social realist

the long-standing tension 

between integration 

and separation

is part of many social movements

and marginalized discourses

from radical feminists

to critical 'race' theorists

brave activists have faced reality

to counter endless positivism

with a dark social realism 

based on crystal-clear recognition 

of the solidity of the status quo

and lack of structural change

social realist 

imagining a future 

in which sexism and racism 

casteism and colonialism

patriarchy and eurocentric supremacy

not only continues

but strives and intensifies

for female and racialized activists

indigenous and dalit reformers

marginalized change-makers everywhere

the choice is clear

integration has mostly been in vain

therefore aspects of separation 

have to become part of change

from de-centering and de-coupling

to reservations and quotas

affirmative action and reparations 

until social bias is over

climate fires 911

2020 fires are having a banner year

dozens of major fires are burning

as of september 11, across the west

one hundred large fires have burned 

over 4.5 million acres in 12 states

more than one million acres in oregon

as 500,000 people evacuated

smoke from west coast wildfires 

were pulled into a cyclone 1,000 miles offshore

2020 is california's largest wildfire season

with five of the twenty largest wildfires in state history

on august 19, there were 367 known fires

many sparked by intense thunderstorms on august 16–17 

caused by moisture from tropical storm fausto

as of september 11, a total of 7,718 fires 

have burned 3,354,234 acres

more than 3% of the state's 100 million acres of land

destroyed 6,391 buildings

caused over 24 deaths and 37 seriously injured

the august complex has surpassed 

the mendocino complex of 2018

to become california's largest recorded wildfire

followed by number three, SCU lighting complex

four, LNU lighting complex

nine, north complex 

and 16, the creek fire

standing on the ashes of the state

as the ground bakes in record heat

blasted by diablo and santa ana winds 

gov newsom said climate change

and drought are to blame

yet, so far this year, the gov has granted 

1,800+ oil and gas permits

and in the midst of a historic drought

precious groundwater is used for fracking

streams are diverted for livestock

the west coast is ground zero

climate change plus business-as-usual

is leading to recording breaking disasters

denial, de-growth and destruction

are the new normal

this year's climate fires 

is a 911 wake-up call

are you going to answer

are you willing to stop ecocide 

Mercury Poisoning

Pandemics Ahead: Number 17 in a series looking at the link between animal protein and global health disasters.

Excerpt from Meat Climate Change: The 2nd Leading Cause of Global Warming by Moses Seenarine, (2016). Xpyr Press, 348 pages. ISBN: 0692641157. http://amzn.to/2yn7XrC

These have been a tripling of the surface water mercury content in the oceans, compared to pre-industrial conditions, and a 150 percent increase in the magnitude of mercury in the underlying thermocline water layer.(1046) Doses of mercury associated with typical rates of fish consumption may pose measurable endangerment to human health, and there is no safe threshold for this dangerous chemical.

Several experiments have documented mercury hazards from eating fish in the US (1047) and South Korea.(1048) Risks were identified with consumption of 120g of dried shark for methylmercury in Oman as well.(1049) In environments without oxygen, mercury combines with carbon to become methylmercury, a highly toxic compound. Bottom-dwelling fish consume methylmercury particles on the ocean floor and are then eaten by larger fish. Large fish such as sharks, swordfish and king mackerel contain the largest amounts of methylmercury because they are higher up in the food chain.

Since 2002, seafood consumption in the US has grown substantially, which means that US fish consumers have higher concentrations of mercury in their bodies. Tuna - canned light, canned albacore and fresh/frozen varieties - accounts for 37.4 percent of the total mercury inputs for US consumers. And alarmingly, between 1998 and 2008, mercury levels in yellowfin tuna have increased nearly four percent annually. This trend will continue and possibly accelerate, with dire implications for human health and a range of ocean species.(1050)

Mercury is particularly dangerous for pregnant women. Among other hazards, it can result in children born with brain damage. Tuna and sea bass are loaded with mercury, while shark and swordfish are worse. Exposure at high levels can harm the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system. High levels in the bloodstream of unborn babies and young children may harm the developing nervous system, making the child less able to think and learn.

A study by Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that Mercury levels in women who frequently eat fish are 11 times higher than in women who rarely eat seafood. Findings show that almost 30 percent of the women had more mercury in their bodies than the level the US Environmental Protection Agency considers safe, 1 ppm (part per million).(1051) The limit of 1 ppm was calculated in 2000, but EWG has advocated for a stricter mercury limit of 0.58 ppm based on updated research from 2007. Almost 60 percent of women had more mercury in their system than this stricter limit. 

During pregnancy, the dietary goal for omega-3 fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid or EPA) is 650 mg, of which 300 is docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). And, although some women eat more than twice as much fish as the average American, almost 60 percent of them still do not get the amount of omega-3s recommended during pregnancy from seafood in their diets.

