tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57551282913218247042024-02-20T19:26:39.931-08:00Vegans For ReasonBecause compassion should be synonymous with critical thinking - we aim to provide you with content to inspire critical thinking in the vegan movement. Say NO to woo! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-69031730363210521102015-09-27T09:56:00.001-07:002015-09-27T10:17:03.652-07:00Anti-Fat Shaming Mega Meme Post!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd-t59TWbOMU7od7y2M6oXswGWnp2hOhHeeyfegglrzTaFlDaRyIug4OxIQXiWwUIvQ4ZXdzqrw4eoDXnarAaWg5jEAesLF5rLb6bTAmrnITR44Duk4jbnrkVpsidodCx8OVIH649lAY/s640/blogger-image-1882990703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd-t59TWbOMU7od7y2M6oXswGWnp2hOhHeeyfegglrzTaFlDaRyIug4OxIQXiWwUIvQ4ZXdzqrw4eoDXnarAaWg5jEAesLF5rLb6bTAmrnITR44Duk4jbnrkVpsidodCx8OVIH649lAY/s640/blogger-image-1882990703.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We, at VFR, don't intend to claim certain people are healthy while others are not. It's not our place, particularly because we're not doctors nor do we have access to anyone else's medical records. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What we do hope to do is get vegans to realize that you can't judge someone's health based on how they look. We attempt to do this through the use of scientific studies. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Overweight/fat shaming in the vegan movement runs rampant, and it is unacceptable. As the meme above states, compassion and speaking up for non-human animals has nothing to do with someone's weight. <i>Veganism isn't a diet or a weight loss tool. It's an ethical stance exemplified by a lifestyle of compassion.</i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Vegans come in all shapes and sizes. </span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">We are ALL amazing examples of our movement. </span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Please use these memes (along with the cited studies) as tools to stand up against fat-shaming in the vegan movement. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0usyZIQWVWjOJBzx0HHlbIUbegD09Ai523w-w5Z-0Z73rSp7ymqqf08bqPmUbrLoGcTdrvq0iO6hSzsF_zYt9Ti4qCBUIDsCnO-Edle4W4McGkqbYn9Ok1u67-bUNneOeqSWoUEAJXh4/s640/blogger-image-201989574.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0usyZIQWVWjOJBzx0HHlbIUbegD09Ai523w-w5Z-0Z73rSp7ymqqf08bqPmUbrLoGcTdrvq0iO6hSzsF_zYt9Ti4qCBUIDsCnO-Edle4W4McGkqbYn9Ok1u67-bUNneOeqSWoUEAJXh4/s640/blogger-image-201989574.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=770362">http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=770362</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh9DYqzL_Zl5CwqGzQcXKIwq5CoiyyVaj88sY-Y7lC7ncDbn189nsNm0nmLjBVxi2HCObJn3hzVrO_YFsBmiZ1ye_eok2BiWfxEuTnwgnQjGQSp_et83z7-SxoaGsKngHCuNBq_2ctJOE/s640/blogger-image--1682221904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh9DYqzL_Zl5CwqGzQcXKIwq5CoiyyVaj88sY-Y7lC7ncDbn189nsNm0nmLjBVxi2HCObJn3hzVrO_YFsBmiZ1ye_eok2BiWfxEuTnwgnQjGQSp_et83z7-SxoaGsKngHCuNBq_2ctJOE/s640/blogger-image--1682221904.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/v43/n8/abs/ng.866.html"><span style="font-family: inherit;">http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/v43/n8/abs/ng.866.html</span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">About the study: <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">The take away message from the lead author of the cited study, Dr. Ruth Loos: "In simple terms, it is not only overweight individuals who can be predisposed for these metabolic diseases, and lean individuals shouldn't make assumptions that they are healthy based on their appearance. "</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Director of the MRC Epidemiology Unit, Professor Nick Wareham, said:</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">"The research will provide new insights into why not all lean people are healthy and, conversely, why not all overweight people are at risk of metabolic diseases."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Dr. Kiel, a senior scientist at the Institute for Aging Research and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, USA, who was also involved in this study, said:</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">"We've uncovered a truly fascinating genetic story and, when we found the effect of this gene, we were very intrigued by the unexpected finding. People, particularly men, with a specific form of the gene are both more likely to have lower percent body fat, but also to develop heart disease and type 2 diabetes. In simple terms, it is not only overweight individuals who can be predisposed for these metabolic diseases."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1A72Ust7m0ng7b_yGimb0IsLMtkCmE5bN0iT-AjlRfLuomW2vOZsKZxeWnOlo7rqDYuNVJwX-P55yKBwCLl-EHTfbPaxuoTDPeDFaWE97D1pBN4pVzZ8VpHMIkzzijPI9lyH-AdtWRPk/s640/blogger-image-1203148273.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1A72Ust7m0ng7b_yGimb0IsLMtkCmE5bN0iT-AjlRfLuomW2vOZsKZxeWnOlo7rqDYuNVJwX-P55yKBwCLl-EHTfbPaxuoTDPeDFaWE97D1pBN4pVzZ8VpHMIkzzijPI9lyH-AdtWRPk/s640/blogger-image-1203148273.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/63/12/4369.full" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/63/12/4369.full</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">About the study: <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">This study outlines the genetic evidence for normal-weight “metabolically obese” phenotypes, which leads to the predisposition of diseases in normal weight individuals even though these diseases are usually thought of as being diseases only found in obese individuals.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Take away point: You can't tell what someone's health is simply by looking at their weight.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRFO0QwEKhwevr1TJK0lvk8Zovu_MblUC5GBSfHwvoCDWl0c3n5NishDE2PQTiMkeAV6guUX7hp7bGmWbBxSGi3MtKq4jv6msPChZ4FiGNujPfo21s42v6rKjNi93NJM_Rit2OrudQfl4/s640/blogger-image--181424268.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRFO0QwEKhwevr1TJK0lvk8Zovu_MblUC5GBSfHwvoCDWl0c3n5NishDE2PQTiMkeAV6guUX7hp7bGmWbBxSGi3MtKq4jv6msPChZ4FiGNujPfo21s42v6rKjNi93NJM_Rit2OrudQfl4/s640/blogger-image--181424268.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/345" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/345</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEAClkV8k8KoMhX4zd7SUryxCiGSHSjV8frfthA_sNllomOPUHkngcraDaZqu15t5PXXiTdV3LkMKL-59oI4SBBfckkIWuF5cFcxTYHYYRi_GefMqasknreTtfzJRR3XaVGmOd0B2S1qE/s640/blogger-image-1282031947.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEAClkV8k8KoMhX4zd7SUryxCiGSHSjV8frfthA_sNllomOPUHkngcraDaZqu15t5PXXiTdV3LkMKL-59oI4SBBfckkIWuF5cFcxTYHYYRi_GefMqasknreTtfzJRR3XaVGmOd0B2S1qE/s640/blogger-image-1282031947.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/389" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/389</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNSxFnONXE_RvI3lI3FEmpEpy39XqUWnezIZxCa6ltddhEhp7gLkBZjMlsQ_f72pB7wuAiLsR5pUQgqCfBfuGqNoY94KjvK4fjToP1HZ3-lpO9w1w0sIuRpa_Z0_VQwBWIhPVsTpzDPhQ/s640/blogger-image--1760162324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNSxFnONXE_RvI3lI3FEmpEpy39XqUWnezIZxCa6ltddhEhp7gLkBZjMlsQ_f72pB7wuAiLsR5pUQgqCfBfuGqNoY94KjvK4fjToP1HZ3-lpO9w1w0sIuRpa_Z0_VQwBWIhPVsTpzDPhQ/s640/blogger-image--1760162324.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Study: </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/345">http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/34/5/345</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">About the study: <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"The most important result from our study is that overweight and obese patients with ACSs had lower mortality rate compared with patients with normal BMI....This large observational study with prospectively collected data strengthens the existing evidence and increases the awareness of obesity paradox."</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">And to quote a vegan registered dietician:</span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-AwlkBZTVTznFu64t3k-rHd4GtppLGHJqq86Yw4JLhttgrnNdaS4PV6bVtAX6CInuDPlGLXkm7-ZS694ndBhwPMimh0_h6n4Hcv113DyUj-ApM2sgmfhbaICKHfyFk45apqxfbkusr3s/s640/blogger-image-984007825.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-AwlkBZTVTznFu64t3k-rHd4GtppLGHJqq86Yw4JLhttgrnNdaS4PV6bVtAX6CInuDPlGLXkm7-ZS694ndBhwPMimh0_h6n4Hcv113DyUj-ApM2sgmfhbaICKHfyFk45apqxfbkusr3s/s640/blogger-image-984007825.jpg" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3f7YQ6EqgbrhlAgC_T4JoHjSF0wXwGKZdIoTkBQmVgGPYivSEP2zNUPrUFouY5GEWkRp9IMPHbSsFsTNM2cvoZ9L0WD00GI3lBTDg8v942ljGf4xu6L0MS_hyphenhyphenFafWSd2EiM2OkSy3syk/s640/blogger-image-1313349985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="409" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3f7YQ6EqgbrhlAgC_T4JoHjSF0wXwGKZdIoTkBQmVgGPYivSEP2zNUPrUFouY5GEWkRp9IMPHbSsFsTNM2cvoZ9L0WD00GI3lBTDg8v942ljGf4xu6L0MS_hyphenhyphenFafWSd2EiM2OkSy3syk/s640/blogger-image-1313349985.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's a post by The Vegan RD on how body shaming fails vegan advocacy: <a href="http://www.theveganrd.com/2012/04/body-shaming-fails-vegans-and-vegan-advocacy.html">http://www.theveganrd.com/2012/04/body-shaming-fails-vegans-and-vegan-advocacy.html</a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In conclusion:</span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ9j5zDhMGK0jA-7i-k0508YHBxWiTm1p-UAyY8N4yLkekHhIZwFCKUMu5MNyr3c4_FgiP731Y2Z98ztt2GgX0FR6HATiHYNMb1YMT43PoEyys_o0QEQz7suz2jBq59Kdgi91MikRM9Bw/s640/blogger-image--684268867.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ9j5zDhMGK0jA-7i-k0508YHBxWiTm1p-UAyY8N4yLkekHhIZwFCKUMu5MNyr3c4_FgiP731Y2Z98ztt2GgX0FR6HATiHYNMb1YMT43PoEyys_o0QEQz7suz2jBq59Kdgi91MikRM9Bw/s640/blogger-image--684268867.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Find us on Facebook under <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">Vegans For Reason</a>. </span></b></div>
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-79344395060680957422015-09-15T06:08:00.001-07:002015-09-15T06:08:43.696-07:00Soy Safety<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsWcFw0egen2-FGDv4In9bI6xL5TMKiAhoI06FuRg3JqzR9YpUJcT5dhvM-VlLbC2uwgS192_Vy3DliXO6D2rTuwMdjrrQt1msAaghqSfB9QKaBAh6Oun-R1DPO35Fj6GZbTa3zZyiNc/s640/blogger-image-906746391.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsWcFw0egen2-FGDv4In9bI6xL5TMKiAhoI06FuRg3JqzR9YpUJcT5dhvM-VlLbC2uwgS192_Vy3DliXO6D2rTuwMdjrrQt1msAaghqSfB9QKaBAh6Oun-R1DPO35Fj6GZbTa3zZyiNc/s640/blogger-image-906746391.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The science is in. Soy is safe to eat. These are just a few examples because, well, I can only fit so much science into one meme ;)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Potter SM et al., 1998. Soy protein and isoflavones: their effects on blood lipids and bone density in postmenopausal women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 68 (suppl) 1375S–1379S.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Taku K et al., 2012. Extracted or synthesized soybean isoflavones reduce menopausal hot flash frequency and severity: systematic review and metaanalysis of randomized controlled trials. Menopause. 19(7): 776-790.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Trock BJ et al., 2006. Meta-analysis of soy intake and breast cancer risk. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 98(7): 459-471.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Mannu GS et al., 2013. Evidence of lifestyle modification in the management of hypercholesterolemia. Current Cardiology Reviews. 9(1): 2-14.</div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-78048005605233242852015-09-15T06:07:00.001-07:002015-09-15T06:07:03.319-07:00Cool Vegans Science<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFmtBTMDZ0WBEDN-7ku3nkDF2talauJN5U8NlO4riVkPwEkQRvA9dz7Xx-AXmirbSaA4xDa2NuDOmFGwqtWzRJwrykFYHnCxIhsJ2C0so_mwNMjjPrULpPEX72YWGDd9ghZFQycYmUik/s640/blogger-image--970247778.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFmtBTMDZ0WBEDN-7ku3nkDF2talauJN5U8NlO4riVkPwEkQRvA9dz7Xx-AXmirbSaA4xDa2NuDOmFGwqtWzRJwrykFYHnCxIhsJ2C0so_mwNMjjPrULpPEX72YWGDd9ghZFQycYmUik/s640/blogger-image--970247778.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Hope you are enjoying your week...as well as the memes and articles on the blog!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Again, suggestions are very welcome. Know of a good meme that will help a vegan out? Then reach out :D</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Find us on Facebook under Vegans For Reason :)</div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-64985595525430869772015-09-15T06:04:00.001-07:002015-09-15T06:04:56.156-07:00Carrageenan Again!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VUWMtDjep2LaZ8yjDbpEemyG4XfXkDvvANenp15KB3hW9PTJcjn1Z8dQUvIH_2NJuJuI4UIAEVQFenh1sObPVRorsSnSuqASfE5BgTl37jd0a8WOSzwaL2oCopGbky91IMxiZfX9CC0/s640/blogger-image--852790188.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VUWMtDjep2LaZ8yjDbpEemyG4XfXkDvvANenp15KB3hW9PTJcjn1Z8dQUvIH_2NJuJuI4UIAEVQFenh1sObPVRorsSnSuqASfE5BgTl37jd0a8WOSzwaL2oCopGbky91IMxiZfX9CC0/s640/blogger-image--852790188.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The Food & Agricultural Organization AND The World Health Organization have categorized carrageenan under the best category for any food additive, so once and for all, my dear vegans, carrageenan is SAFE. That includes the one in your plant milk. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Read their review of countless studies and their final verdict here: http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/43823/1/9789241660594_eng.pdf </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">In addition, as of 2014, they concluded that carrageenan IS also SAFE for infant formula use. See here: http://www.fao.org/3/a-at861e.pdf</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-42992140523219955072015-09-06T12:14:00.001-07:002016-03-06T05:48:45.106-08:00On Not Eating Oysters: Part III<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6cS6cBknEoYtASdR-acjvx_u22lmXnEce0GS0GSKj3B-ik-S7bJizqIGzavaHWnp9-H0-Dz7_nJssDeu2KQAUUFY_i4ygbbA8L_5JV7UNitveT8xlPhuDlMC_cG106zPxUOPUnh-EgKY/s640/blogger-image-1332714682.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6cS6cBknEoYtASdR-acjvx_u22lmXnEce0GS0GSKj3B-ik-S7bJizqIGzavaHWnp9-H0-Dz7_nJssDeu2KQAUUFY_i4ygbbA8L_5JV7UNitveT8xlPhuDlMC_cG106zPxUOPUnh-EgKY/s400/blogger-image-1332714682.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I decided to write a post specifically about oysters because I primarily focused on mussels, sea urchins, and bivalves in general on my previous two posts, <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a> and <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I, again, try to make the case against vegans eating oysters based on scientific literature and further examine the idea that simple nervous systems and differences in body plans are not synonymous with not being able to react and experience the world. I directly quote the studies and other literature so that what I write is completely transparent and not made up or based on ideology.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Unlike plants, but like most other invertebrates, oysters do have nervous systems. As we established in <span style="background-color: white;"><b><a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a></b> </span>and<span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank"> <b>Part II</b></a>,</span> how developed those systems are does not automatically reduce them to the level of plants. In addition, as further discussed in <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a> and <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a>, because they have simple nervous systems does not mean that one can deduce that they are unable to respond to stimuli or have the inability to experience their own environment, particularly because we are incapable of truly understanding what pain and sentience are in other animals. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Just to mention the nervous system briefly, Carroll & Catapane (2007) state that, <i>"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">Bivalve molluscs [this includes oysters] have a relatively simple bilaterally symmetrical nervous system composed of paired cerebral, visceral and pedal ganglia, and several pairs of nerves. The cerebral ganglia (CG) are connected to the visceral ganglia (VG) by a paired cerebrovisceral connective and the VG innervate each gill via branchial nerves."</span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Unfortunately, based on my review of the available data, there aren't that many studies focused on oysters. And those that exist seem to have an interest in human application or farming. As of this date, I could not find a specific paper devoted to the examination of nociception in oysters per se. However, that is not conclusive proof that nociception does not exist in oysters. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's why:</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><i>"The full length cDNA of a homologue of δ-opioid receptor (DOR) for [Met(5)]-enkaphalin was cloned from oyster Crassostrea gigas" </i>by Liu et al (2015). </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">These results, as outlined by Liu et al. (2015), <i> "collectively suggested that CgDOR for [Met(5)]-enkephalin could modulate the haemocyte phagocytic and antibacterial functions through the second messengers Ca(2+) and cAMP, which might be requisite for pathogen elimination and homeostasis maintenance in oyster."</i></span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 17.9998px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">Varga et al. (2004) describe, <i>"d</i></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"><i>elta opioid receptor (DOR) agonists are attractive potential analgesics, since these compounds exhibit strong antinociceptive activity..." </i></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #2e2e2e;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;">In addition, </span></span>mu opioid receptors have been found in both blue mussels (Mantione et al. 2010) and oysters (Zhang 2012); these receptors are also antinociceptors. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;">Opioid peptides have also been documented in oysters. Liu, Chen, & Xu's (2008) described that, "</span><i>The nervous and immune systems of invertebrates can exchange information
through neuropeptides. Furthermore, some opioid peptides can function as endogenous
immune system messengers and participate in the regulation of the immune responses." Their<span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"> study concluded that their "</span>data strongly suggests an
involvement of opioid peptides in the regulation of the antioxidant defence systems of the Pacific
Oyster." </i>Endogenous opioid peptides have been described as inducing<i>, "analgesia in humans and antinociception in animals. These
peptides act in several regions of the CNS to mediate pain
control, because antinociception is observed in animals
whether endogenous opioid peptides are administered into
the peripheral circulation; into spinal sites; or into various
regions of the brain, such as the raphe nuclei, PAG region,
or medial preoptic area.
