Baby breastfed by vegan mother dies

I posted this rather quick, off-the-cuff response to this blog post:

"Wow. "abstinence from all animal foods is a danger to one’s health and most particularly, your baby!" Uhm, Sarah, not true. A vegan diet can be very healthy but like with every diet, people can get it wrong. The reason we need to get B12 from supplements is simply because our veggies are washed - cyanocobalamin is naturally found in soil and fermented things. The only animal foods with significant levels of B12 are calf's liver and sardines, which not everyone eats. And vitamin A is abundant in red and yellow fruit and vegetables. All the vegans I know are quite knowledgeable on nutrition and would never dream of feeding a child just breastmilk esp when not taking supplements.

I think very few people actually know anything about nutrition other than what they learned at school and home, which often is very limited and outdated. I didn't know that B12 was so crucial until a few years ago, and I don't know many people who have a clue that you need, say, vit D to help calcium bind to your bones, or vit C in order for your body to use iron.

This is a tragic case of parents not being particularly clued up and doctors not doing more when they did have concerns. At any rate punishing parents for being ignorant and suspicious of Western medicine smacks very much of Big Brother, and putting the blame on a vegan diet smacks of bias."

On animal rights

My response to a fellow Facebook user and bird enthusiast, on PETA’s 12 steps (honestly I didn’t know them and frankly can’t be bothered, I don’t need a 12-step programme to teach me what is right). I have had to knok this off inbetween 50 million other things so if there are inconsistenies or errors, you think I'm talking plain old rubbish, please point it out. I know I've left out a lot.

Anyway, PETA’s points (as quoted by the mentioned person) in bold, his comments in italics and mine as is:

1 1. Abolish by law all animal research. (There would be no cures for AIDS, cancer, heart disease, etc., and testing of new drugs would be done on humans, or not at all.)

---this is a long answer and I urge you to read up on the many alternative methods and viewpoints. Animal research is unfortunately hit-or-miss at best (thalidomide anyone?) and many more sophisticated means of testing medicines have appeared, not least of which TraumaMan http://www.simulab.com/product/surgery/open/traumaman-system, cell cultures, lab-grown tissue and organs, computer simulations, microdosing...of course I could also point out the fact that many substances have very different effects on humans than they do on other animals. There’s a wealth of literature out there, should you want to read up more I’d be happy to point you in the right direction.

2. Outlaw the use ...of animals for cosmetic and product testing, and classroom demonstration (physicians would perform their first surgeries and procedures on humans without any previous experience).

---again, see my friend TraumaMan above (and computer models, and a myriad of other lovely, interactive and non-icky physical models) for classroom demonstration. Furthermore with over 8000 known safe cosmetic ingredients not to mention the plethora of currently available products, I do not think there is any justification for testing cosmetics on animals. Short of conning people into buying yet another silly anti-aging cream or hair colour, what is the point? Why should animals suffer and die for human vanity?

3. Vegetarian meals should be at all public institutions, including schools.

---what’s the problem there? Surely any child has the right NOT to eat meat should he or she choose not to? Surely only serving animal products can be argued to be infringing on the rights of these children?

4. Eliminate all animal agriculture (resulting in no milk, eggs, chicken, fish, or meat for food, no leather for shoes or clothing). (How many foods do you eat that contain eggs or dairy products, or a derivative of the same? Did you know your keyboard and mouse may have been made with animal products?)

---none. I am vegan and do not use any of the products you mention. I am aware that animal products are ubiquitous but this does not have to be so. The animal agriculture sector is unfortunately also the locus of the worst animal abuses – think battery farming, sow crates, veal crates, dehorning, debeaking, foie gras, downer cows, dumping or alternatively gassing or maceration of day-old male chickens...the list goes on. Even welfarists should be offended at the kind of cruelty routinely perpetrated, not even mentioning specific cases like that of Conklin Dairy Farm. This could be a whole discussion on its own. There are great environmental and nutritious benefits to a vegan diet. If you want to understand my views on food animals, this piece puts it in a far more eloquent way than I can: http://www.peacefulprairie.org/letter.html

5. Eliminate all herbicides, pesticides or other agricultural chemicals. Outlaw predator control.(Farmers would not be able to produce as much food as they do now, driving the cost of living up, and eliminating the export of food to hungry nations. Animals such as coyotes are already a problem in some areas, coming into yards to eat garbage and prey upon outdoor pets.)