Fish do not synthesize DHA or EPA, rather, these are derived from the plankton and microalgae they eat. So supplements made from algae-based DHA could be used to obtain omega-3s, instead of fish. Also, nuts and seeds such as walnuts, flax-seed and canola oil contain omega-3s, although the body has to convert these plant sources from alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) to DHA.(1052) 

Chapter 28: HUMAN DISEASES, pg 268-9    Previous  |  Home  |  Next

For more information, see MeatClimateChange.org

Air Pollution

Pandemics Ahead: Number 16 in a series looking at the link between animal protein and global health disasters.

Excerpt from Meat Climate Change: The 2nd Leading Cause of Global Warming by Moses Seenarine, (2016). Xpyr Press, 348 pages. ISBN: 0692641157. http://amzn.to/2yn7XrC

Animal-based agriculture can cause serious air quality problems that result from dust, smog, chemicals, and odors. People who live near or work on factory farms, breathe in numerous gases formed as manure decomposes. The stench of ammonia and other noxious fumes can be unbearable, but worse still, the gases contain many harmful chemicals.

The level of antibiotics 20 yards (18 m) away from a giant cattle feed-lot, is similar to an enclosed, industrial pig operation. Wind dispersed particulate matter from outdoor feed-lots carry prodigious amounts of antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes, and bacteria, far downwind. Some of the transported bacteria can cause human infections.(1058) 

Working environments within many concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and stables remains largely uncontrolled. Endotoxin-contaminated organic dust present significant respiratory hazards for workers. Reaction to endotoxins can lead to anaphylactic shock and death. Exposure control to endotoxins, and prevention strategies for livestock workers are urgently required.(1059)

In addition to endotoxin hazard for workers, the dust generated by animal activity and farming practices contribute to air quality problems far removed from factory farms. These widely dispersed air pollutants can cause respiratory illness, lung inflammation, and enhanced weakness to respiratory diseases, such as asthma. Massive discharges of reactive organics and ammonia from CAFOs play a role in the formation of ozone (smog) and particulates in the air, as well.

Large hog farms emit hydrogen sulfide, a gas that most often causes flu-like symptoms in humans. At high concentrations, hydrogen sulfide can lead to brain damage, but this gas is dangerous even at low levels. Its effects, which are irreversible, range from mild, a sore throat, to severe with seizures, comas, and even death. In 1998, the National Institute of Health reported that 19 people died from hydrogen sulfide emissions from manure pits. 

Other common health effects associated with chemicals emanating from factory farms are headaches, shortness of breath, wheezing, excessive coughing, and diarrhea.

Chapter 28: HUMAN DISEASES, page 270.   Previous  |  Home  | Next

For more information, see MeatClimateChange.org

Milk Allergy & Meat Allergy

Pandemics Ahead: Number 15 in a series looking at the link between animal protein and global health disasters.

Excerpt from Meat Climate Change: The 2nd Leading Cause of Global Warming by Moses Seenarine, (2016). Xpyr Press, 348 pages. ISBN: 0692641157. http://amzn.to/2yn7XrC

Milk Allergy

Allergy to cow’s milk is the most common food allergy in infants and young children. Symptoms of a milk allergy reaction can range from mild, such as hives, to severe, such as anaphylaxis, a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. Around 2.5 percent of children younger than three years of age are allergic to milk. Nearly all infants who develop an allergy to milk do so in their first year of life.

The allergy is most likely to persist in children who have high levels of cow’s milk antibodies in their blood. With a milk allergy, the immune system thinks dairy is a foreign invader and attacks it by releasing chemicals called histamines. During anaphylaxis, allergic symptoms can affect several areas of the body and may threaten breathing and blood circulation. Other animal-based foods that can cause severe allergic reactions are fish and shellfish.

Meat Allergy

Alpha-gal allergy or meat allergy is a reaction to this molecule found in almost all mammals. The body becomes overloaded with antibodies on contact with the carbohydrate. Bites from the lone star tick or the chigger can transfer this carbohydrate to victims, which causes a delayed allergic response that is triggered by the consumption of mammalian flesh.(1053)

The allergy most often occurs in the central and southern US, which corresponds to the distribution of the lone star tick. Allergy rates are 32 percent higher than elsewhere, however, doctors are not required to report the number of patients suffering from the alpha-gal allergies, so the true number of affected individuals is unknown.

