Unreported

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Originally aired 3/17/10: Citizen Radio interviews Peter Singer, the world-renowned ethicist, philosopher, activist, and author!

Peter is author of the new book, The Life You Can Save in which he argues that individuals making modest donations to charity can help reduce extreme poverty. It seems logical, but millions of people decide to buy new pairs of shoes rather than use that money to save a child’s life every single day.

Outside academic circles, Singer is best known for his book Animal Liberation, widely regarded as the book that began the animal liberation movement.

Peter’s views on animal liberation and other issues in bioethics have attracted attention and a degree of controversy. Specifically, his views on euthanasia, abortion, and infanticide have attracted widespread criticism. He joins Citizen Radio to argue that – in some cases – it is not wrong to humanely euthanize a suffering being.

He joins Citizen Radio to talk about how tiny modifications in our lives, and donating in small quantities to charities, can save lives. Peter also discusses the “culture of giving,” the selfish argument for giving, vegetarianism (and its impact on the environment,) religion, morality, healthcare reform, euthanasia, his inspirations, and what makes him happy.

Remember to vote for Citizen Radio daily at podcastawards.com under best comedy show!

Citizen Radio will return with NEW episodes Tuesday!

Citizen Radio is a member-supported show. Visit wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war!

Listen to the new episode of Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

Originally aired 4/18/11: Propagandhi’s Chris Hannah talks about the state of the music industry, eating animals, hate mail, and what makes him happy. Chris Hedges explains why Obama is talking out of both sides of his mouth on the class war, and vegan maniac and kickass fighter Erin Red discusses why drinking milk equals eating veal and where she gets her darn protein from. Follow her on Twitter (@erinred) and Tumblr http://erinred.tumblr.com/.

Allison continues to blog at The Nation. Share her articles on Facebook and Twitter!

Listen to the new episode of Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

Allison and Jamie discuss President Obama’s recent immigration order, Jan Brewer reacts to said order, and Sam Simon joins the show to discuss veganism, comedy, and co-creating the most beloved animation of all time.

Special announcement: Check out Thrive Food Direct, and use the code “CitizenRadio” to receive a discount. Your purchase will go towards a Maniac receiving FREE meals!Citizen Radio is a member-supported show.

Visit http://wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war, and to keep CR Productions growing!

Listen to the new episode of Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

President Obama gives a speech focusing on the deficit over mass unemployment, London burns, defining the term “looting,” dismantling the “real men eat meat” myth, religious employers might soon be able to determine if they feel like paying for women’s birth control, and Gov. Perry fails to pray the baddies away.

Citizen Radio is a member-supported show. Visit http://wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war!

Listen to the new Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

Comic legend Dick Gregory joins the show to discuss veganism, comedy, civil rights, marching with Martin Luther King, Jr., running for president (and getting Hunter S. Thompson’s vote,) and being the first black comic to perform for white audiences.

Jamie will be at the Steve Allen theatre TONIGHT! Get tix here.

Citizen Radio is a member-supported show. Visit http://wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war!

Listen to the new episode of Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast!

Vegan chef Ayinde Howell (@AYINDE) joins the show to talk about growing up vegan, food justice, and the evolution of veganism. Ayinde was Russell Simmons’ personal chef, and he co-owned the Hillside Quickies Vegan Sandwich Shop in Seattle, which had such notable industry clients like The Roots, Saul Williams, Common, Blackalicious and Erykah Badu when their respective tours came through town. Ayinde offers some advice about how to eat cheap (and quick) as a vegan and offers his insight into the evolution of veganism in the food industry.

Before the interview, Allison and Jamie discuss the UK scandal involving Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World phone hacking practices that includes reporters hacking into the calls of 7/7 victims’ families.

Check out Ayinde’s website: http://www.ieatgrass.com.

Jamie will be at the Steve Allen theatre July 18! Get tix here.

Citizen Radio is a member-supported show. Visit http://wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war!

Listen to the new Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

Interview with Peter Young (@PeterDYoung), an animal rights activist who previously worked with the Animal Liberation Front. Peter was indicted by a federal grand jury in 1998 on charges related to fur farm raids in Iowa, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. He then went into hiding for seven years before being arrested in San Jose and sentenced to two years in prison in 2005.

Before that, he was targeted by FBI agent provocateurs, and had his home raided by agents. He talks about the need for direct action, tells activists not to be afraid of the dreaded “terrorist” label, and explains why he is straight edge.

Check out his website: http://www.voiceofthevoiceless.org, and his many awesome books and DVDs: http://www.voiceofthevoiceless.org/store.

Also, Jamie and Allison talk about Israel and the second flotilla.

Jamie will be at the Steve Allen theatre July 18! Get tix here.

Citizen Radio is a member-supported show. Visit http://wearecitizenradio.com to sign up and support media that won’t lead you to war!

Listen to the new Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

Listen to the new Citizen Radio and subscribe to the free podcast.