Many events or stimuli that are experienced as painful,
stressful, or traumatic can induce the release of endogenous
opioid peptides. These peptides then act to make
humans and animals less sensitive to noxious events by
inducing euphoria and analgesia or antinociception</i> (Froehlich 1997)." </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;">Why would oyters have any of these receptors or mechanism for antinociceptive activity? If they have antinociceptors, does that mean that they could have noticeptors as well? Regardless, it has been established above that opioid receptors have been found in oysters (topic further discussed in </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"><a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a>)</span><span style="color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;">,</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"> and</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 23.68px; word-spacing: -1.24453px;"> </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;">“<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 14.124px;">opiate systems may have a functional role in invertebrate nociception" (</span><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Fiorito, 1986</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">;<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Kavaliers, 1988</span>). </span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><br /></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><br /></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><b>In addition...</b></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;">The following studies further show that oysters, although thought of as simplistic as plants by many, have nervous systems that are still complex and may use many of the same responses and regulations as other animal species.</span></span></span><br />
<i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></i>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.48px;"><span style="line-height: 14.124px;"> Harrison et al. (2008) found that their study confirmed and quantified, <i>"</i></span></span><i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">histamine as an endogenous biogenic amine in </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">C. virginica</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"> in the nervous system and innervated organs...</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">Histamine is a biogenic amine found in a wide variety of invertebrates, where it has been found to be involved in local immune responses as well as regulating physiological function in the gut. It also functions as a neurotransmitter, especially for sensory systems</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.6363em; position: relative; top: -0.5em; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" class=" bibr popnode tag_hotlink tag_tooltip" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4480605/#R1" id="__tag_458049198" rid="R1" role="button" style="color: #642a8f;">1</a></span></i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><i>. Histamine has been well studied in arthropods and gastropods, but has been rarely reported to be present or have a function in bivalves other than the limited reports identifying it in ganglia and nerve fibers of the Baltic clam." </i>The authors further stated that,<i> "</i></span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 21.9988px;">Bivalves, including the oyster, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 21.9988px;">Crassostrea virginica</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><i>, contain dopamine, serotonin and other biogenic amines in their nervous system and peripheral tissues. These biogenic amines serve as neurotransmitters and neurohormones and are important in the physiological functioning of the animal." T</i>hey also stated that,</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 21.9988px;"><i>"The mantle rim of bivalves is a sensory structure containing various sensory receptors. The involvement of histamine in sensory systems of invertebrates, particularly gastropods, coupled with our preliminary physiology research, strongly suggest histamine to be a sensory neurotransmitter in the mantle rim of</i> </span><em style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 21.9988px;">C. virginica</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 21.9988px;">."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In addition,<span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 21.9988px;"> Park et al. (2007) were able to clone and characterize, "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 17.9998px;">Lipopolysaccharide-induced TNF-alpha factor (LITAF) is an important transcription factor that mediates the expression of inflammatory cytokines" in </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><i>the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas." </i>Interestingly,<i> </i></span></span>Zhang & An (2007) describe that, <i>"t<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">here is significant evidence showing that certain cytokines/chemokines are involved in not only the initiation but also the persistence of pathologic pain by directly activating nociceptive sensory neurons.</span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">Like in mussels, it has been shown that oysters control the beating of their cilia to draw in water, which they do as filter-feeders. Carroll & Catapane's (2007) study demonstrated that</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"> there is a <i>"reciprocal serotonergic-dopaminergic innervation of the lateral ciliated cells, similar to that of </i></span><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">M. edulis</em><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><i>, originating in the cerebral and visceral ganglia of the animal..."</i> This, therefore, means that ganglia (their nervous system) regulates movement/behavior. Perhaps, like in mussels (see </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">), oysters also have the ability to actively control, based on a form of decision-making, why they employ the types of ciliary movements they do.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On Predation...</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">"<i>Bivalves readily utilize chemical exudates that ema nate from predators and from injured conspecifics
to evaluate predation risk (Caro & Castilla 2004,
Cheung et al. 2004, Smee & Weissburg 2006b)</i> (Robinson et al. (2014). A study by Robinson et al. (2014) found that in the presence of predators, "<i>oysters grew shells that
required more force to crush and resultantly were
afforded greater protection from crab predators."</i> This supports recent studies that <i>"have shown that oysters react to gastropod and crustacean predators by producing thicker, heavier shells</i> (Newell et al. 2007, Johnson & Smee 2012, Lord & Whitlatch 2012)"(Robinson 2014). Again, these are examples that oysters actively respond to their environment (predation in this case) as any other animal species would when threatened. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">The studies that I've quoted above are only bits and pieces of a large body of data that is yet to be uncovered or even studied. What all this means when put together is yet unknown because few studies have been done. However, it shows that although oysters have simple, yet efficient nervous system to respond to the type of lifestyle that they live, they also have sensory structures and receptors like those found in other animal species. In essence, they are still nothing like plants regardless if they are sessile species (Review</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"> <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a> </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">and <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">). The fact that they are sessile still does not mean that they do not need to react to their environment if simply to protect themselves and carry out functions in order to survive. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Pain in Invertebrates</span></b></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It is important to note that, </span><span data-reactid=".t8.1:4:1:$comment946795392043382_947502555305999/=10.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.0" style="color: #141823; line-height: 14.6182px;">"the clear distinction that once existed between the terms “pain” and “nociception” has become blurred recently, to the point that many neuroscientists and clinicians no longer make a distinction; that is, most accept that nociception is equivalent to </span><span data-reactid=".t8.1:4:1:$comment946795392043382_947502555305999/=10.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.3" style="color: #141823; line-height: 14.6182px;">pain." (Sladky 2014)</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;">In his essay examining pain and analgesia in fish and invertebrates, Dr. Sladky, from the University of Wisconsin, asks, <i>"</i></span><i>can we recognise pain in
fish and invertebrates? Is the perception of pain by a
fish or an invertebrate equivalent to that of a mammal?
We will never be able to fully and objectively answer
these questions, because the animals simply cannot
tell us...Could it be that recognition
of pain in fish and invertebrates is impeded by our
inability to empathise with species that do not convey
distress through facial expressions, do not vocalise in
response to distress, and are not warm and fuzzy?"</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Dr. Sladky states that <i>"our limited understanding
of pain and analgesia in fish and invertebrates should
not obscure our clinical decisions, and we should err on
the side of fish and invertebrate well-being by making
the assumption that conditions considered painful
in humans and other mammals should be assumed
to be potentially painful across all other vertebrate
and invertebrate species."</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>"Although peripheral nociceptors have not been
identified in cephalopods, there are no published
reports that anyone has investigated peripheral
nociception in cephalopods. On the other hand,
nociceptors have been identified in anemones, sea
cucumbers, leeches, nematodes, Drosophila, and many
other insects (Kavaliers 1988; Tobin & Bargmann
2004; Xu, et al. 2006; Smith & Lewin 2009; Puri & Faulkes 2010)...Many invertebrate species (earthworms, roundworms,
molluscs, Drosophila) possess endogenous
opioid receptors (Dalton & Widdowson 1989; Tobin
& Bargmann 2004). Immunohistochemical staining
indicated the presence of endogenous opioid receptors
in nematodes (Prior et al. 2007). Mussels possess
benzodiazepine and opioid receptors in their nervous
systems (Gagne et al. 2010). In addition, there is
genetic and physiologic evidence that invertebrates and
vertebrates may have similar capacities with respect to
pain and analgesia..."</i> (Sladky 2014)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>"Pain-associated behaviour of invertebrates has
been described in multiple species. In sea anemones,
crabs, crayfish, sea slugs, snails, flatworms, crickets,
praying mantis and Drosophila, withdrawal responses
are observed with thermal and mechanical noxious
stimuli..."</i>(Sladky 2014). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The paper by Dr. Sladky is definitely worth the read because it is a nice summary of all the discoveries that have been made about fish and invertebrates with relation to pain. Read it here: http://anzccart.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Sladky.pdf</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">In essence...</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Albeit slowly, science has shown us that invertebrate species are not as simple as we once thought. So I ask, <b>what basis is there for not erring on the side that potentially oysters, and other invertebrates, that have yet to be studied in detail, also have the ability for these mechanisms and behaviors?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Environmental Impacts of Oyster Farming</span></b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.9998px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Refer to<b> <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a></b> for a look at the negative effects associated with oyster farming.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><u style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Qualifications</u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><u style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The author of this post has a B.S. in Biological Sciences with an emphasis in Marine Science and a M.Sc. in Conservation & Ecology with an emphasis in research. Other experiences include, but are not limited to, aquaculture, molecular biology, fungal and plant symbiosis, and invasive species ecology. The author is also vegan, which means the author does not consume or consciously exploits any species of animal. </span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">References</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;"><b><br /></b></span>
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9988px;">Carroll & Catapane (2007)<b> </b></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.5;">The Nervous System Control of Lateral </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.5;">Ciliary Activity of the Gill of the Bivalve Mollusc, </span><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.5;">Crassostrea </em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.5;">virginica, </em><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.6363em;">Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol, 148(2): 445–450.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 1.6363em;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Froehlich (1997) Opioid Peptides,Neurotransmitter review, Vol. 21, 2.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="fm-citation half_rhythm no_top_margin clearfix" style="background-color: white; margin: 0px 0px 0.6923em; zoom: 1;">
<div class="small">
<div class="inline_block eight_col va_top" style="display: inline-block; max-width: 100%; vertical-align: top; width: 452.313px; zoom: 1;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span>
<div style="line-height: 1.6363em; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Harrison et al. (2015), <span style="line-height: 1.5;">The Presence of Histamine and a Histamine Receptor in the Bivalve Mollusc, </span><em style="line-height: 1.5;">Crassostrea virginica, </em>In Vivo, 36(3): 123–130.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
<div style="line-height: 1.6363em; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 1.6363em; text-align: left;">
Liu et al. (2008), <span style="line-height: 17.9988px;">Effects of Leucine-enkephalin on Catalase Activity and Hydrogen Peroxide Levels in the Haemolymph of the Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas), Molecules.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 1.6363em; text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 1.6363em;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 17.9988px;">Liu et al. (2015), </span><span style="line-height: 1.6363em;"> </span><span style="font-size: small; line-height: 1.125em;">The immunomodulation mediated by a delta-opioid receptor for [Met(5)]-enkephalin in oyster Crassostrea gigas. <span role="menubar" style="line-height: 1.45em;">Dev Comp Immunol.</span></span><span style="line-height: 1.45em;"><span style="font-size: small;"> 2015 Apr;49(2):217-24.</span> </span></div>
</span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mantione et al. (2010), Seasonal variations in mu opiate receptor </span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">signaling in the nervous system of the blue
mussel, Mytilus edulis: </span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">temperature controls physiological processes, ISJ 7: 141-145.</span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Park et al. (2008), <span style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 1.125em;">Cloning, characterization and expression analysis </span></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 1.125em;">of the gene for a putative</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; line-height: 1.125em;"> lipopolysaccharide-induced TNF-alpha factor </span></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: small; line-height: 1.125em;">of the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 1.125em;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span role="menubar" style="line-height: 1.45em;">Fish Shellfish Immunol.</span><span style="line-height: 1.45em;"> 2008 Jan;24(1):11-7. </span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white;">
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Robinson et al. (2014), Eastern oysters Crassostrea virginica deter crab</span></div>
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> predators by altering their morphology in response to crab cues, Aquatic </span></div>
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Biology, Vol. 20: 111–118.</span></div>
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Sladky (2014),“I’ll have the fish and shrimps”: pain and