Some people with cat allergies may also be allergic to pig carcass and other food animals because of a type of cross-reactive allergy known as pork-cat syndrome. Alpha-gal allergies are very similar to pork-cat syndrome so mis-identification can occur.(1054) The reaction occurs 4 to 8 hours after the consumption of mammalian flesh products, instead of the typical rapid onset with most food allergies. After the delayed onset, the allergic response is typical of most food allergies, including severe whole-body itching, hives, angioedema (swelling under the skin), gastrointestinal upset, and possible anaphylaxis.

Chapter 28: HUMAN DISEASES, page 269.   Previous  |  Home  |  Next

For more information, see MeatClimateChange.org

For more information, see MeatClimateChange.org

is our intersectionality speciesist?

we rightfully call out

forms of discrimination

sexist behaviors 

racist thinking

exploitative work

torturous immigration policies

ableist practices

authoritarian governments

hierarchical religions

anti-revolutionary beliefs

we cancel feminists

for being exclusionary

liberals playing the race card

activists hiding privilege 

everything under the sun

as well as hidden in the shade

we are confidently 'woke'

proud of being non-binary,

pro-sex and pro-porn

saviors of 'rescued' pets

equal in every way

a brave new world

awaits our righteous rage

with not a blind spot

at the intersection

of past, present and future

we are the courageous ones 

we have been waiting for

calling out every form of bias

leaving no one behind

and yet

as the world crumbles

it is not our fault

we are the solution

"they" are the ones that hate

we are blameless

but, if our intersectional discourse

confluence of discrimination 

multiple forms of oppression

multi-discipline analysis

ignores nature 

excludes food animals 

most of the world's injustices 

remain hidden 

sharing the same Earth

we exploit nature's innocents

at our own risk

cancelling our survival

festering pandemics

fueling climate change

fires, hurricanes

our intersectionality is speciesist

but we're too "woke" to care

Altering Gut Bacteria & Meat Parasites

Pandemics Ahead: Number 14 in a series looking at the link between animal protein and global health disasters.

Excerpt from Meat Climate Change: The 2nd Leading Cause of Global Warming by Moses Seenarine, (2016). Xpyr Press, 348 pages. ISBN: 0692641157. http://amzn.to/2yn7XrC

Gut Bacteria

Research show that consumption of plant-based foods versus those of animal origin is the main cause for variance in human gut microbes. Long-term vegetarian diets have contributed to large shifts in microbiota composition. And importantly, gut bacteria are related to the body's immune system.(1011) Carcass from pig, cow, and sheep contains a sugar, Neu5Gc, which is naturally produced by carnivores, but not humans. That means that when humans eat red animal flesh, the body triggers an immune response to the foreign sugar, producing antibodies which spark inflammation, and eventually cancer.(1012) This may help explain potential connections of animal consumption to other diseases exacerbated by chronic inflammation, such as atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes. Further, a pigment in red meat may damage the DNA of cells lining the digestive system.

Meat Parasites

There are several parasitic diseases associated with ingestion of cattle and pig flesh, and organic flesh may have higher parasite risk. Parasites include toxoplasma cysticercosis, sarcocystis, taenia saginata, taeniasis and trichinosis. T.solium, also known as pork tapeworms, can measure up to 10m (33 ft) when mature and are among the biggest of a ribbon-like worm that infect humans. Malnutrition can occur as the worm competes with the body for food.

Eating under-cooked carcass especially from pig, sheep and wild animals such as deer, is one of the main ways people become infected with the toxoplasma parasite. T. gondii presents more of a threat to pregnant women and people with a weakened immune system. In its earliest stages, the illness causes flu-like symptoms, and if severe, can cause damage to the brain, eyes and other organs. In the US, T. gondii is responsible for more than 4,000 hospitalizations and 300 deaths annually, ranking it fourth among food pathogens.

The pig tapeworm, cysticercosis, is particularly common in Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America. In some areas it is believed that up to 25% of people are affected. The ancient knowledge of tapeworms in pigs may be one of the reasons for pig flesh being forbidden by Jewish and Islamic dietary laws. People may have little or no symptoms for years. Some parasites affects the brain and can have neurological symptoms. In developing countries this is one of the most common causes of seizures.(1055)

Sarcocystis is a genus of protozoa related to toxoplasma and eimeria. They are parasites infecting mammals, reptiles and birds. Four different species can infect cattle, sheep, and pig and infection is very common. The infection rate in sheep is above 90%, and it is over 80% in cattle and goats. Ingesting infected animal flesh can lead to anorexia, nausea, abdominal pain, distension, diarrhea, vomiting, dyspnoea and tachycardia. Symptoms may last as long as five years. Infection by Taeniasis is due to eating cysts in poorly cooked pig carcass. Treating those with taeniasis and other parasites is important to prevent their spread, but many people go untreated.(1056)

Chapter 28: HUMAN DISEASES, page 269.   Previous  |  Home  |  Next

For more information, see MeatClimateChange.org