In this special extended episode of Citizen Radio, animal rights icon Gary Francione joins the show in the second half to talk about how he became an animal rights activist, his problems with PETA, and why all your excuses for not going vegan are complete bullshit. But before that, Allison shares her experience as a guest on the legendary Democracy Now, Jamie talks about vegan parents, and Citizen Radio answers some of your mail. Your questions/comments this week concern Israel and becoming an activist.

This, and all CR podcasts, are brought to you by the good folk at Vegan Essentials (http://veganessentials.com/). Buy cruelty-free products there and tell ‘em Citizen Radio sent you!

Kathy Freston

When I tell people that I’m a vegan, the most popular question, by far, inevitably follows: “But, how do you get enough protein?”

There it is again, I think, the meat industry’s most potent weapon against vegetarianism — the protein myth. And it is just that — a myth.

In fact, humans need only 10 percent of the calories we consume to be from protein. Athletes and pregnant women need a little more, but if you’re eating enough calories from a varied plant based diet, it’s close to impossible to not to get enough.

The way Americans obsess about protein, you’d think protein deficiency was the number one health problem in America. Of course it’s not — it’s not even on the list of the ailments that doctors are worried about in America or any other countries where basic caloric needs are being met.

What is on the list? Heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity — diseases of affluence. Diseases linked to eating animal products. According to the American Dietetic Association, which looked at all of the science on vegetarian diets and found not just that they’re healthy, but that they “provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.”

They continue: “Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood and adolescence … Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.”

Dr. Dean Ornish writes of his Eat More, Weigh Less vegetarian diet — the one diet that has passed peer-review for taking weight off and keeping it off for more than 5 years — that in addition to being the one scientifically proven weight loss plan that works long-term, it “may help to prevent a wide variety of other illnesses including breast cancer in women, prostate cancer in men, colon cancer, lung cancer, lymphoma, osteoporosis, diabetes, hypertension, and so on ….”

So when people ask me about protein, I explain that protein is not a problem on a vegan diet, that the real problems that are plaguing us in the West can be addressed in part with a vegetarian diet, and that I get my protein the same way everyone else does — I eat!

Beans, nuts, seeds, lentils, and whole grains are packed with protein. So are all vegetables as a caloric percentage, though they don’t have enough calories to sustain most people as a principal source of sustenance. And these protein sources have some excellent benefits that animal protein does not — they contain plenty of fiber and complex carbohydrates, where meat has none. That’s right: Meat has no complex carbs at all, and no fiber. Plant proteins are packed with these essential nutrients.

Plus, since plant-based protein sources don’t contain cholesterol or high amounts of saturated fat, they are much better for you than meat, eggs, and dairy products.

It is also worth noting the very strong link between animal protein and a few key diseases, including cancer and osteoporosis.

According to Dr. Ornish (this may be the most interesting link in this article, by the way — it’s worth reading the entire entry), “high-protein foods, particularly excessive animal protein, dramatically increase the risk of breast cancer, prostate cancer, heart disease, and many other illnesses. In the short run, they may also cause kidney problems, loss of calcium in the bones, and an unhealthy metabolic state called ketosis in many people.”

The cancer connection is spelled out at length in a fantastic book by Cornell scientist T. Colin Campbell, called The China Study. Basically, there is overwhelming scientific evidence to implicate that animal protein consumption causes cancer.

And just a few quick anecdotal points:

• Olympian Carl Lewis has said that his best year of track competition was the first year that he ate a vegan diet (he is still a strong proponent of vegan diets for athletes).
• Strength trainer Mike Mahler says, “Becoming a vegan had a profound effect on my training. … [M]y bench press excelled past 315 pounds, and I noticed that I recovered much faster. My body fat also went down, and I put on 10 pounds of lean muscle in a few months.”
• Bodybuilder Robert Cheeke advises, “The basics for nutrition are consuming large amounts of fresh green vegetables and a variety of fruits, to load yourself up with vibrant vitamins and minerals.”

A few other vegans, all of whom sing the praises of the diet for their athletic performance: Ultimate fighter Mac Danzig, ultramarathonerScott Jurek, Minnesota Twins pitcher Pat Neshek, Atlanta Hawks GuardSalim Stoudamire, and Kansas City Chiefs tight-end Tony Gonzalez.

And let’s not forget about tennis star Martina Navratilova, six-time Ironman winner Dave Scott, four-time Mr. Universe Bill Pearl, or Stan Price, the world-record holder in bench press. They are just a few of the successful vegetarian athletes.

Basically, vegans and vegetarians needn’t fret about protein, but many Americans do need to worry about their weight, heart disease, cancer, and other ailments — many of which can be addressed by healthier eating, including a vegan or vegetarian diet.

Vegetarians and vegans get all the nutrients our bodies need from plants, and will thus, according to the science, be more likely to maintain a healthy weight and stave off a variety of ailments, from heart disease to cancer.

For answers to other popular questions about conscious eating, please check out my previous post on the topic here.

Happy eating!