analgesia in </span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">invertebrates and fish, http://anzccart.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Sladky.pdf</span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white;">
<h1 class="svTitle" id="" style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Varga et al. (2004), <span style="line-height: 1.4;">Agonist-specific regulation of the δ-opioid receptor, </span><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Life </span><span style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Sciences, </span><span style="line-height: 1.4;">Vol. 76, Issue 6</span><span style="line-height: 19.24px; text-align: center; word-spacing: -0.15ex;">, Pages 599–612.</span></span></h1>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 19.24px; text-align: center; word-spacing: -0.15ex;"><span style="line-height: 19.994px; text-align: left; word-spacing: 0px;">Zhang & An (2007), </span></span><span style="line-height: 1.5;">Cytokines, Inflammation and Pain, </span><span class="cit">Int Anesthesiol Clin.;</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="cit"> 45(2): 27–37.</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.24px; text-align: center; word-spacing: -0.15ex;"><br /></span></div>
<dl class="articleDates smh" style="border: 0px; line-height: 19.24px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><dd style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Zhang et al. (2012), <span style="line-height: 19.994px;"><span property="schema:name">The oyster genome reveals stress adaptation and</span></span></span></dd><dd style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 19.994px;"><span property="schema:name"> complexity of shell formation."</span><strong property="schema:name"> </strong>Nature 490:49-54</span><span style="line-height: 19.994px;">.</span></span></dd><dd style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></dd></dl>
</div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="auths" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, clean, sans-serif; font-size: 0.923em; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-3018832691016215802015-09-05T03:32:00.001-07:002015-09-05T03:32:53.149-07:00Mercola is Anti-Vegan<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYgFyk7PgMFAKMTXePcM2YGKOhaBHI_c7JgacAH2BqwIYXvOBjJSAkQI2Q_wdtkfH14OxnEQeTxkWVltZbxOZnL6zsEpyevz0NBg8a2AsUZj2zu2WOuPVNcKBdfR14yyrE7KSZYPi382w/s640/blogger-image--449145762.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYgFyk7PgMFAKMTXePcM2YGKOhaBHI_c7JgacAH2BqwIYXvOBjJSAkQI2Q_wdtkfH14OxnEQeTxkWVltZbxOZnL6zsEpyevz0NBg8a2AsUZj2zu2WOuPVNcKBdfR14yyrE7KSZYPi382w/s640/blogger-image--449145762.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Here are at least 8 times where Mercola.com has written against and/or misrepresented vegetarianism, vegans, and/or veganism. They seem to rely on ex-vegans and ex-vegetarians that tried it out in the 1980s for their erroneous statements. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Stop believing everything they post, and stop using them as a reliable source of information. Many of the claims they write in their articles are based on pseudoscience and misinterpretation of data. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I'm listing some of the articles as proof (I didn't look for more because I don't think there's sense), but they mostly contradict ADA's statement and in depth review that determined vegan diets are safe: http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/2009_ADA_position_paper.pdf </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Anti-vegan articles and a report by Mercola:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/09/28/why-vegetarianism-will-not-save-the-world.aspx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://www.mercola.com/article/diet/former_vegan.htm (contradicts the latest research on vegan pregnancy safety and the ADA)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/09/17/angelina-jolie-says-vegan-diet-nearly-killed-her.aspx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/10/13/vegetarian-movie-forks-over-knives--critically-reviewed.aspx (sulfur deficiency claim based on a very small study of males in Chad, which is not representative at all)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/10/13/vegetarian-movie-forks-over-knives--critically-reviewed.aspx (sneakily claims he doesn't not support plant diets, but then makes a statements that alludes that you can only get most of your nutrients from meat).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/10/29/why-are-vegetarians-at-risk-of-heart-disease.aspx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/10/29/why-are-vegetarians-at-risk-of-heart-disease.aspx (claims eating meat is healthier because of sulfur again - a deficiency that just isn't an issue)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">AND a FULL report against vegetarian/vegan diets: http://www.mercola.com/Downloads/bonus/vegetarian/report.aspx</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">In conclusion, say NO to Mercola. Stop spreading wrong information from a website that doesn't even support your lifestyle choice.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Find us on Facebook under Vegans For Reason. </div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-56088391162623914842015-09-05T03:30:00.001-07:002015-09-05T03:30:22.994-07:00Detox!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDBIuY9r_-RC4LZupyIYTUwzMa4oWITDF5Yb3mn4OFJT5e0eu67UGo-Qs_kVpyJvhMEqub3hOeO94lXODo6ByYkvd-C8lYx4aszSW0hqVwVjr2zBfwWTwRy7QUyt4A9C-4n7Mvz0B9qlg/s640/blogger-image--1291429881.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDBIuY9r_-RC4LZupyIYTUwzMa4oWITDF5Yb3mn4OFJT5e0eu67UGo-Qs_kVpyJvhMEqub3hOeO94lXODo6ByYkvd-C8lYx4aszSW0hqVwVjr2zBfwWTwRy7QUyt4A9C-4n7Mvz0B9qlg/s640/blogger-image--1291429881.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Your skin + respiratory system + immune system + intestines + liver + kidneys = a powerful detox system of your own that actually works. And it's free. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">There is zero scientific evidence supporting detox diets, cleanses, or products.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Unless you are dealing with an addiction to drugs or alcohol, "detox" in the sense of cleanses and products doesn't make any sense. Here's why:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/detox-what-they-dont-want-you-to-know/ andhttp://www.theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=452</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Types of detoxes and why they actually don't make any sense or work -</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Detox diets: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4616603.stm </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Coffee enemas: https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/ask-the-science-based-pharmacist-what-are-the-benefits-of-coffee-enemas/</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Vitamin Injections: https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/a-closer-look-at-vitamin-injections/</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Colonic irrigation: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2011/08/colon-cleansing-does-more-harm-than-good/index.htm</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Detox Foot Baths: http://www.devicewatch.org/reports/kinoki.shtml</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Find us on Facebook under Vegans For Reason.</div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-40251396318796202792015-09-05T03:28:00.001-07:002015-09-05T03:28:38.829-07:00Vegans & Protein!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8ocJS6aULCc8qTnDI-LWeSDYUq9SUdfU9fQ505_Ot76Zi7nlkmlvSST2PC-82_g0bZXVCzPzc_0Z7buW8WRSc-AERNAeGHG7Exz-3wS7pvfx-HHIimW3H-pEQ4f37gkqHVAB4VgH7So/s640/blogger-image--1854337692.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8ocJS6aULCc8qTnDI-LWeSDYUq9SUdfU9fQ505_Ot76Zi7nlkmlvSST2PC-82_g0bZXVCzPzc_0Z7buW8WRSc-AERNAeGHG7Exz-3wS7pvfx-HHIimW3H-pEQ4f37gkqHVAB4VgH7So/s640/blogger-image--1854337692.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The American Dietetic Association, the British Dietetic Association, and the Dietetic Association of Australia have all published statements in support of vegan diets. Vegans can get enough protein from their diets, and protein sources such as tofu, seitan, and quinoa are complete proteins with all essential amino acids. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Read the publications here...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">ADA: http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/2009_ADA_position_paper.pdf</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">BDA: https://www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/vegetarianfoodfacts.pdf </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">DAA: http://m.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/mskpages/Vegetarian_and_vegan_eating?open</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Find us on Facebook under Vegans For Reason.</div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-50314753539352930832015-09-05T03:26:00.001-07:002015-09-05T03:26:48.048-07:00Critically Thinking Vegan!<div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfE2jCXldsmpW5ltUwyqWodkkb1K-aAuM9DRfbiRrJhKbUMH6NVifTFCmzPAJNqQ2vM0uErswl4knJcOUqafFTLwjXxsArFuphlX3851gX9v693zeXJktZEMkJhIXNhOOxIqcKeBjWM2I/s640/blogger-image--355995800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfE2jCXldsmpW5ltUwyqWodkkb1K-aAuM9DRfbiRrJhKbUMH6NVifTFCmzPAJNqQ2vM0uErswl4knJcOUqafFTLwjXxsArFuphlX3851gX9v693zeXJktZEMkJhIXNhOOxIqcKeBjWM2I/s640/blogger-image--355995800.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I hate seeing non-vegans using this girl's photo to mock veganism, so voila! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Being vegan doesn't mean critical thinking goes out the window, right? :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Find us on Facebook under Vegans For Reason.</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-14219004021112823092015-09-03T12:27:00.004-07:002016-03-06T05:50:20.935-08:00Animalists: Those Pesky Omnivores!<br />
<b>This is Part II on <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">The Case for Eating Oysters, Mussels, and Other Invertebrates? NOPE, Here's Some Science. </a></b><br />
<br />
<b>Edit: Part III is now available: <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPEx3.html" target="_blank">On NOT Eating Oysters</a></b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The Sentientist shared a new blog post on her public Facebook profile (I'm not on her friends list and was directed to her page by another fellow vegan), written by someone that calls himself The Animalist, and described it as, "A round up of evidence for and against eating bivalves linking to my sentientist blogs." Excuse me, but I just want to ask, <u>What evidence</u>? Opinions based on personal beliefs do not count as reliable evidence. Neither do wikipedia links or citing links to other blogs, but that's just the scientist in me, I guess?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8FEN6SvroHAwb5Neq1UMiFzpTA-nqG7lhULzj8GunBdqH1kaaJ5ljWBNoJw_b29OOlVcblFRPt9j5qrQaZYnSzGIMx8ifK8j98Qv8ZtYhzhH7VKPy1xjZuTsur8xQgCvq4XcCotdiII/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8FEN6SvroHAwb5Neq1UMiFzpTA-nqG7lhULzj8GunBdqH1kaaJ5ljWBNoJw_b29OOlVcblFRPt9j5qrQaZYnSzGIMx8ifK8j98Qv8ZtYhzhH7VKPy1xjZuTsur8xQgCvq4XcCotdiII/s400/FullSizeRender+%25283%2529.jpg" width="328" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">On reading this "evidence"...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have to admit that, as a scientist and someone that holds established and reliable sources as the best means to support an argument, I found the Animalist's post in support of eating invertebrates all over the place and mostly opinion-based without much reliable scientific evidence to back most statements. Hence, most of his points are based on opinions that are based on the convenience that we will most likely never be able to prove that invertebrates, such as bivalves and echinoderms, do not experience life in the same way that vertebrates do.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I am very much confused by his stance on what he labels himself. The Animalist claims to not want to be vegan but is OK in being labelled a vegetarian, yet refuses to accept that he is actually an omnivore. Remember in biology class when we learned that if an animal eats plants and other animals, then they are omnivores? Me too, but somehow he ignores that basic, established fact.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSKvy2-2wefTQ_OJ11HkT1NyGALK7Bs80IBuVtjLbGunF4KSTZFRsLAgZZzp535mAyAyk31AINGSeCEswPb7yiy6pYxVXQs34O-zWYp1rpZkkH7pF1LiOPYAw0UllMZvQIxiAuUUKvto/s1600/Animalist_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSKvy2-2wefTQ_OJ11HkT1NyGALK7Bs80IBuVtjLbGunF4KSTZFRsLAgZZzp535mAyAyk31AINGSeCEswPb7yiy6pYxVXQs34O-zWYp1rpZkkH7pF1LiOPYAw0UllMZvQIxiAuUUKvto/s400/Animalist_1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
<br />
The other thing that baffles my mind is this closing statement at the bottom of this image (we'll go back to vertebrates in a moment):<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTukRXiQAJqvpEiSNSA03Pf12e5C7wl5ohysSzX9wkKBGUuX7E0U7fdhetMVR_zV-SzomVTbwnC01EOMRAUHCIBuBA3ji6j1dxLqwRfg4bz7G5UnlpJ5na_lk2yqmQyrLbImb2dc_qzc/s1600/Animalist_11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTukRXiQAJqvpEiSNSA03Pf12e5C7wl5ohysSzX9wkKBGUuX7E0U7fdhetMVR_zV-SzomVTbwnC01EOMRAUHCIBuBA3ji6j1dxLqwRfg4bz7G5UnlpJ5na_lk2yqmQyrLbImb2dc_qzc/s400/Animalist_11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Animalist refuses to use concrete evidence and examples based on science, research, etc. in his claims that invertebrates are not sentient, yet he <b><u>demands</u> </b>that if you disagree with his opinion-based stance, that you provide him with "concrete examples and evidence". Kind of not an even playing field, is it? This also means that whatever anyone says won't be enough even if it based on scientific literature.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Regardless, with this post, I attempt to show how unscientific the Animalist's case is. In support, I describe in agreement on why he is NOT a pescatarian or even a vegetarian because, as someone that eats animals, he is an omnivore. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">If you would like a scientific view on why there isn't an ethical case in eating mussels, oysters, and other bivalves as vegans, please refer to Part I, <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>, which discusses the Sentientist's blog posts on eating bivalves. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">In the same post, I establish why it doesn't make sense<a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank"> to attempt to apply the same definition of sentience to invertebrate species</a> based on a world-view defined by human sentience. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">I also establish that bivalves <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">are not synonymous</a> to plants.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;">Statements are fully supported by scientific evidence and literature.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="background-color: yellow;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<b> </b>NOTE: As with my first article, I will directly quote reliable scientific literature and direct quotes from experts in the corresponding fields just so you know I'm not just making things up...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc4tUANZGnxQVibBhR0jMIGRpK0kpyHAdfKuhFc_24arshLhUKLMs2NoJaqxIvc1L9bqLU7TxD-v08At0AjeAoxvrGCosSZtnIjgRF5OyoMIFtHy8FuljHwildThKVNPM7UwiJyvqelSs/s1600/Animalist_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc4tUANZGnxQVibBhR0jMIGRpK0kpyHAdfKuhFc_24arshLhUKLMs2NoJaqxIvc1L9bqLU7TxD-v08At0AjeAoxvrGCosSZtnIjgRF5OyoMIFtHy8FuljHwildThKVNPM7UwiJyvqelSs/s320/Animalist_2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<u><b>Invertebrates & the Animal Kingdom</b></u><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> How do I know mollusks and echinoderms are animals and not plants? Because they have been classified under the Animal Kingdom. <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"> I</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">n current times, classification of living beings is based on morphology and molecular data, which are used to establish evolutionary relationships between them.</span> Let's have a look:</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNgBIGDiEAq0TRO_q_7JdhVTpZ1CZbD0PX8DuZXWJAGNNNgaoWDKikGJptkysClQ-el3RfVt9QyBH8yxnG8t7CSN-MU33fUKT4Fq40OCRtyF0M5JSxyfTikd9HtP30voHYoWXG95z3uws/s1600/TOFPhyl_Echinoderms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNgBIGDiEAq0TRO_q_7JdhVTpZ1CZbD0PX8DuZXWJAGNNNgaoWDKikGJptkysClQ-el3RfVt9QyBH8yxnG8t7CSN-MU33fUKT4Fq40OCRtyF0M5JSxyfTikd9HtP30voHYoWXG95z3uws/s640/TOFPhyl_Echinoderms.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5xKBrDCgJi8YFzS-CVtrR9AjdjQh_2Aql17t3T4xDDL-8_K3zkM3KU4pzv9M-qd1XDD18FU9wC0CkbWzAlvMhwjZEQA3fMDrZevo8omVf5n0W7lG4RvNPTLbc1fAcihlvFXkKN3wP4i8/s1600/TOFPhyl_AnimalsMollusks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5xKBrDCgJi8YFzS-CVtrR9AjdjQh_2Aql17t3T4xDDL-8_K3zkM3KU4pzv9M-qd1XDD18FU9wC0CkbWzAlvMhwjZEQA3fMDrZevo8omVf5n0W7lG4RvNPTLbc1fAcihlvFXkKN3wP4i8/s640/TOFPhyl_AnimalsMollusks.