---I have no problem with dangerous pesticides (like Aldicarb) and herbicides being eliminated. There are safer alternatives. Distribution issues and politics have a far larger effect on food production and prices than predators and pests. Given that animal agriculture is a current fact of life, I’d far rather support cruelty-free methods like using Anatolian hounds to guard sheep rather than using, say, gintraps or poison. Were there no more animal farming, this would be a non-issue. Pesticides and herbicides are a broader conservation issue – many of our raptors are endangered because of “pest control”. Even our endangered Cape Parrots are killed because they eat from the pecan trees that have replaced their natural yellowwood forests.

6. Transfer enforcement of animal welfare legislation away from the Department of Agriculture. (Animal issues would be controlled by people with little or no experience in customary animal husbandry.

---judging by certain laws like the 28-Hour Law* the USDA doesn’t know too much about animal welfare either.

* whereby a person may not confine animals in a vehicle or vessel for more than 28 consecutive hours without unloading the animals for feeding, water, and rest. 28 hours??? More than a fll day and night. It can even be extended to 36, by written request. Oh and this does not apply to poultry. Neither does the Humane Slaughter Act, which also neglects to protect rabbits and numerous other animals.

7. Eliminate fur ranching and the use of furs.

---and the problem here is? Does anyone here support fur?

8. Prohibit hunting, trapping and fishing.

---once again, I am unable see a problem with that. I realise that I may offend hunters here but I can’t really comprehend the sport in killing animals.

9. End the international trade in wildlife goods.

---I think we all agree with this one.

10. Stop any further breeding of companion animals, including purebred dogs and cats. Spaying and neutering should be subsidized by state and municipal governments until all companion animals are extinct. Abolish commerce in animals for the pet trade. Eliminate pet ownership.

---ok this is a prickly one. Something like 4 million cats and dogs are euthanased in the US annually because humans allow them to breed unchecked and do not look after the young. So clearly there are some problems. I am also most concerned about how many people in the pet trade operate, not least selling wild-caught parrots. However I myself have a number of companion animals; they make me very happy and I provide them with a good home. Some of them are adopted, some (like the mynahs) are invasive species and cannot be returned to the wild here. We have bought a bird from a pet shop. We spotted her when going to buy water bowls and perches. She’s a one-legged yellow-backed lory that was being kept in a hamster cage, away from the other birds. I couldn’t leave her there.

11. End the use of animals in entertainment and sports (resulting in no horse shows, cat or dog shows, animal actors, rodeos, animal movie stars).

---…no elephants being beaten and abused by handlers in circuses, no greyhounds being shot and their ears cut off before they’re dumped, no bullfighting, no “dancing bears”, no dogfighting, no horsefighting (I shit thee not), no fire bulls...no Taiji slaughter...you see where I’m going with this? Dog and cat shows may be innocuous, many other entertainments are not at all. I am happy to elaborate if you like.

12. Prohibit the genetic manipulation of the species (resulting in the elimination of critical medical research relating to Cancer, AIDS and other life threatening diseases, as well as crop production improvements such as the difference between the Holstein and the Angus, and eliminate all pedigreed animals, etc... ).

---this is a somewhat tricky one. I generally am sceptical of GM (whether breeding or actual GM) because I don’t think we have enough knowledge, wisdom or foresight. Killer bees anyone? Not to mention companies like Monsanto who force food dependency by only providing their super duper disease resistant seed on the condition that farmers have to keep buying from them, etc. I am all for studying genetics, just not too convinced about the manipulation of genes for profit. And of course this would not eliminate pedigreed animals – how would it do that? I don’t have any problem with curbing attempts to breed animals to a point where they are not healthy, like pugs who have respiratory issues and chihuahuas whose legs break like chicken bones because they are just too small. And cows are not crops ;)

You may sympathize with one of the points above... however, do you agree with all of them? If you disagree with only some, you cannot, in good conscience, continue to support the animal rights agenda with donations or support of their legislation. For example, I happen to agree with item 9, above, but if I send money to the animal rights groups, it may be used to support items with which I disagree.

