Veganism: one more thought

In October, when celebrating one more vegan anniversary, I wrote that I'm having some thoughts about veganism in general and that I wanted to write more about it. Yesterday it was the World Vegan Day and considering the attendance of the event in Dublin some of that thoughts came back when I was talking to Matteo about it.

One thing that I'm noticing lately - and the fact that veganism is going more and more mainstream has helped me to notice this - is that being vegan seems to be more focused on the diet and the consumption. Of course not eating and not consuming anything derived from animals is a huge part (and maybe the core?) of veganism but it's not everything. You are, for sure, helping the animals but you could do more. I know you could say that everybody could do more and I agree with you, but there are some things that are not that hard or "extreme" as some people like to say to fight more for animal lives, for animal rights.

I'm not saying that I think every vegan should be an animal liberation  activist, involved in direct actions and I know there is a difference between being vegan and being an activist, but I think everybody should try to do more and more. How? Supporting your local vegan group, helping them with campaigns and protests (there are so many good causes around and most of the protests are pacific ones), organizing small events to spread the word, sharing vegan food with those who need food (this is a great way to help both humans and non-humans animals), etc. I know that our lives today are busy and crazy, but are you sure you can't do any of these things from time to time?

What all this have to do with the event of last night? Nothing really directly related to the event, which was really great and I hope Vegan Ireland will keep doing them, but with people. I think I (still) expect too much from people but I was hoping to see more people I know there (vegans and non-vegans). Vegan Ireland does an amazing work and they need all the support they can get. It's not up to me to judge what people can or can't do, want or don't want to do, but I really believe the animals deserve all of our efforts and as many voices as we can bring together to defend them.

Buying vegan products, cooking, eating vegan food (and writing about vegan food, recipes and places to eat) is truly amazing, but it's a hard battle and we need to keep on fighting.

Vegan MoFo III - Day 8 - Vegan for life

Maybe you don't know, but I became vegan after starting to go to hardcore shows in the end of the 1990s (I'm celebrating 12 years being vegan this month!). If you are already a reader of this blog, you know that hardcore is a big part of my life and I have some posts about it. And because of that I sometimes write about hardcore bands or lyrics that I really like and that I think have a great message.

If you are a vegan in the hardcore scene, you know who are Earth Crisis. You may don't like them or don't agree with all the ideas they have, but you know them. So do I. And I'm glad that there are bands that still care about writing lyrics about veganism.

The first album of Earth Crisis is from 1992, the last one, 2009. During all these years I see people becoming vegan and coming back to eat meat in the hardcore world. That's the way it is and I think it will be always like that. But I am glad that I had the opportunity to read and learn more about veganism and could make my choice, a choice for life. And I am still writing about it too.



Earth Crisis - Morality dictates
(Gomorrah'S Season Ends - 1996)

Crowded against one another, or penned into an artifical environment.
Unbearable lonliness, separated
from their fellow creatures contact.
Individual innocent beings, each cow, sheep, pig, goat or chicken.
Viewed as a product to processed.
Raised only to be slaughtered and consumed.
Murdered victims enshrouded with false names that deny their suffering.
Beef, mutton, pork and poultry.
Creatures torn and butchered only for the petiness of the flavour of their decaying flesh.
The carnage of the slaughterhouse is all completely unnecessary for sustenance of techonologically advanced mankind.
Constantly brainwashed from the beginning
to believe the opposite of this truth.
The brutality is anacceptable.
I strive to end the exploitation.
Morality dictates.
Morality dictates. Morality dictates.
Morality dictates that I live vegan.



Earth Crisis - To the Death
(To the Death - 2009)

(Just a piece of the lyrics):

Meat, dairy industries connect
To end with the same fate
Enslaved and entombed
I disengage the death machine
Boxcars, stockyards – the killing floor
Decapitated in the abattoir
Partake suffer the consequence
Anthropocentric arrogance
Beneath the glare
Days of agony are spent
Caged, chained or penned
Above a floor of wire fence
Every basic right denied
Even the freedom of movement
Inescapable insanity
Dominates every moment
Vegan for life
Vegan to the death