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: center;"> Images: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">http://tolweb.org</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Again, both echinoderms and bivalves are clearly under the <b>Animal Kingdom</b> as determined by experts that study the evolutionary relationships of living beings. Plants, however, are not in the animal kingdom. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR56GdZsDSfNED_DPNc0dy7VaMUyD3fWPZjNiGRNX_kchIGV5E_OB3ygCn8egyJaokTBqG8TdeEoMBpIStgk-_N-ddHuQGJy-8S8lOyOuZDMu5NDlRpp4uWgHn4fvUicKFKNpplIB1XYU/s1600/PhyloTreeofLife.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR56GdZsDSfNED_DPNc0dy7VaMUyD3fWPZjNiGRNX_kchIGV5E_OB3ygCn8egyJaokTBqG8TdeEoMBpIStgk-_N-ddHuQGJy-8S8lOyOuZDMu5NDlRpp4uWgHn4fvUicKFKNpplIB1XYU/s400/PhyloTreeofLife.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: http://nai.arc.nasa.gov</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<b><u>The Definition of Omnivore</u></b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHUUQcb2iHA1di7ekYmGgu9FSV-EkudOO60gsk5R1X35OG2qFSzb38iDPQOYxL4YO666fCnE2Uqgm5C69CU9ixowbiT7jBbGAxcv6ZVs0WpEfImIOfhd_gPkypZC26mGwIgvKIDQpD-mU/s1600/Animalist_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHUUQcb2iHA1di7ekYmGgu9FSV-EkudOO60gsk5R1X35OG2qFSzb38iDPQOYxL4YO666fCnE2Uqgm5C69CU9ixowbiT7jBbGAxcv6ZVs0WpEfImIOfhd_gPkypZC26mGwIgvKIDQpD-mU/s640/Animalist_10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: center;"> Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Omnivores are defined as animals (like humans) that eat plants and other animals (like bivalves and echinoderms).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Vegans do not eat, use, or wear animals. Vegetarians do not eat animals but may eat and use animal products, such as eggs and dairy, leather, etc.; however, animals are not animal products, they are the actual animals. Pescatarians eat fish, but invertebrates aren't fish. Fish are vertebrates, and they are animals. Therefore, pescatarians are just omnivores that prefer fish. Someone that consumes invertebrates, which are well established as animals, then simply, still eats animals, and is therefore, an omnivore - like the Animalist. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Back to the animal kingdom for a second...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What does the Animalist mean when mussels, oysters, clams, or sea urchins are not comparable to fish? They are clearly both animals for a reason, or does he mean that one is an invertebrate and the other one is a vertebrate, and therefore, have completely different physiologies? How does he determine that all those species are sentient? Where is the evidence? What basis does he use?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">And WHO is everyone</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> that has looked into this? Where is the research and the literature to back this claim?</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmsoZg_xXtBFUTNwTiLT91OzmYO2YMHwpl5Dg2KTNH1iBdrVbz8CsGKxgGyRBLXunUuB65ZR3riLYWK-L1GqxysF5ojr4v3mkpOl1M2pssxUHdIxuSAbiTgWzqCTqImcPeGb3OCuNrPGs/s1600/Animalist_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmsoZg_xXtBFUTNwTiLT91OzmYO2YMHwpl5Dg2KTNH1iBdrVbz8CsGKxgGyRBLXunUuB65ZR3riLYWK-L1GqxysF5ojr4v3mkpOl1M2pssxUHdIxuSAbiTgWzqCTqImcPeGb3OCuNrPGs/s320/Animalist_3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: center;"> Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Animalist would like us to accept that because they don't have, eyes, brains/nervous systems like the ones humans and other animal species have, sea urchins (and bivalves) are just like plants. Except, sea urchins are nothing like plants, they are animals with nervous systems. Plants are not animals and do not have any kind of nervous system. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwSXP5rxKBG9nLYr_IX6_Q13362_EGkamS4ukde_UDQJlmrjXT6205E1VSgpyvp51TGFknh8E9CptqJfN434CKtwCeUJt7ZwL3OXn7iNh5hzo8E6rHhGXM1dXjI0yyOXTtdCrPC9IAUc/s1600/Animalist_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwSXP5rxKBG9nLYr_IX6_Q13362_EGkamS4ukde_UDQJlmrjXT6205E1VSgpyvp51TGFknh8E9CptqJfN434CKtwCeUJt7ZwL3OXn7iNh5hzo8E6rHhGXM1dXjI0yyOXTtdCrPC9IAUc/s320/Animalist_5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4OCNLaZtVQKVj1MY6crj5XV3wvlkcvY8oQ-uOZiw6d9NUTg9k_ejkj7VQkwF04IMX9eI6kE-p26Xua1MHkxxEUUljxbdVuHwxtGHtln8OM36E8ohMKpURo5YqwvPIXHUZePb6I00cjA/s1600/Animalist_4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4OCNLaZtVQKVj1MY6crj5XV3wvlkcvY8oQ-uOZiw6d9NUTg9k_ejkj7VQkwF04IMX9eI6kE-p26Xua1MHkxxEUUljxbdVuHwxtGHtln8OM36E8ohMKpURo5YqwvPIXHUZePb6I00cjA/s320/Animalist_4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Note: I'm going to skip on the explanation that animals are not plants because I hope that we all realize by now that plants are in the plant kingdom and animals are in the animal kingdom. You can look more into that topic in <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I.</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><u><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sea Urchins & Brains</span></u></b></div>
<div>
<b><u><br /></u></b></div>
<div>
<b><u></u></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><u><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlD6Kz8APGGiQIYFEjOvZrK2wEyYVdHK4L7sy_nX9NsYjQQIhz82qjMlcSCrcvSOnVP0DuxYW5fzjAc7ZN6PxD6b90uYM2jm664IlO5dJL6RwbQUowdJUZHdsF9fZIHMXrBgJSEn0xF_o/s640/blogger-image-93723703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlD6Kz8APGGiQIYFEjOvZrK2wEyYVdHK4L7sy_nX9NsYjQQIhz82qjMlcSCrcvSOnVP0DuxYW5fzjAc7ZN6PxD6b90uYM2jm664IlO5dJL6RwbQUowdJUZHdsF9fZIHMXrBgJSEn0xF_o/s400/blogger-image-93723703.jpg" width="400" /></a></u></b></div>
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Although I am unsure how the Animalist determines which species are "sentient" or not since I'm not aware of any crab or shrimp that has a central nervous system or a brain, as in humans, I'd like to show you the story that science has to tell us about sea urchins...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When it comes to sea urchins, no they do not have eyes in the sense that we and other animals have eyes, but<span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;"><i>"it looks like the entire surface of their bodies are acting as </i></span><i>one big eye...</i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;"><i>" said researcher Sönke Johnsen, a marine biologist at Duke University." </i> Johnsen is further quoted by the same article saying, </span><i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">We think of animals that have a head with centralized nervous systems and all their </span>sense organs</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><i> on top as being the ones capable of sophisticated behavior, but we're finding more and more some animals can do pretty complex behaviors using a completely different style."</i> (Choi 2009)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;"><br /></span></i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;">Blevins & Johnsen (2010) state that their research study is the <i>"</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><i>first demonstration of spatial vision in an echinoderm sheds further light on the complex optical structures and photobehaviors found in this phylum."</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What was that again about no eyes, Animalist?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;"><br /></span></i>
<i><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">It appears that sea urchins may use the whole surface of their bodies as a compound eye, and the animals' spines may shield their bodies from light coming from wide angles to enable them to pick out relatively fine visual detail....</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Some of the animals may interpret the object as a predator and flee, while others identify it as shelter and head towards it. What is more surprising is that the urchins' vision is as good as </span><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; vertical-align: baseline;">Nautilus</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"> and horseshoe crab vision, which is quite impressive for an echinoid that has turned its whole body into an eye.</span></i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><i>"</i> (Knight 2010) </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">And on the claim that they "do not have centralized nervous systems" as basis for the Animalist to decide it's ok to eat them, the fact remains that sea urchins and ALL echinoderms, HAVE nervous systems:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Johnsen stated that, <i>"</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><i>Although sea urchins don't have brains, "it could be their entire nervous system more or less acts as a brain," </i>Johnsen said.<i> "In our case, we vertebrates have nervous systems that are more or less controlled by a central brain, but sea urchins have a pretty diffuse nerve net, where no region looks like a central processing unit as far as we can tell."</i> (Choi 2009)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2px; text-align: justify;"><br /></span>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #403838; line-height: 19.2px; text-align: justify;">"</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); color: #222222;">The adult echinoid nervous system is comprised of 5 radial nerve cords, which are joined at their base by commissures that form a ring surrounding the mouth (</span>Cobb, 1970<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); color: #222222;">; </span>Cavey and Markel, 1994<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); color: #222222;">)..</span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); color: #222222;">. Tube feet, spines and pedicellariae have ganglia and a complement of sensory and motor neurons...</span></i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><i>The arrangement of the nervous system in echinoderms is a feature that distinguishes them from other deuterostomes (chordates and hemichordates). Echinoderm nervous systems are dispersed, but they are not a simple nerve net. The adult is not cephalized, yet the radial nerves are segmentally organized </i>(Burke et al 2006)<i>."</i></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="background-color: white;">Johnsen also states that, <i>"</i></span></span><i><span style="background-color: rgba(255 , 255 , 255 , 0); color: #222222;">We think of animals that have a head with centralized nervous systems and all their </span>sense organs<span style="background-color: rgba(255 , 255 , 255 , 0); color: #222222;"> on top as being the ones capable of sophisticated behavior, but we're finding more and more some animals can do pretty complex behaviors using a completely different style...</span></i><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); color: #222222;"><i>In the beginning, people built robots like they would humans, with powerful central processing units, complex sensors and fairly complex rules for doing things...Now they're finding it might be a lot better with a distributed system with many little processors and simpler sensors and simple rules, which end up creating fairly complicated behaviors as emergent properties, just as how a flock of birds can make intricate patterns without any one bird choosing these patterns." </i>(Choi 2009)</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">So basically, not having a nervous system with a brain does not mean you are a living plant-like rock creature incapable of experiencing the world...plants don't have nervous systems. Echinoderms (and Bivalves) <b>DO HAVE nervous systems</b> regardless of how simple you believe they are. </span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">As I quoted on <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a>, </span></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5s4g6PYKfXtenCvYz2lXh2pKMmXK_hXDh_PYLH7VYifSDlKyPY7cdSfN8V9EDey0T1qsxBPqNbE8jqPHIbeLj__MFDqgtb9Ko1S-eotCyeb2GKVitA49W-OsIDRExXmyNiDc7khFchc/s1600/PartI_Sentience.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5s4g6PYKfXtenCvYz2lXh2pKMmXK_hXDh_PYLH7VYifSDlKyPY7cdSfN8V9EDey0T1qsxBPqNbE8jqPHIbeLj__MFDqgtb9Ko1S-eotCyeb2GKVitA49W-OsIDRExXmyNiDc7khFchc/s400/PartI_Sentience.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><u>On the Environmental Aspects</u></b><br />
<br />
The issue that I have with using Wikipedia as the sole evidence for a claim is that Wikipedia articles, such as the one linked on the Animalist's post, do not always cite reliable evidence, reliable sources, scientific research, or official publications. They can also be very one sided if written by someone with a specific interest, or they can just be outdated.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkfINZK3J76VpuZBPxswDCEDMmHzclI7nIcNHzwcWMR0By7hfh7qA67OhSzrUoelDofGan-TKvUVOsRUd2PPA7btMxBXZcUhScQPPsM-0OYHqUE1wS4cA3C25nhg7ysd11pRppi08hJvE/s1600/Animalist_7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkfINZK3J76VpuZBPxswDCEDMmHzclI7nIcNHzwcWMR0By7hfh7qA67OhSzrUoelDofGan-TKvUVOsRUd2PPA7btMxBXZcUhScQPPsM-0OYHqUE1wS4cA3C25nhg7ysd11pRppi08hJvE/s640/Animalist_7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: center;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small; text-align: center;"> Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I do have to make a clarification that the article quoted on the Animalist's blog post above makes reference to eating these sea urchins because they are aggressive invasive species outcompeting local species of sea urchins in a region they once were not found in. http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/professor-philip-hayward-believes-australians-should-be-eating-cane-toads-camel-meat-and-sea-urchins/story-fneuz8wn-1226989957895 However, I find making the case of eating sea urchins because they are invasives is a stepping stone to making the case to kill other invasive animal species, such as lion fish, which have become an ecological nightmare in parts of the United States. http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/news/articles/2010/1002_Lionfish.htm </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Regardless, intensive oyster farming is NOT free of negative impacts as the Animalist claims. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is unclear where the Animalist gets the scientific data to claim that not a single "sentient" being is harmed or killed during oyster and mussel farming since the oysters and mussels have not been established to be non-sentient and are, well, killed (see <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a>). Either way, intensive farming of these animals does have negative impacts, which affect other species.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A review of the ecological effects of oyster aquaculture in New Zealand, which was commissioned by the Northland
Regional Council (Forrest, Elmetri, Clark (2007)) found that their: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>"review indicates that, other than a field investigation of seabed impacts in Mahurangi Harbour,
little is known about the actual effects of oyster farming in New Zealand....Although the general effects of oyster farming are known, and their ecological significance can be
evaluated, it is evident from our assessment that there are many knowledge gaps and areas of
uncertainty."</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Collectively,
these sources of information reveal key areas of actual or potential risk from intertidal oyster
cultivation as:</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2PAmNZZPO846ybVYYQJeE0Rqi0Lpoh67pQ4xWFEjGJFvdhBjg6W52L-ZHeS1yH2JEX3IChl5YU5iPv6mxZHzll6sXd52umSJrFs8pflS1zzqNBkuLkNO5sLCsvgrFZ3hzdc6Xn5xDGQ/s1600/EcologicalImpacts_NZ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF2PAmNZZPO846ybVYYQJeE0Rqi0Lpoh67pQ4xWFEjGJFvdhBjg6W52L-ZHeS1yH2JEX3IChl5YU5iPv6mxZHzll6sXd52umSJrFs8pflS1zzqNBkuLkNO5sLCsvgrFZ3hzdc6Xn5xDGQ/s640/EcologicalImpacts_NZ.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Image: Page iii excerpt from the " Review of the Ecological Effects of Intertidal Oyster Aquaculture in New Zealand"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm not going to go through each issue because I am only trying to point out that one cannot make claims that oyster farming or any other kind of farming does not have any kind of impact. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What would farming these animals look like for 7 billion people - hand harvesting oysters for 7 billion people? Not likely. How would that affect the ecology? Lastly, it would be naive to think that the same types of farming systems would apply world-wide since marine environments and animal species vary depending on the region. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">As for mussel farming, please review the potential negative effects, which includes a research study as reliable literature, briefly discussed in <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPE.html" target="_blank">Part I</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Although, to supplement my previous argument, a Sweden-based study by Carlsson et al. (2012) found that, <i>"the establishment of
the Lysekil mussel farms increased the local sedimentation
rates and affected underlying sediment by
consistently increasing benthic oxygen demand and
nutrient release...the continuous loading of mussel biodeposits
gradually in creases the demand for oxygen to reoxidize
