Tag: appearance

I’M A TED SPEAKER!⁠

Posted in Blog.

We all have goals, we all have dreams. Presenting a talk on the TED / TEDx stage has been one of mine.

It’s certainly not the end-all / be-all to be chosen to speak at a TEDx event, but it has been a goal. Why? Because I do think I have an idea worth spreading — namely that:

??Animals are here for their own purposes and not for our use. Animals have intrinsic value; they are not here to be our entertainment, our food, our test subjects, or our shooting targets. We are part of their community, and they are part of ours as residents, as co-inhabitants, as contributors, as members—not as outsiders, objects, or intruders. My idea worth spreading is compassion. ?

Many people have asked me over the years why I haven’t been on the TED stage, and the answer is simply because I haven’t been accepted. I’ve submitted various applications to various TEDx events over the years, and I was rejected each time.

☄️It could have been that my topic wasn’t the right fit for that event’s theme.
☄️It could have been that I didn’t write a good enough summary of my idea.
☄️It could be that my ideas are bunk!

Who knows? It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I’ve been selected as a speaker for TEDx Dupree Park in Woodstock, Georgia on May 15th, 2020.

As I have more to share, I will, but I thought you’d like to hear the good news. Now, wish me luck. I’m terrified! (Be careful what you wish for! You just might get it!)

P.S. For those who live in the Atlanta area, I believe the event is by invitation only (it’s small), but I’m planning on putting together some kind of bookstore event in the area. Stay tuned, and make sure you’re on the mailing list.

How (and Why) to Celebrate A Vegan Thanksgiving

Posted in Blog.

For those who have never met them, turkeys are magnificent animals, full of spunk and spark, each with individual personalities and concerns. I was amazed the first time I visited rescued turkeys at a sanctuary for farmed animals, birds who had been abused, whose beak tips had been cut off and whose toes had been mutilated, but who still displayed immense affection for humans. A special turkey lady climbed into my lap and cooed as she fell asleep in my arms, while I stroked her soft chest and beautiful feathers. The next year, a special turkey named Lydia became very famous for hugging anyone who squatted down and held out his or her arms. Extraordinary animals they are.

If we claim to be a compassionate society—a compassionate species—don’t we have a duty to foster solutions that do not harm others? The great humanitarian Albert Schweitzer certainly thought so when he wrote, “The thinking [person] must oppose all cruel customs no matter how deeply rooted in tradition and surrounded by a halo. When we have a choice, we must avoid bringing torment and injury into the life of another.”

Try a turkey-free Thanksgiving this year. It will be a Happy Turkey Day for Turkeys indeed. Take advantage of all of the audio and video resources below for lots of reasons and ideas for celebrating this holiday without turkeys. Oodles of recipes, of course, can be found in my cookbooks.

Animal Characteristics in Word Histories: Who They Are in What We Say

Posted in Animalogy Podcast.

Whereas the word veal in English simply means “flesh of a calf” and pork in English means “flesh of a pig used as food,” hidden in many of the Anglo-Saxon/Old English and Proto-Indo-European words for the living animals are clues about the physical, behavioral, or vocal characteristics of the living animals, reflecting a tendency to name animals based on typical attributes or activities.

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