---once again Art, PETA are not the custodians of animal rights, neither of my conscience. Animal rights thinking has existed long before PETA. I do not give them money. I base my ideas on simple extension of human rights (the right to life, the right to bodily integrity, non-intervention, conservation etc.) and furthermore I have read some of the ideas of people like Peter Singer, Gary Francione, James LaVeck, and South African thinkers like Michelle Pickover and Dr Les Mitchell. I do support causes like: CLAW www.claw-sa.org , HHCU www.horsecare.org.za , Sharklife www.sharklife.co.za , and numerous others that actually put in the legwork of making animals’ lives better. My family and I have rescued, rehabilitated and released numerous birds and other creatures. I try to educate my own child and other children about the importance of treating animals with compassion and respect.

At the end of the day animal rights is not about an agenda, it is a philosophy that has at its core the best interest of animals, not from a condescending viewpoint of the “crown of Creation” or “top of the food chain”, but from a deeply felt need to understand what is truly the best way to co-exist with creatures that are more similar than different to us. I am unable to understand why anyone would oppose this ideal.

I have lost my mojo...

...or have at least misplaced it. For a while now I haven't blogged because I couldn't think of anything to blog about. Now I have realised why. I am too happy. My life is going quite smoothly. I have a decent job, family life is good, I have actually been out a couple of times, etc etc. Generally life is very good. So I am not angry enough.

While I am certainly not complaining (I am quite satisfied with my life being this good thank you very much), the rest of the world is pretty much the same as always and there's plenty to be angry about.

So to start off with I have today's WTF moment - I mean who would want their daughters to be armed with knowledge about sex, right? And who actually sits down with their 13yr olds to see what they're watching on TV?? Shocking *rolls eyes*

But even better, read this. Seriously, when is this crap going to stop? How can this madman and his evil camarilla be allowed to continue destroying Zimbabwe? And will our president actually do something for a change??

Only time will tell, but of one thing you can be sure: I am back, and pissed off as ever ;)

It's only fun till someone gets hurt

We all grew up with the idea of the circus as something fun and wholesome. Most kids love animals and a circus is the closest you can get to lions and elephants. If you were like me you also believed that they must be well taken care of - after all they are powerful animals and they would attack their trainers if not properly treated, right? And yes, their cages are small but when they're not travelling they get to frolic in open fields and rest until the next season, right?

Not quite. Circus animals are trained from a young age, and are taught how to behave by domination and punishment. They spend most of their lives either in tiny travelling cages or performing in noisy, crowded environments.

Recently this lion was removed from a circus and is currently in recovery at the Drakenstein Lion Park. Please consider donating to this worthy cause. In any event please consider not supporting circuses featuring animal acts.

Requiem

Bekkie

Bekkie was a baby Cape White-eye that had fallen out of her nest no more than a day or two after hatching. My mom found her on Friday, 5 December and gave her to me. She was still naked and blind but immediately opened her mouth for food - hence the name Bekkie. It was love at first sight. I fed her Avi Plus and she slept (with a hot water bottle) next to my bed. She travelled everywhere with us and countless waiters and shop assistants told me that "God would bless me" for taking care of the little bird. 

As time went by Bekkie's tiny, soundless cheeps became audible, her feathers grew and she eventually opened her eyes. Her right leg seemed to have trouble gripping, perhaps from the fall, but still she grew. As her appearance changed we wondered what on earth she could be. When tiny white feathers started growing around her eyes, we were sure - she was a Cape White-eye.

We started taking her outside so she could catch insects and nibble on flowers. She started flying in rapid bursts, and liked nibbling on our hands. We had to bathe her once or twice after she'd jumped into her food bowl. She would sit with us in the evenings, flitting over my notebook or nestling in my lap, or lie on her back in my daughter's hand while we tickled her tummy.

On Thursday, 22 January, we found Bekkie lying dead on the floor of her cage. No warning, no sign of anything wrong. Just a life ended, without reason, without warning. All that promise, all that hope, all the love and care come to naught.

Luis

Luis was a 7-year old boy from Guayaquil, Ecuador. He was an orphan, living with his older sister and other siblings in absolute poverty. He was about to start his second year of school, and had learned to write beautifully in his native Spanish. He drew pictures of his friends and of animals, and enjoyed learning reading and sums. On 8 January, he complained about abdominal pain and was taken to hospital. The doctors treated him for pancreatitis but he passed away that same evening.  

Again I felt so helpless.  A life, full of promise, ended.  I know the hospital and medical staff did what they could but had he not been born into such a life of hardship, would he not have had a better chance?