reduced compounds, leading to oxygen depletion
and stimulating the production of sulfide...study supports the correlation
between elevated TOU </i>[<i>oxygen uptake</i>]<i>, SRRs [sulfate reduction rate] and nutrient
release, and negative effects on benthic RPD [redox potential discontinuity
(RPD) layer indicates the depth of oxidized
sediment</i>]<i> and
BQI [benthic quality index].</i> (Hargrave
et al. 2008). " I fail to see how anyone can claim no animal is harmed or killed with events, such as oxygen depletion in bethic zones. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JEKrqcRu9V_nWoncqzQO8yIdZKod87WFVLO6Lyr9JU9gz2hAXzDLEQmZxeH0RzUxVCs3D5vsLB2fRyT21y3Y82qgHEgWY77eZeDnTU6hX9ne_m2UHq73O0AEJdaCKJnPDF3_1n7GS_I/s1600/Animalist_6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4JEKrqcRu9V_nWoncqzQO8yIdZKod87WFVLO6Lyr9JU9gz2hAXzDLEQmZxeH0RzUxVCs3D5vsLB2fRyT21y3Y82qgHEgWY77eZeDnTU6hX9ne_m2UHq73O0AEJdaCKJnPDF3_1n7GS_I/s320/Animalist_6.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lastly, I will say that these are just a few examples. I do not want to get too deep into the environmental impacts of farming/aquaculture because I do not believe that has any relevance in making a case of eating an animal species or not as it relates to veganism. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<u><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">In Conclusion</span></b></u><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Animalist excludes certain animal species from his "activism against speciesism" by applying unsupported ideologies of sentience to animal species that are NOT humans or even vertebrates because their nervous systems are set up different to our own - all based on zero evidence. He also fails to make a case for the claim that bivalve farming is free from "<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.952941); letter-spacing: 0.159999996423721px; line-height: 33px;">killing or harming or depriving one single sentient being" or any "sentient casualty".</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Animalist also makes it clear that he and the others mentioned below support an omnivorous diet for themselves since, as the scientific community has established, bivalves and ALL invertebrates are animals. Vegans, do not eat animals, and once again, invertebrates are all animals</span>.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYnRtmzuq8NnpQj0FodjyRTYAJUoeFzncgnFdg-x-OnwL05xJmMbUGcLyM7YNKMSxhD3awANJTdZMc3L9wd40cgpCaaGLx1FQj0DSqrZBbY-vnhCCFug4tvd8SBAnJFsLx56E5n16HFzA/s1600/Animalist_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYnRtmzuq8NnpQj0FodjyRTYAJUoeFzncgnFdg-x-OnwL05xJmMbUGcLyM7YNKMSxhD3awANJTdZMc3L9wd40cgpCaaGLx1FQj0DSqrZBbY-vnhCCFug4tvd8SBAnJFsLx56E5n16HFzA/s640/Animalist_12.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: Excerpt from the Animalist's Blog Post "Those Pesky Bivalves."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<b><u>Note to the Animalist & Sentientist:</u></b><br />
<br />
It's not personal, so I hope there will be no hard feelings. I went into science for the biodiversity, and I stayed because of ecology. I just want to prevent the dissemination of inaccurate scientific information, particularly when it is being used as the basis to exploit a species of animal.<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Qualifications</u></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The author of this post has a B.S. in Biological Sciences with an emphasis in Marine Science and a M.Sc. in Conservation & Ecology with an emphasis in research. Other experiences include, but are not limited to, aquaculture, molecular biology, fungal and plant symbiosis, and invasive species ecology. The author is also vegan, which means the author does not consume or consciously exploits any species of animal. </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>References</u></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 20.7263984680176px;">Blevins & Johnsen (2010), </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: inherit;">Spatial vision in the echinoid genus </span><em style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">Echinometra, </em><abbr class="slug-jnl-abbrev" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" title="The Journal of Experimental Biology"><nlm:abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher" xmlns:nlm="http://schema.highwire.org/NLM/Journal">J Exp Biol</nlm:abbrev-journal-title></abbr><span style="background-color: white; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px;"> </span><span class="slug-vol" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">207</span><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">, </span><span class="slug-pages" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="tel:4249-4253" x-apple-data-detectors-result="0" x-apple-data-detectors-type="telephone" x-apple-data-detectors="true">4249-4253</a></span><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;">Burke R et al. (2006), A Genomic View of the Sea Urchin Nervous System. </span><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;">Developmental biology</i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;">; 300(1):434-460.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8999996185303px;">Carlsson et al. (2012), </span>Effects of mussel farms on the benthic nitrogen cycle
on the Swedish west coast, Aquacult Environ Interact, Vol. 2: 177–191.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="byline" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Choi (2009), Live Science, Body of Sea Urchin is One Big Eye, December 28, 2009, </span><span style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">http://m.livescience.com/5970-body-sea-urchin-big-eye.html (direct quote Dr. Johnsen, Duke University, http://sites.biology.duke.edu/johnsenlab)</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Forrest, Elmetri, & Clark (2007), Review of the Ecological Effects of Intertidal Oyster Aquaculture. Prepared for Northland
Regional Council. Cawthron Report No. 1275, 25p.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Knight (2010), Sea Urchins Use Whole Body As Eye, <abbr class="slug-jnl-abbrev" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" title="The Journal of Experimental Biology"><nlm:abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher" xmlns:nlm="http://schema.highwire.org/NLM/Journal">J Exp Biol</nlm:abbrev-journal-title></abbr><span style="background-color: white; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px;"> </span><span class="slug-vol" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">213</span><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">, </span><span class="slug-pages" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">i-ii</span><span style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">Smith (1991), </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: inherit;">A Question of Pain in Invertebrates, </span><abbr class="slug-jnl-abbrev" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;" title="ILAR Journal"><nlm:abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher" xmlns:nlm="http://schema.highwire.org/NLM/Journal">ILAR J, </nlm:abbrev-journal-title></abbr><span class="slug-pub-date" itemprop="datePublished" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; text-align: center;"></span><span class="slug-vol" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">33 </span><span class="slug-issue" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">(1-2): </span><span class="slug-pages" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">25-31.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Join <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">Vegans For Reason On Facebook</a></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-4842046755038328112015-09-02T09:32:00.001-07:002015-09-07T12:50:13.086-07:00The Case for Vegans Eating Oysters, Mussels, & Other Invertebrates?<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Nope, Here’s Some Science. </span></b><br>
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><br></span></b>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Update: See <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a> for a continuation on this topic and further discussion on sentience and environmental impacts.</span><br>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/NOPEx3.html" target="_blank">Part III</a> on NOT eating Oysters</span><br>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br></b></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b></b></span><br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b></b></span> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT79VOeVm6zoO2iSHWULxWVDgL8bwLlnnnnex_5pdAthuy3KAFFxusL-SZ9_JVPh1kDUdyKSNvtKASgotsJrAcsGvBTzoj9OmnkuWLCUxcNRhZdqBj9nG4_pizoLhUbBpDOM6KdWBxX-U/s640/blogger-image--500918281.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT79VOeVm6zoO2iSHWULxWVDgL8bwLlnnnnex_5pdAthuy3KAFFxusL-SZ9_JVPh1kDUdyKSNvtKASgotsJrAcsGvBTzoj9OmnkuWLCUxcNRhZdqBj9nG4_pizoLhUbBpDOM6KdWBxX-U/s400/blogger-image--500918281.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br></b></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br></b>
</span><br>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This topic has come up numerous times in the last few days. After reading the comments on a few discussion groups, <span id="docs-internal-guid-b42769e1-9e57-01f0-7195-c7c3bc470943"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I realized that a lack of understanding of simple science and biology is being used to justify the addition of bivalves into the vegan food chain</span></span>. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of the misinformation is
in part spread by the most quoted blog post written by a psychologist that calls herself the Sentientist. On her blog, she tries to make the
ethical case for eating some bivalve species. Unfortunately, the rest of the unsupported argument is being spread by readers of the blog that don't realize there really isn't much there based on any reliable evidence. I believe I only found one reference to a published paper when I checked the sources earlier this week. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To counter this misinformation and bring accurate science into the discussion, below, I attempt to set the science straight and provide
examples that tear down most one of the Sentientist's points in
support of eating these bivalves. I am purposely copying and pasting portions of actual scientific literature to clearly show that my statements are not based on ideology and made up or non-existent data. I also do not try to make the case (or not) for sentience because it just doesn't make sense...You'll see what I mean. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also mostly directly quote research studies and use the Sentientist's own sources to show how cherry-picking data that you may not understand makes for
bad arguments. I begin, however, by addressing some of the most erroneous
statements surrounding conversations that I've witnesses on discussions surrounding this topic. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Classification<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Proponents of eating bivalves seem to believe that
classification of living beings is based on archaic methods from the 18<sup>th</sup>
century, as one of them put it. However, in current times, classification of
living beings is based on morphology and molecular data, which are used to
establish evolutionary relationships between them. And guess what? Mollusks,
including bivalves, are still in the Animal Kingdom. I'm not aware of any connection to plants when it comes to the phylogenetic tree of mollusks, including bivalves. You can read all about mollusk phylogeny and evolutionary asociations here: <o:p></o:p></span><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v477/n7365/full/nature10382.html </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">Spoiler alert: You're not going to find anything about plants. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9FzfeRkVRUg3CCYE9NvgJgBlU2XZ2QULjk5zmpo-VnDmN2AVdzJW8vI9M5oRD7F4q4eWGCSlz_blvdVIWL93jmd3Us0w8DugQEEx9d8mLOFEEh6A_efHGykR1ErLdRW9BnfFPDKt2Oac/s1600/18thcenturytaxonomyFinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="89" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9FzfeRkVRUg3CCYE9NvgJgBlU2XZ2QULjk5zmpo-VnDmN2AVdzJW8vI9M5oRD7F4q4eWGCSlz_blvdVIWL93jmd3Us0w8DugQEEx9d8mLOFEEh6A_efHGykR1ErLdRW9BnfFPDKt2Oac/s320/18thcenturytaxonomyFinal.jpg" width="320"></span></a></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: Photo of a comment in a facebook group discussion trying to justify eating mussels and oysters as a vegan.</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGEj68E_DVUt2v0-ieEakC7gsi-bzRTNqGbYRTIRV7HCioAp2OpaYNK7x9oJDedrmjUhT5HGnHMXznTGyuPTZCnBnGIeSPYVxl3P6GknGfvUezOF1YhZZTDNlTsJXvcgb8J4M4fjyrEhU/s1600/AnimalKingdomCircledMollusks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="409" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGEj68E_DVUt2v0-ieEakC7gsi-bzRTNqGbYRTIRV7HCioAp2OpaYNK7x9oJDedrmjUhT5HGnHMXznTGyuPTZCnBnGIeSPYVxl3P6GknGfvUezOF1YhZZTDNlTsJXvcgb8J4M4fjyrEhU/s640/AnimalKingdomCircledMollusks.jpg" width="640"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Image: </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">http://tolweb.org/Animals/2374</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bivalves
Are Not Plants<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Are they plants of the sea?" "Aren’t they just like plants?" These
are the types of questions and statements that I continue to find in threads
that discuss whether vegans should eat bivalves. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAI9Os9uaRoCoJJC93ucWRJUqzTAdrtZ0g5SMCK8Hp05YNvB3-O9G36rLh7M1W4zx5B3SQQIytTAWSpDV8O5uI72bplgwjp_EO_wPU_0ja_aLxVucuVb-nuPS9Q5QtWmFT9z4udBiqiHE/s1600/AreMusselsPlantsFinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAI9Os9uaRoCoJJC93ucWRJUqzTAdrtZ0g5SMCK8Hp05YNvB3-O9G36rLh7M1W4zx5B3SQQIytTAWSpDV8O5uI72bplgwjp_EO_wPU_0ja_aLxVucuVb-nuPS9Q5QtWmFT9z4udBiqiHE/s320/AreMusselsPlantsFinal.jpg" width="320"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span><br>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: Photo of a comment in a facebook group discussion asking for more information on the ethics of eating bivalves.</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No. Bivalves, as we
established above, are animals. They are not, I repeat, are not plants. And where does someone get that they have roots? Perhaps they meant a byssus? However, byssus are <b>not</b> roots and are nothing like plant roots.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For some reason, bivalve eating supporters
have this idea that oysters and mussels are basically plants or have more in common with plants, but let’s look at
that image again: <span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilbuDEnEDL0QXGU4QvEeyUrvygfxekl25gUGZoMxRw45owKo7Qp8UrdJ1lKfSuOu2uCEJuB7B5L0NIwKVCePlPEqlTqZSF3XbpcJW2wFJkyu-_WYLbJ9ArpIN6pD8TpKD8HGqdOTupT4I/s1600/AnimalKingdomCircledMollusks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilbuDEnEDL0QXGU4QvEeyUrvygfxekl25gUGZoMxRw45owKo7Qp8UrdJ1lKfSuOu2uCEJuB7B5L0NIwKVCePlPEqlTqZSF3XbpcJW2wFJkyu-_WYLbJ9ArpIN6pD8TpKD8HGqdOTupT4I/s640/AnimalKingdomCircledMollusks.jpg" width="640"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Image: </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">http://tolweb.org/Animals/2374</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Still not plants; otherwise, they would be classified as such...I'm going to go with the experts on this one.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Regardless, the Sentientist (by providing a link to wikipedia about general plant responses) alludes that the closing and opening mechanism in sessile bivalves is as simple an action as that in carnivorous plants. However, conveniently, she does not go further into the topic. Here is why that statement is false...and just shows a lack of basic understanding of biology, as well as, animal and plant physiology. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we discussed above, plants are in the plant kingdom while bivalves are in the animal kingdom. By now, it should be common knowledge that plants have absolutely NO nervous system - at all. Bivalves DO have a nervous system regardless of how simply it may be. There are many species of carnivorous plants that don't have a closing mechanism, but I will assume that the plant that is being discussed is the venus flytrap. <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Volkov et al. (2008) stated<i> </i>that<i>,</i></span><i> "</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Plants can react to mechanical stimuli (</span><i>Ksenzhek and Volkov, 1998</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Braam, 2005</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">) with the use of mechanosensitive channels... </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Mechanosensory ion channels in plants are activated by mechanical stress and transduce the sensed information into electrical signals (</span><i>Volkov and Haack, 1995</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">)....