Stampede.

Go Terrorist!

Non-Violent Demonstrations to Protest Violent Acts Considered Terrorism

Under US Law

4 Animal Rights Activists in the US known as the AETA are the first to be tried under the new Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act for conducting a series of  home demos outside of UC Berkley and UC Santa Cruz vivisectors’ residences. The act prohibits individuals to gather in peaceful protest against animal rights issues, labeling the animals are “products” of enterprise.

Even Obama refuses to use to word “terrorist” these days. Because you know what’s just as terrifying as masked men taking down your plane?  Your economy crashing down around you as the wealth falls into the hands of fewer and fewer, and your own government bombing the fuck out of your workplace to push a political agenda then spinning the event through the controlled media.

What is terrifying is having our right to free speech crushed by capitalism.

Venusarchy

The Venus Project

The Future Is Waiting

There are enough resources on Earth for everyone, so why is 40% of the world’s wealth owned by 1% of the population?

If we make the switch from a monetary based economy to a resource based economy, there would be more than enough for everyone to lead a sufficed, technologically advanced lifestyle.

“Earth is abundant with plentiful resources; today our practice of rationing resources through monetary methods is irrelevant and counter productive to our survival.”

“To better understand the meaning of a resource-based economy consider this: if all the money in the world were destroyed, as long as topsoil, factories, and other resources were left intact, we could build anything we choose to build and fulfill any human need. It is not money that people need; rather, it is free access to the necessities of life. In a resource-based economy , money would be irrelevant. All that would be required are the resources and the manufacturing and distribution of the products.

When education and resources are made available to all people without a price tag, there would be no limit to the human potential. Although this is difficult to imagine, even the wealthiest person today would be far better off in a resource based society as proposed by The Venus Project. Today the middle classes live better than kings of times past. In a resource based economy everyone would live better than the wealthiest of today.

In such a society, the measure of success would be based on the fulfillment of one’s individual pursuits rather than the acquisition of wealth, property and power.”

The Venus Project is very real and is currently based out of Venus, Florida.

“Homes could be prefabricated of a new type of pre-stressed, reinforced concrete with a flexible ceramic external coating that would be relatively maintenance free, fireproof, and impervious to the weather. Their thin shell construction can be mass-produced in a matter of hours. With this type of construction, there would be minimal damage from earthquakes and hurricanes.”

Maglev Train

“Various segments of the passenger compartments on these high-speed maglev trains can be removed as the train passes through the station. These removable sections can then take passengers to their local destinations while other compartments are lowered in their place. This method allows the main body of the train to remain in motion, thus conserving energy. In addition, the removable multi-functional compartments could be specially equipped to serve most transportation purposes.”

Sea City

“A global system of these structures can easily accommodate many millions of people and relieve the land based population pressures. They can provide the inhabitants with information and serve as natural sea aquariums without artificially enclosing marine life.”

How Friggin Cool…

When the planet’s resources become dominated by a small handful of people, we must come together and take back what is collectively ours.

CUNJL

License Plate: CUNJL

ACUR

2006

MDX

LONGVIEW

Isla and CL

Head Back to Kanata

No Place Like Home

Protesters gather at the West Vancouver home of Mark Andrews, RVP for Fairmont Hotels, asking that he evict Snowflake Furs.

Ding Dang Ya’ll

Saint Reg’lar Factory Farmed Buger Mauin’ Angelina

True beauty lies in compassion for all living things

We all have a place in our hearts for the degorgeous Angelina. With her humanitarian work, her strong roles in films like Foxfire and Girl Interrupted, and her admirable style – how could we not? But girl is FAR from perfect – even with her gazillions of dollars, Ange chooses to feed her kids food from McDonald’s – an establishment that perpetuates the stomach turning atrocities of factory farming.

Brangelina waits in line at the Mickey D’s drive thru to pump their children full of factory farmed “food”

In the slaughterhouses of McDonald’s US and Canadian suppliers, birds are hung upside down in metal shackles, often resulting in broken bones, extreme bruising, and hemorrhaging. Many birds are immersed in tanks of scalding-hot water while they are still alive and able to feel pain. Some have their throats cut while they are still conscious. McDonald’s has the ability to change these cruel practices.

There is a more humane method of chicken slaughter available to McDonald’s suppliers called controlled-atmosphere killing, or CAK, and it would cost the corporation nothing to demand that its suppliers use it. CAK would eliminate the worst abuses currently suffered by McDonald’s chickens.

Brangelina seem to have forgotten than humans aren’t the only sentient beings capable of suffering. Maybe their next adoption should be a companion animal so they can reacquaint themselves with the sentience of the other species of this planet,

Brad just dropped a notch on the hotness scale. Well, we'll always have Tristan from Legends of the Fall - remember when he tried to save that calf caught in barbwire? Now that was hot - eating factory farmed animals ~ not.

Click here to one up these misguided celebs and sign a petition telling McDonald’s to eff off stop the cruelty.

Baby Food

Babies Are Innocent Food…apparently.

Did you know that the chickens typically consumed by our society are not yet old enough to cluck? Glenn Gaetz from Liberation BC talks about how we eat BABIES!

Slippin’ Into Tha Lava

Under The Volcano

…is a festival bringing together activists in an outdoor community setting. Bands, workshops, and plenty of dissent. The festival started out rainy, but miraculously (-because in Vancouver when it rains, it rains 4 dayzzz) the rain turned to pure sunshine by about two o’clock – an act of God, Jesus, the Revolution.

Zeitgeist: Addendum

Zeitgeist: the spirit of the time

Money = Debt

Zeitgeist

A must watch for a good night’s sleep before the dawn of a new era.