Luiz was involved with an organisation called Children International. They do wonderful work with children in impoverished communities. Please check them out.

There is no real point to this post, no political agenda, no opinion I am putting across.  I am just sharing with you my sadness.  

I entrust them to your care, Mother.

And yet more Zuma, or, The Protector of Other People's Virtue

Once again, Mr Zuma has shown his utter contempt for the Constitution, and for human rights, by stating that we must make children pray before school.

I am flabbergasted.  I commented as follows on the article:

"So do we start fearing God once we've finished committing adultery or trying to wheedle our way out of facing the court on criminal charges? And which religion are we going to force on schoolkids? Will the ANC decide? Is this all part of a grand plan to brainwash our kids, starting by taking them from uneducated mothers and then forcing religion down their throats? At any rate I would prefer to teach my child to conduct herself according to love and compassion, not fear. Mr Zuma, you have previously shown your bigotry with, among others, your comments about gays, and it appears you say whatever your audience wants to hear. But your contempt for our Constitution is becoming intolerable. Religious freedom is enshrined in the Constitution, and any attempt at infringing upon it by your party will be met with legal action."

I am pleased to say that many other people also expressed their concern - well said Sharon :) - but scarily many people seem all for it.  In fact many people seem to think that his suggestion that "people would consider their actions more carefully if they kept in mind how the departed, or God, or other citizens, would view their behaviour" is correct.  Um, again I am prompted to ask, when did Mr Zuma complete a degree in Social Science, Psychology or Criminology?  Fear is never a good basis for behaviour.  Instilling respect for the rights and dignity of others, however, may go a long way towards promoting positive behaviour among children.  But this would mean that we'd have to start at the top, and that won't be easy.

And again I say, NO-ONE will force my child to say any prayers to anyone, least of all the misguided self-styled protector of our virtue. 

Zuma is at it again...

...shooting his mouth off.

Read this gem of well-reasoned discourse. 

I commented as follows:

"What a joke. School dropout is a complex problem and "educating by force" will not solve it. And how pray tell, if our government can't provide free basic education to any decent standard, how will they provide tertiary education for those who cannot pay for it?? Better, safer schools, better infrastructure, more protection and encouragement for children would be good places to start.

Better yet, are we now going to punish teenage mothers by taking their babies away? There is culture of viewing women and girls as objects, and unprotected sex as a man's "right". THAT is what needs to be addressed. But hey, if we take children from their mothers we have a better chance of indoctrinating them."

The man never ceases to amaze me. Perhaps the fact that he had no formal education makes him more sensitive to the difficulties faced by kids in a similar situation, or perhaps I'm trying too hard to justify his ridiculous comments.  Most of our Grade 3s are functionally illiterate, so one may imagine that the matter is a bit more complex than educating people by force??

Eish.

Negotium Perambulans in Tenebris

I am re-reading a section in my textbook, "HIV/Aids Care and Counselling" by Alta van Dyk, on the symptoms of HIV infection in children. It ain't pretty. I will spare you most of the details but the author stated that it is estimated that 75% of HIV positive children will die before their fifth birthday if they do not receive antiretroviral therapy.

Now today our new president is being elected and it strikes me that, if there was a reason for Mr Mbeki to have been taken to task or "recalled" by the ANC, it should have been the government's inexplicable ostrich-like stand on HIV/Aids and ART. For years the government has dithered while infection rates soared, people died and children lost their parents to the disease. Why is he recalled now? And why, oh why, did Manto not resign? Does she truly believe she will be protected as much by the new president?

At any rate, I have decided that I will punch the next person who says that HIV infection is people's "own fault". Is it also the children's own fault for being born to HIV + mothers? What about rape victims, or people who have to work as sex workers in order to - oh the irony - survive? Or someone infected by an unfaithful partner or spouse? Is it their fault too? Even if someone gets infected with HIV because of irresponsible sexual behaviour, is a protracted death sentence really "what they deserve"? Who can make that judgement? I'd rather not, judge not lest thou be judged and all that.

On a more objective note, the economic impact of HIV/Aids is staggering and will get worse. When our economically productive people fall prey to HIV/Aids, who will produce and transport goods? Who will provide for and look after children and the elderly? Oh wait, we already know this. They will be forced to look after themselves, with little or no government assistance.

I'd like to tie Dr Beetroot to a chair and play her a recording of the entire contents of the textbook, on repeat, ad infinitum.