</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Touching trigger hairs protruding from the upper leaf epidermis of the Venus flytrap activates mechanosensitive ion channels and generates receptor potentials, which induce an action potential (AP; </span><i>Burdon-Sanderson, 1874</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">, </span><i>1882</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Burdon-Sanderson and Page, 1876</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Stuhlman and Darden, 1950</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Jacobson, 1965</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Sibaoka, 1966</i><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">; </span><i>Volkov et al., 2007</i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><i>)." </i>It's basically a spring-like mechanism caused by electrical signals.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"> Meanwhile, to explain it as simply as possible, in mollusks, closing of the shell is done by muscles. In blue mussels, the nerve fibers in the nerve within the anterior byssus retractor muscle control the opening and closing of the shell via the release of seratonin (Schmidt-Nielsen 1997). </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">This is not the same thing at all. Again, plants have NO nervous system while bivalves, such as mussels and oysters DO have a nervous system. One closing mechanism is done by electrical signals triggered by hairs on the plant (no nerves or muscles) while the others one is guided by nerves/nerve fibers and muscles. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Most importantly, mussels need to engage their muscles actively to keep the shells closed.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: justify;">Also, it has been documented that mussels will close their shells <i>"</i></span><span style="background-color: white;"><i> by contraction of “quick” muscles in response to perceived danger. This reaction is supported by the literature, which documents that mussels rapidly close their valves when threatened (Ruppert etal.2004)." (</i></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2e2e2e; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">Robson, Wilson, and Leaniz 2007)...</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>This (contraction due to the perceived danger of a predator) is NOT the same in anyway to a simple response (guided by membrane proteins responding to mechanical stress, i.e. hairs being pushed down on to cause a reaction) that a venus fly trap will have by the simple action of sensory touch to a minimum of 3 of it's protruding modified leaf hairs simply because an insect (or any thing else that can cause pressure on the leaves) happens to fly by. </b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9hXy6C0Ln4dS5Ow6at0Jfr9Zl60md6O0fmpeC7no9fkZBE5k4D7TknxTkGd1orgeKX2aP9bNjQt_wbTSBiOFOBnT_fbr0E9Z9UwzG752Ct4YOD9watcp_cR6jPF8mqTDl-llWoX8UVw/s1600/Sentientist_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9hXy6C0Ln4dS5Ow6at0Jfr9Zl60md6O0fmpeC7no9fkZBE5k4D7TknxTkGd1orgeKX2aP9bNjQt_wbTSBiOFOBnT_fbr0E9Z9UwzG752Ct4YOD9watcp_cR6jPF8mqTDl-llWoX8UVw/s400/Sentientist_10.jpg" width="400"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now
that we’ve established a few things…<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Sentientist and other supporters of bivalve eating in
the vegan community claim that mussels and oysters are not sentient because
they do not have “brains.” No, mussels and oyster do not have a brain. However,
they do have ganglia. Ganglia, in simple terms, is basically their form of a
brain – how they get their systems to function and respond when they need to. Yes,
invertebrates have much simpler nervous systems than vertebrates, but they
still have nervous systems. How developed their nervous system is depends on
the species. <span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">More specifically, mussels,
for example, have<i> “sensory systems such as pallial tentacles with </i></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-style: italic; line-height: 107%;">primary
ciliary receptor cells as mechanoreceptors (Ruppert etal.2004), pallial eyes
(ocelli), cerebral eyes(cephalic eyes) and chemoreceptors, possibly including osphradia [</span><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">olfactory</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"> organ in mollusks<i>] (Ruppert etal.2004; Leonard 1999), which may be used to assess environmental
quality so it is appropriate that these animals display an appropriately complex
behavioural response.”</i></span><span style="line-height: 107%;"> (from </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2e2e2e; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Robson,
Wilson, and Garcia de Leaniz 2007</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">) </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><- I didn’t
make that up based on made-up ideology. Experts in the field made that
statement.</b></span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mobility,
Evolution, and Pain<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the case of oysters and mussels, the Sentientist attempts
to establish that, because of their lack of mobility, they did not develop the
ability for pain. However, she then edits her article to admit that freshwater
mussels do move and that “<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #373737;">these
facts make [her] less confident in the motility argument</span>,” which is <b>a pretty huge chunk </b>of her whole argument that fails right from the start.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQh-8nCMouIrcjGEx55xRienhWIllMfCqRtkvpC3sFjdfAPOH573s72GosJBL5C-MuXuOAyHisMk6UAtxoT_ENvLf5wX2sj1TYrraJV8J2hWgeNzABvxSdLsUsmDSiYE4RTgn6V5f_Gc/s1600/Sentientist_6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQh-8nCMouIrcjGEx55xRienhWIllMfCqRtkvpC3sFjdfAPOH573s72GosJBL5C-MuXuOAyHisMk6UAtxoT_ENvLf5wX2sj1TYrraJV8J2hWgeNzABvxSdLsUsmDSiYE4RTgn6V5f_Gc/s400/Sentientist_6.jpg" width="400"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Evolution has nothing to do
with motility or with an individual. Evolution is not dependent on whether an
organism feels pain or not. It has to do with a whole species and what is the cheapest means to reproduce efficiently. <span style="color: #373737;">"</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sessile macrofauna probably developed
originally as en adaptive condition to unstable
and scattered substrata, under the influence of
unpredictable physico-chemical factors and followed
a generalist (r-selected), opportunistic strategy" <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">(Sara 1984).</span> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">Evolution would, therefore, favor that a
sessile or slower moving lifestyle conserve energy and produce large quantities
of offspring. However, reproduction, and whether they move or not does not establish that well, "they must just not be capable of reacting to any stimuli, which must mean no pain." Even if you are a fully sessile
organism, stress responses are vital to survival. What happens if a siphon gets
clogged or an influx of food comes by – it would be necessary for negative
stimuli to arise so the animal, in this case an oyster or mussel, responds to
and deals with the clogged siphon or whatever other issue arises. Without any
stimuli, why would blue mussels move or do anything else?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">Well, guess what, “</span><i><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">Most, <b>if not all</b>, invertebrates have the capacity
to detect and respond to noxious or aversive stimuli.</span> That is, like
vertebrates, they are capable of ‘nociception” (Smith 1991). Responses to negative stimuli, such as pain,
which is very subjective depending on the individual, can indicate that
something more than a simple nociceptive reflex is involved. Together, they may
help the animal to recover from damage caused by the painful event and avoid
being harmed in the future” (Smith 1991). </i>While invertebrates probably do not
feel pain in the same way humans do, Smith states that, the issue isn’t closed. He further states that<i>, “</i><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in; text-decoration: none;">Mather
(1989</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><i>) suggests, we should simply accept that these animals ‘are
different from us, and wait for more data.’</i> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">It would be ridiculous to
apply the same guidelines of pain that we apply to ourselves and other
vertebrates to species that are completely different to us. </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Smith (1991) warns that<i>, "pain
might incorrectly be denied in certain invertebrates simply because they are so
different from us and because we cannot imagine pain experienced in anything
other than the vertebrate or, specifically, human sense.</i></span><i>”</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><i>Unfortunately,</i></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; line-height: 107%;">
“</span><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; padding: 0in;"><b style="font-style: italic;"><u>reports are notably lacking in
sessile molluscs</u></b><i>, <b>primarily due to the difficulty of quantification
of behaviours</b> that occur in these generally small animals whose behaviour
is characterized by minimal movement carried out over comparatively long time
periods. Such movement may, however, be critical in survival and its quanti</i></span><span style="font-style: italic; line-height: 107%;">fi<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">cation may provide insights into strategies and environmental
conditions of consequence for this important animal group (</span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #2e2e2e; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; line-height: 107%;">Robson, Wilson, and Garcia de Leaniz 2007)</span><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; line-height: 107%; padding: 0in;">.</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><i><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 1pt none windowtext; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; padding: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">If they were nothing but
barely living filtering rocks without the ability to </span><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">respond to, well, anything,
as the Sentientist wants you to believe, why do mussels have a need to detect
and respond to predators, or even respond to stress at all? The Sentientist claims
mussels and oysters cannot respond to stimuli simply because their reaction to it doesn't stem from a central nervous system while ignoring the fact that they do have a nervous system.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv2DT25dZ4BU1b80nTa-xfoBLQ8EFIvxNZa56sFY8XIQR2dGYozdllWuNNrT79c70xadOKK8KOLYNAKTfaGcWec8gfmjprs8seqckylM4O5tYEUTcVntydqB_HHGCviCBnmcZXrA8mb0o/s1600/Sentientist_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv2DT25dZ4BU1b80nTa-xfoBLQ8EFIvxNZa56sFY8XIQR2dGYozdllWuNNrT79c70xadOKK8KOLYNAKTfaGcWec8gfmjprs8seqckylM4O5tYEUTcVntydqB_HHGCviCBnmcZXrA8mb0o/s400/Sentientist_2.jpg" width="400"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0avOKQmW58QNuBJvbenJzC_KC7k16fhpuWpkwMuhtQneazrS6fdDAeewvDX0z5g_U_l0FlEbyzHGJ711SsEaY7Idjzna0N1zXWy4-uwCQCrrgM1JM2acwCBRIrryKA3nQwEbttKytsYg/s1600/Sentientist_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0avOKQmW58QNuBJvbenJzC_KC7k16fhpuWpkwMuhtQneazrS6fdDAeewvDX0z5g_U_l0FlEbyzHGJ711SsEaY7Idjzna0N1zXWy4-uwCQCrrgM1JM2acwCBRIrryKA3nQwEbttKytsYg/s640/Sentientist_5.jpg" width="640"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span><br>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Images: Excerpts from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #373737; line-height: 107%;">Gartner & Litvaikis
(2013) found that </span><span style="background: white; color: #2e2e2e; line-height: 107%;">blue mussels <i>“selectively
alter byssal thread production and movement in the presence of injured
conspecifics and potential predators.</i></span><i>” </i>In addition, Robson, Wilson, and Garcia de Leaniz (2007) found that<span style="color: #141823; line-height: 107%;"> <i>“mussel response to predation is
graded and complex and may well indicate animal-based assessments of the
trade-off between effective feeding and the likelihood of predation."</i> <span style="background-color: yellow;"><--</span></span><span style="color: #141823; line-height: 107%;"><b style="background-color: yellow;"><u> isn't this a form of decision-making?</u></b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #141823; line-height: 107%;">Opioid receptors have also been observed and
studied in mussels (Aiello 1986; </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; line-height: 107%;">Cadet
and Stefano 1999</span><span style="color: #141823; line-height: 107%;">) AND to quote the Sentientist
herself, </span><span style="line-height: 107%;">“</span><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">Many animals have opiate
receptors, indicating they are making painkillers and regulating pain within
their own nervous system.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, <i>“<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;">investigations
have shown that similar opiate systems may have a functional role in
invertebrate nociception (</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Fiorito, 1986</span><span style="background: white;">;<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Kavaliers,
1988</span>). In addition, “<span style="background: white;">Opiate
binding sites, with properties similar to those of mammalian opiate receptors,
have been shown to be present in the neural tissue of the marine mollusk<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span style="outline-style: none;"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Mytilus edulis</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> (</span></span><span style="background: white; border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Kavaliers et
al., 1985</span></i><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><i style="background-color: white;">)”</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i style="background-color: white;"> – </i><b><i style="background-color: yellow;">M. edulis is </i><span style="background-color: yellow;">a species of mussel!</span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><i><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></i></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUHV_kDHZjycD3UIp-JijnkEJfamYMPpO_yZtD6TlwvYx9-2YFxtiAIxgRqCNy-y1BfmBxLV5FFvrrU_8E4PPHP_4IgnmwIjReMPkVzDBSSzz-ItjLcaSGADWN0vwSFN4g0d_VX73TAv0/s1600/Sentientist_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUHV_kDHZjycD3UIp-JijnkEJfamYMPpO_yZtD6TlwvYx9-2YFxtiAIxgRqCNy-y1BfmBxLV5FFvrrU_8E4PPHP_4IgnmwIjReMPkVzDBSSzz-ItjLcaSGADWN0vwSFN4g0d_VX73TAv0/s400/Sentientist_3.jpg" width="400"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><i><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></i></span>
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"></span><br>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yet AGAIN, the Sentientist admits that she's not even confident in her statements! And she really shouldn't be because they are based on pretty much no reliable evidence. </span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Unfortunately, the Sentientist actually misunderstands her
own quote, which she tries to use to convince the reader that bivalves are not
capable of response to pain. Cronk & Walters (2011) state, “<i><span style="background: white;">to our knowledge there are no published
descriptions of behavioral or neurophysiological responses to tissue
injury in bivalves</span>.” </i></span><span style="background: white;">That certainly does NOT mean, as she states, “</span><span style="background: white;">previous studies have not shown this
kind of response in bivalves.</span>” What they say is that there are no published studies, as in, no studies have been published. Therefore, at the time of publication of their paper,
no publications existed that had established neurophysiological or behavioral responses to tissue injury in
bivalves. They just did not exist, so they could not determine whether they
react or not to tissue injury with pain. If previous studies had determined a
lack of response, the authors would have stated something like, “previous
studies have determined a lack of response to tissue injury in bivalves.” How
else does one know no studies exist(ed)? Because the authors do not cite any
research at the end of the statement. They are simply saying the research hasn't/had not been published. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCR0L4Ec0lDgFS_5whuTDFArkoNMUSRxNKjTclrOGroeTovG-__2XW1sH5HnmY6vktZ2VK77xVmft88hg30x2al-sbozVnXFuEAaW0tgyykeE1ypmryUj0P6C-zKGBRCm2_BMveKH5Lzg/s1600/Sentientist_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCR0L4Ec0lDgFS_5whuTDFArkoNMUSRxNKjTclrOGroeTovG-__2XW1sH5HnmY6vktZ2VK77xVmft88hg30x2al-sbozVnXFuEAaW0tgyykeE1ypmryUj0P6C-zKGBRCm2_BMveKH5Lzg/s400/Sentientist_1.jpg" width="400"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The same article quoted by the Sentientist above as proof that
some bivalves are OK to eat as vegans, concludes, ironically, that,<i> <span style="background-color: white;">“<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #141823;">Scientifically accepted definitions of
pain and nociception neatly distinguish these concepts (e.g., Merskey and
Bogduk 1994), but drawing a line between the two can be difficult in practice.
Furthermore, no experimental obser</span></span></i></span><span data-reactid=".1c1.1:5:1:$comment290359164491904_291096384418182:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.3"><i><span style="background-color: white;">v</span>ation
of nonverbal animals (nonhumans) can demonstrate conclusively whether a subject
experiences conscious pain (Allen 2004). Suggestive evidence for painlike
experiences in some animals is available, and nociceptive responses measured at
the neural and behavioral levels in molluscs have provided evidence that is
both consistent and inconsistent with painlike states and functions.
Unfortunately, inferences drawn from the relatively small body of relevant data
in molluscs are limited and prone to anthropocentrism. Identifying signs of
pain becomes increasingly difficult as the behavior and associated neural
structures and physiology diverge from familiar mammalian patterns of behavior,
physiology, and anatomy, making interpretation of responses in molluscs
particularly difficult."</i></span> This does not only refer to
cephalopods though. This is a general statement inclusive of all mollusks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A “disembodied finger,”
which the Sentientist describes akin to oysters and mussels, doesn’t have any
reaction to anything because it's basically dead. As I have cited, we have studies that show the opposite
of what the Sentientist claims. Mussels have responses to stimuli (Stephano
2002), including stress (Anestis et al. 2008), and as we have seen, may make
decisions based on threats of predation ((</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">Gartner & Litvaikis (2013)</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">; </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Robson, Wilson, and Garcia de Leaniz (2007))</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">Last time I checked, a disembodied
finger doesn’t respond to stimuli or display any behavior at all.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv2DT25dZ4BU1b80nTa-xfoBLQ8EFIvxNZa56sFY8XIQR2dGYozdllWuNNrT79c70xadOKK8KOLYNAKTfaGcWec8gfmjprs8seqckylM4O5tYEUTcVntydqB_HHGCviCBnmcZXrA8mb0o/s1600/Sentientist_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv2DT25dZ4BU1b80nTa-xfoBLQ8EFIvxNZa56sFY8XIQR2dGYozdllWuNNrT79c70xadOKK8KOLYNAKTfaGcWec8gfmjprs8seqckylM4O5tYEUTcVntydqB_HHGCviCBnmcZXrA8mb0o/s400/Sentientist_2.jpg" width="400"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Sentience in Veganism</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Veganism is a lifestyle that
stands up against the exploitation of nonhuman animals. Exploitation and
Animals are the key words when it comes to a vegan lifestyle. Nowhere does the
definition include a lack of sentience as a determining factor in which to
exploit an animal species or not. Are oysters, mussels, and other species
sentient in the way that we are? I have no idea, but there isn’t a single published study that will establish
that they are not sentient or that will full out tell you they don’t have the
ability to respond to their environment or react in a non-automatic way.
Research is still on going. Read more in <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a> of this topic.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #373737; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A lack of research and VERY vague ideology based on</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>unsupported statements does NOT justify adding an </b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>animal species
to the vegan food chain.</b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sources
– where is your proof?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I keep reading about all that research that has been done,
but no one seems to be able to provide me with all these studies that have
determined oysters and mussels are basically rocks with plant-like features
mistakenly classified as animals. Who classified these animals as the lowest
sentient beings? The only multi-cellular
animal without a nervous system are sponges, not any of the bivalves. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The key issue that continues to surface is sentience based on unsupported comments like “No
brain, no pain,” as someone claimed, but where is the conclusive data?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">WHERE ARE YOUR SOURCES?</span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_o_jo3LsKV95FenFQvVIxHStQFUo0tDA4nH-8SjubhmpdmlW-pdLORLvhgPwDUcMSmqS_id-7i_sgOJPFxHmsmWPKM-NhnKsdqpdy0RkNuhxgxw55yBSZDrt2amArAe5IaJFL0aDT4lQ/s1600/lowestsentientbeingsFinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_o_jo3LsKV95FenFQvVIxHStQFUo0tDA4nH-8SjubhmpdmlW-pdLORLvhgPwDUcMSmqS_id-7i_sgOJPFxHmsmWPKM-NhnKsdqpdy0RkNuhxgxw55yBSZDrt2amArAe5IaJFL0aDT4lQ/s320/lowestsentientbeingsFinal.jpg" width="320"></a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: Photo comment used by someone on a facebook group discussion to justify </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">the Sentientist's a</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">rticle</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also, mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of fungi; therefore, mushrooms are not comparable to animals or even plants in any shape or form. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Environmental
impacts<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m not going to go very much into this because as an
ethical vegan, an environmental stance is not above direct harm to a living
being. However, fecal matter accumulation from mussel farms can lead to
problems of sedimentation for species not adapted to dealing with low oxygen levels
caused by sedimentation and large quantities of waste products. This is one
example of a negative impact that such farming can have: <a href="http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/content/58/2/411.full.pdf">http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/content/58/2/411.full.pdf</a> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What would farming mussels and oysters look like for 7 billion people? </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The
Sentientist made assumptions that such farming may be more beneficial, but made
no calculations or further looked into it to provide any credible evidence. She also did not take into account the negative impacts that
have already been recorded from such farming practices.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">"</span><i>There is a considerable body of research on the environmental effects of mussel
farming within and outside New Zealand, reviewed in detail elsewhere
(Morrisey & Swales 1997; Kaiser et al. 1998; Inglis et al. 2000; Sinner 2000; Cole
2001; Kaiser 2001; Broekhuizen et al. 2002). Environmental effects may arise
from mussel feeding habits, farm structures or activities associated with mussel
cultivation. Documented environmental effects include: phytoplankton
depletion, modifying the benthic environment and species assemblages,
altering local hydrodynamics, increasing marine litter, and facilitating the
spread of unwanted organisms. The severity and extent of environmental
effects is influenced by many factors including size and age of the farm,
stocking densities, water depth and flow regimes, season and climatic
conditions." </i>http://www.doc.govt.nz/Documents/science-and-technical/musselfarms04.pdf </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sorry, but what was that about no negative impacts? The above is for rope-cultured mussels, by the way. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It would be naive to assume that because species like phytoplankton (most likely categorized as non-sentient and therefore, unimportant...?) are some of the species affected that an impact on them would not affect macrospecies in anyway. This is particularly true because phytoplankton form the basis for many, if not most, marine and fresh water food chains. However, I can only guess what "non-sentient" species the Sentientist was talking about since she didn't bother to say.</span><br>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Read more about this topic in <a href="http://vegansforreason.blogspot.ch/2015/09/JUSTNOPE.html" target="_blank">Part II</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiylgDf8Jw6kq6dbuMhLfcYMVf2Vz5JNkYjmYy9LtqTVSpEhrQDqPnjr9Pu-3h8jmaKier5Z69Fmj12tJqlrZBtYbVtrD-Hf0qVtxOXWFZNXEgO8DKDg4nG7VkQ84CBkp1uf_dEApDanVg/s1600/Sentientist_7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiylgDf8Jw6kq6dbuMhLfcYMVf2Vz5JNkYjmYy9LtqTVSpEhrQDqPnjr9Pu-3h8jmaKier5Z69Fmj12tJqlrZBtYbVtrD-Hf0qVtxOXWFZNXEgO8DKDg4nG7VkQ84CBkp1uf_dEApDanVg/s640/Sentientist_7.jpg" width="640"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In
Essence…<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">I'm a scientist, and I believe in showing evidence to back my claims and actually doing research before making statements that can't even be determined and might lead a whole group of species to even more exploitation and death. </span><span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saying vegans don't eat any species of animal has nothing to do with being a purist; the fact remains that ALL bivalves are animals and regardless of being "less developed" than us, vegans <b>don't eat animals</b>. If you want to eat animals and plants, as science has established, you are an omnivore. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 17.1200008392334px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sentiency for non-invertebrates is something that, as I've explained above, is a concept that may not be applicable to species that are physiologically completely different to us in the same way because we, living life as vertebrates, can't understand how they would process it or how it would manifest in a completely different life form. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span>
<br>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Sentientist, hailed as an authority on the ethics of eating
bivalves fails to make a case for eating mussels and other bivalves since her
stance is riddled with errors, unsupportive statements, misinterpretation of theories
and misunderstanding of published reports. She does a poor job of providing any
evidence for all of her arguments. Her disembodied finger comment does not help the case either since bivalves are living animals while a dead finger is just a dead finger.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Linking to definitions in text books, blog posts from slate, or quoting philosophers, doesn't a sound argument make...I checked her citations/links, and they include wikipedia definitions, text book descriptions of terms, blogs, and more that are not considered reliable evidence for the statements that she makes.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2tjdkcKe16g37P3vVxaUHgGrVHkEdUWLdKguK6ORxflK-hDUqhwyDshBk9bArbluHsNMA35DxCEYNO3RZIjDg1MbaKMUchM_OIGDLCRGx2QyZZDVJ64WKWuKCtHL_wbyrP47Nb4MU4ks/s1600/Sentientist_9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2tjdkcKe16g37P3vVxaUHgGrVHkEdUWLdKguK6ORxflK-hDUqhwyDshBk9bArbluHsNMA35DxCEYNO3RZIjDg1MbaKMUchM_OIGDLCRGx2QyZZDVJ64WKWuKCtHL_wbyrP47Nb4MU4ks/s400/Sentientist_9.jpg" width="346"></span></a></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Image: An excerpt from the Sentientist's Article "The ethical case for eating oysters and mussels"</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of her sources/footnotes are also somewhat confusing. I don't understand what many of them have to do with her arguments and still lack evidence/reliability. I find it particularly confusing when she includes a random quote about tunicates to make a failing case about brains not being biologically expansive (what does this have anything to do with tunicates - why didn't she discuss it as it relates to them if it is so vital to her argument?). </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><b><br></b></u></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><b>When making an argument, which would impact an animal species so greatly, one should always be able to back their position with science literature and other reliable evidence and sources. </b></u></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><b><br></b></u></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><b>It's also important to note that</b></u></span><u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> non-exploitation and animals are keywords in veganism.</b></u></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><b><br></b></u></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Qualifications</span></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The author of this post has a B.S. in Biological Sciences with an emphasis in Marine Science and a M.Sc. in Conservation & Ecology with an emphasis in research. Other experiences include, but are not limited to, aquaculture, molecular biology, fungal and plant symbiosis, and invasive species ecology. The author is also vegan, which means the author does not consume or consciously exploits any species of animal. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">References</u> (that are not linked above, please let me know if I missed something!)</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Aiello, Hager, Akiwumi & Stefano (1986), An Opioid Mechanism Modulates Central and Not Peripheral Dopaminergic Control of Ciliary Activity in the Marine Mussel <i>Mytilus Edulis</i>, Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Volume 6, Issue 1, 17-30.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anestis, Pörtner, Lazou1 & Michaelidis (2008), Metabolic and molecular stress responses of sublittoral bearded horse mussel <i>Modiolus barbatus</i> to warming sea water: implications for vertical zonation, Journal of Experimental Biology 211, <a href="tel:2889-2898" x-apple-data-detectors-result="2" x-apple-data-detectors-type="telephone" x-apple-data-detectors="true">2889-2898</a>.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Croock & Walters (2011), <span style="background-color: white;">Nociceptive behavior and physiology of molluscs: Animal welfare implications, ILAR J, </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;">52(2):185-95.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.1200008392334px;">Gartner & Litvaikis (2013), </span>Effects of injured conspecifics and predators on byssogenesis, attachment strength and movement in the blue mussel, <i>Mytilus edulis</i>, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, Volume 448, October 2013, Pages 136-140.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Robson, Wilson, & Garcia de Leaniz(2007), Mussels flexing</span><span style="background-color: white;"> their muscles: a new method for quantifying bivalve behaviour, </span><span style="background-color: white;">Mar Biol., 151:1195–1204.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Sara (1984) </span>Reproductive strategies in
sessile macrofauna, Boll. ZOO. 51: 213-248.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br></span></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span dir="ltr" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">Schmidt-Nielsen (1997), A</span>nimal Physiology: Adaptation and Environment, </span><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">Cambridge University Press</span><span style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">,</span><span style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"> </span><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">Apr 10, </span><span style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"> pp 421-423</span><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"> (Note: I have this book from university, so I had to summarize the information instead of quoting it directly into the text)</span></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"><br></span></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">Smith (1991), </span><span style="line-height: inherit;">A Question of Pain in Invertebrates, </span><abbr class="slug-jnl-abbrev" style="border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;" title="ILAR Journal"><nlm:abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher" xmlns:nlm="http://schema.highwire.org/NLM/Journal">ILAR J, </nlm:abbrev-journal-title></abbr><span class="slug-pub-date" itemprop="datePublished" style="border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="line-height: 11.1999998092651px; text-align: center;"></span><span class="slug-vol" style="border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">33 </span><span class="slug-issue" style="border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">(1-2): </span><span class="slug-pages" style="border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">25-31.</span></span><br>
<span class="slug-pages" style="border: 0px; color: #333300; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><br></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<div class="auths" style="text-align: left;">
<span class="slug-pages" style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stefano , Cadet, Zhu, Rialas, Mantione, Benz, Fuentes, Casares, Fricchione, Fulop, & Slingsby (2002), <span style="line-height: 1.125em;">The blueprint for stress can be found in invertebrates, </span><span role="menubar" style="line-height: 19.6387996673584px;">Neuro Endocrinol Lett.,</span><span style="line-height: 19.6387996673584px;"> 23(2):85-93.</span></span></span></div>
<span class="slug-pages" style="border: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 11.1999998092651px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">
</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span dir="ltr" style="line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"><br></span></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;">Volkov,</span><span style="line-height: normal;"> Adesina, </span><span style="line-height: normal;">Vladislav, Markin, &</span><span style="line-height: normal;"> Jovanov (2008), </span>Kinetics and Mechanism of <i>Dionaea muscipula</i> Trap Closing, Plant Physiology, February, vol. 146 no. 2 694-702.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; margin: 0.2em 0px;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><br></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<b><u><br></u></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>"Invertebrates are not ‘simple animals’, but they are indeed
masters of economy: their small nervous systems contain
many fewer nerve cells than those of even the tiniest
vertebrates, yet these animals solve all of the same survival
problems, can live in highly organized societies and can
communicate complex messages. The goal of this article is
to outline general features of the nervous systems of
invertebrates, and to begin to ask how these tiny
information-processing systems drive such diverse behaviour." </b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>- <a href="http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/npb/people/matheson/matheson-neurobiology/images/publications/Matheson_ELS_2002.pdf" target="_blank">Thomas Matheson</a>, University of Cambridge, on invertebrate nervous systems</b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br></b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Join <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">Vegans For Reason On Facebook</a></b></span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-91369419192197914492015-09-02T04:45:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:24:06.938-07:00Trust Them, But Distrust Them??<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMTYHqSIfrxa7tTgPebIFZi0gHYFEvIi8ZE07pnbwoq5kA2FJ5WiPV6G6x32axgJlD0LUFkciYdbmYZF4HOvMEx-IlpjjgZkXPdFUk-XdzWbojjzvu2_GeZDyb12MbSSzecK9OeUEOis/s640/blogger-image-299332925.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMTYHqSIfrxa7tTgPebIFZi0gHYFEvIi8ZE07pnbwoq5kA2FJ5WiPV6G6x32axgJlD0LUFkciYdbmYZF4HOvMEx-IlpjjgZkXPdFUk-XdzWbojjzvu2_GeZDyb12MbSSzecK9OeUEOis/s640/blogger-image-299332925.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Trust them, but distrust them? Huh?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Consensus on climate change: http://climate.nasa.gov/scientific-consensus/ </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Consensus on GMO safety: http://www.aaas.org/sites/default/files/AAAS_GM_statement.pdf</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b>Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></b></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-36573015056189914962015-09-02T04:43:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:25:23.004-07:00Hey, Environmentalists!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRAt1BEeoCO9aVpyOwxIhDp7YjzdiqO49AFGngr5WSnoPj-Pfukh1_0q2HtX18ZM3eSVVixem-zi1mvKIMc0hPpUgKHIrLwUCozBXfbC-LcCwk7ifvkedSPs2j5VGI8HJ1gLOCCEEV5E/s640/blogger-image-455753787.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggRAt1BEeoCO9aVpyOwxIhDp7YjzdiqO49AFGngr5WSnoPj-Pfukh1_0q2HtX18ZM3eSVVixem-zi1mvKIMc0hPpUgKHIrLwUCozBXfbC-LcCwk7ifvkedSPs2j5VGI8HJ1gLOCCEEV5E/s640/blogger-image-455753787.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Share far and wide with all your "eco" friends and everyone else!</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Read the peer reviewed study here: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10584-014-1169-1</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Join Vegans For Reason<a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank"> On Facebook</a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-4086313700177081692015-09-02T04:40:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:25:53.548-07:00Soy Formula Safety<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpD2M0r_3VXP6WpXI-gJNG2fC0tpbChwYhsCU57bgLeg1EnIInIlvLsodKIDOTJk2aYonCykH115GB6ctYvOpq9WTUZUayVpy6HqcZV2t9VWARR7711lwIQQxQcMt9iQuJaCx3Ku8a-LY/s640/blogger-image--1689092614.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpD2M0r_3VXP6WpXI-gJNG2fC0tpbChwYhsCU57bgLeg1EnIInIlvLsodKIDOTJk2aYonCykH115GB6ctYvOpq9WTUZUayVpy6HqcZV2t9VWARR7711lwIQQxQcMt9iQuJaCx3Ku8a-LY/s640/blogger-image--1689092614.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
"Our findings are consistent with other studies that found no changes in weight and height or effects on puberty or fertility associated with the consumption of soy isoflavones. However, we believe this to be the largest controlled study evaluating the long-term effects of exposure to soy formula in infancy....No biological effects of infant soy exposure were detectable." Strom et al., 2001</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Read the full study here: http://jama.jamanetwork.com/Mobile/article.aspx?articleid=194106</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
A more serious version of the original meme:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVq3O7nwK3zpzntLCZ_P2uRyvHsTjuczC31kWJoXzL5w2MnnMpEexlSjKK_KVN6M-XL-SSnj1M4CJnldfmWFDfrqeuWLeawv6RigyTH1JNdi_wNuXUQFaO7J78zt-d1iZSwA1E9vHuhGc/s640/blogger-image--827859615.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVq3O7nwK3zpzntLCZ_P2uRyvHsTjuczC31kWJoXzL5w2MnnMpEexlSjKK_KVN6M-XL-SSnj1M4CJnldfmWFDfrqeuWLeawv6RigyTH1JNdi_wNuXUQFaO7J78zt-d1iZSwA1E9vHuhGc/s640/blogger-image--827859615.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-29372998164455917692015-09-02T04:35:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:26:28.787-07:00They Are Not Synonyms<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0S4qeNMPEJWXuBK1Htbi8ohXi1Rq-fIRGK9OJ8875_Rl6CPeECkdMOAifAs5mY4GvaSw_fbhaBl3_VhxpQhECiutrvWNKvPNLKdTt6q5h7jECx6i2qOzE_IwtQL-bRdcDVj48Hi6hfDo/s640/blogger-image--1944837806.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0S4qeNMPEJWXuBK1Htbi8ohXi1Rq-fIRGK9OJ8875_Rl6CPeECkdMOAifAs5mY4GvaSw_fbhaBl3_VhxpQhECiutrvWNKvPNLKdTt6q5h7jECx6i2qOzE_IwtQL-bRdcDVj48Hi6hfDo/s640/blogger-image--1944837806.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Seriously! They are NOT the same thing! :)</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
This meme is based on a recent discussion I had with someone regarding using oil pulling and colloidal silver to treat cavities in young children. The person equated the fact that scientists "backtrack their findings" (the actual phrase they used) based on the money trail that is Big Pharma. What's the most frustrating comment you've ever gotten while trying to take down the pseudoscience in our movement? What were you discussing?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-53133174300125832092015-09-02T04:32:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:27:06.299-07:00On Common Sense & Veganism<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_9NhNmMtYnwLyfbVK-Q41XfLtdhqrkEfSy_YHdNUYYbnk2lrNlXoUlR5931o9OoxhAnZ8PVvM-bvn06o64lGGNyWPEOkWkrfp8bupYCOoEv7TtpqO4JRA4TcgDy4aZyQ_7cg5YRitgE/s640/blogger-image-257259767.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_9NhNmMtYnwLyfbVK-Q41XfLtdhqrkEfSy_YHdNUYYbnk2lrNlXoUlR5931o9OoxhAnZ8PVvM-bvn06o64lGGNyWPEOkWkrfp8bupYCOoEv7TtpqO4JRA4TcgDy4aZyQ_7cg5YRitgE/s640/blogger-image-257259767.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-73638003295484007482015-09-01T04:45:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:27:35.778-07:00Big Placebo Versus Big Pharma<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRq4NnNWFOK-ahI0Ip4cjsXZKtsIziX-wQ5Mqv9SunDzVwyOcrhK601sh_MW3wBeJW0ThyHZP1rqWIlve7hc5eEouDV50TzNW5-QQUvr0NFi2w0z-AEZW8FhJvDYPBLh6hQanlZ6EeDrk/s640/blogger-image--1836296407.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRq4NnNWFOK-ahI0Ip4cjsXZKtsIziX-wQ5Mqv9SunDzVwyOcrhK601sh_MW3wBeJW0ThyHZP1rqWIlve7hc5eEouDV50TzNW5-QQUvr0NFi2w0z-AEZW8FhJvDYPBLh6hQanlZ6EeDrk/s640/blogger-image--1836296407.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Some proponents of pseudoscientific treatments and products claim Big Pharma is evil because they keep cures from us. That, to them, must mean that Big Placebo (homeopathy) must be the answer with all the misleading claims, yet by their logic, if all of homeopathy' cures work, then why isn't Big Pharma keeping those from us too - or making big money from them? </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Here are a few on the woo listed on this meme.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
On Amber Necklace Woo: </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
http://scienceornot.net/2012/10/30/amber-necklaces-and-teething-babies/</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/amber-waves-of-woo/</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Lack of Evidence for Homeopathy:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/guidelines-publications/cam02</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/reference/homeopathy/</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
On Reiki Woo:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/reiki/</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
On eating 300 bananas per day:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
It's just a small reminder to check up on ridiculous claims (Freelee, anyone?) :D</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-82486147313645043622015-09-01T04:39:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:28:11.134-07:00Carrageenan Safety #1<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5-raa4uwcYBTrmpfvFchTNuG-ytFCa9mnGJcJQzpePLFJMtgwO45Y2E6jLY0QnmMh_pG1Gloj-wY6oity1qL2J4l1q5aydsykF3HT9g6QCGayzMwxR9n1wCankougn0A5Q-0kHuYIBKE/s640/blogger-image-1148466235.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5-raa4uwcYBTrmpfvFchTNuG-ytFCa9mnGJcJQzpePLFJMtgwO45Y2E6jLY0QnmMh_pG1Gloj-wY6oity1qL2J4l1q5aydsykF3HT9g6QCGayzMwxR9n1wCankougn0A5Q-0kHuYIBKE/s640/blogger-image-1148466235.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
One citation example regarding carrageenan safety: </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12389870 </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Feel free to share other science based links and research studies!</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-58914673983781410432015-09-01T01:48:00.001-07:002015-09-05T01:28:53.455-07:00Plainly and Simply Stated<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGkD17xSemO3_hE4JdfIPZZBmeITv30sXwu0eBH1-292FFpfzXgD7cha0450ZiD3hmVsZwJfbxu49IUA9liK-M8VQM1LJ-j5iAHJBn-v5f5ovElb1eeC3RxlfCkzxmGzLE7zh707Dekc/s1600/bullshit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGkD17xSemO3_hE4JdfIPZZBmeITv30sXwu0eBH1-292FFpfzXgD7cha0450ZiD3hmVsZwJfbxu49IUA9liK-M8VQM1LJ-j5iAHJBn-v5f5ovElb1eeC3RxlfCkzxmGzLE7zh707Dekc/s640/bullshit.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Born from a special request - if you have a specific topic in mind, then feel free to write in! </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"> Join Vegans For Reason <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">On Facebook</a></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5755128291321824704.post-90060088356842696832015-09-01T01:44:00.000-07:002015-09-01T01:49:22.073-07:00Kool-Aid<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgafaE0ESmLkmhlD2qV4-Mfckq4GlDAEMwBx6k2s_AtjfVL8Rt3vorofOtkztPP1j-yMMP5h2ErEIk2TigHn8T05QzMZ71NRJ6W0i6dmZmFnaVtgRLrqXWw2qvhfOdmc4E0dm9Mc59CjiI/s1600/kool-aid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgafaE0ESmLkmhlD2qV4-Mfckq4GlDAEMwBx6k2s_AtjfVL8Rt3vorofOtkztPP1j-yMMP5h2ErEIk2TigHn8T05QzMZ71NRJ6W0i6dmZmFnaVtgRLrqXWw2qvhfOdmc4E0dm9Mc59CjiI/s640/kool-aid.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
This is the first meme posted on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">Vegans For Reason</a> page on Facebook. I posted it after a discussion where someone told me I should continue to drink kool-aid after I provided them with scientific evidence against homeopathy. Pseudoscience is running rampant in the vegan community, and that is definitely not a good thing because it promotes the stereotype that vegans are uneducated, conspiracy theorists, and do not understand basic science. It's time to speak up against the "woo" and start promoting critical thinking instead. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Follow along each week for new memes, scientific articles, witty come-backs, and more...<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/VegansForReason" target="_blank">Vegans For Reason</a></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12004984005148512654noreply@blogger.com0