In California With Rise Against November 3, 2008

Posted by Marta at November 3, 2008 9:53 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 1 ) | TrackBack

Hola! Those of us on the awesome tour with Rise Against and Alkaline Trio have officially hit the west coast. You know what that means: amazing weather, beautiful beaches, and a ton of delicious vegan restaurants (which we often discover from HappyCow.net!).

After soaking up some rays, checkin' out local thrift stores, and getting a tasty bite to eat, we went to the San Diego show where we had one simple message: 'Meat's Not Green!' That's right: if you love the environment and care about the planet you're on, did you know one of the leading causes of global warming is raising animals for food?

You know how we do. Here's James letting some fans know the deal (and giving them some literature to read as they wait in line).

Sarah manned the table inside to give out free info, DVDs with Rise Against and Alkaline Trio, posters, and buttons to anyone who asked!


Last but not least, what would Halloween be without some crazy spooky costumes? These ghouls wanted to help us get the word out—and if you look closely, James' eyes are glowing, too. Spooky!


See you soon! Hope you had a great Halloween!

-Robyn

Meet Zoe The Sea Kitten! October 10, 2008

Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 10, 2008 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

So by now, I'm sure you're familiar with sea kittens, and I want you to meet my number one BFF, Zoe the Sea Kitten! Not only is my friend a kitten of the sea, but she's ready for Halloween and is dressed up as a tunacorn! Yep, you heard me right... a tunacorn. She would have dressed up as Hairy Kate and Trashley, but the masks didn't quite fit her. Bummer for her, but you still can!

Create Your Own Sea Kitten at peta2.com!
Zoe and I have a lot of things in common (we're both pretty stoked on the new Alkaline Trio, unicorns, and guacamole, just to name a few), but the number one thing we agree on is that sea kittens are your friends, not food! Find out what you can do today to help millions of sea kittens just like Zoe.

She thanks you!

xo,
shan

5 Questions with... Teen Hearts! October 9, 2008

Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 9, 2008 6:06 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 6 ) | TrackBack

Have you ever read one of those quick "5 Questions With" features in a music magazine with an up and coming band? Whenever I read music magazines, these are usually the first things I look for. I'm always really excited to stock my iPod with new music, and I'm sure you are too. Imagine though, if... (drumroll please) you could read one of these features and know that every band you read about is involved with animal rights? Well, now you can! Check out peta2's new "5 Questions With" blog, featuring Teen Hearts, and let me know what you think! (be sure to check out their sweet video too!) - xo, shan

NAME OF BAND: TEEN HEARTS
MEMBERS: Kelly Orr, Matt Moody, Charity Gant, Max Cuzor
SOUNDS LIKE: Metro Station, Cobra Starship, Hellogoodbye

How long have you been vegetarian, and what made you start? I've been vegetarian for 8 years now. To be completely honest, I was persuaded by some of my favorite bands back in the day. Alkaline Trio, Goldfinger etc. I remember going to Goldfinger shows and hearing all about vegetarianism and how you can be just as healthy without eating any sort of meat. I did a little research and found out about SOOOOOOO many alternatives to eating meat. I was shocked at how many companies were out there that provided meat substitutes for vegetarians and vegans. Some products at first were a little weird and chewy but after a week I seriously grew to like the substitutes more than actual meat. And sadly I found out about all the awful things that happened to these poor little animals behind closed doors. I will NEVER go back!! YUCK!!!

What's your favorite vegetarian meal? Hands down my favorite vegetarian meal is the salisbury seitan meal from Real Food Daily but instead of the vegan caesar salad I substitute the salad for black beans!! OH MAN!!! I'm so going there for lunch :)

Everyone involved in animal rights has an issue that really sticks out for them. What is that issue for you? Ya know, there are a lot of issues that really stand out to me, but I really don't like to bash people over the head with my beliefs and tell them what's right or wrong. I have friends that wear clothing made of animals or eat meat on a daily basis but I can't control them. I think it's something you need to figure out for yourself and realize that eating meat is not the best thing for you. I think the main reason people eat meat is because it's simple and always everywhere you go "convenient". So many people are lazy and don't want to put any effort into eating healthy.

If a fan came to you with advice on how to get involved with animal rights, what would you tell them? First off I would tell them that it is the best decision I ever made. Secondly, I would tell them to make sure it's right for you and find out for yourself. There are some awesome books (Diet for a New America) and I would also suggest some organizations to check out (PETA) but most importantly find out for yourself and do the research.

What's next for Teen Hearts? Our debut EP "The Heart Beat EP" will be released digitally October 21st. November 3rd - 21st we will be touring with Jeffree Star and Brokencyde. So come and hang out with us!!!! We also printed 1,000 copies of our EP to sell on our online merch store, so you should probably head on over there and pick up some awesome t-shirts and some sweet tunes!!! WWW.WESTASPENMERCH.COM/TEENHEARTS

<3 Kelly and TEEN HEARTS!!!

Who Loves Rise Against? October 2, 2008

Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 2, 2008 5:06 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 19 ) | TrackBack

Today is a very, very good day. peta2 staffers are in Cleveland, Ohio kicking off the Rise Against, Alkaline Trio, Thrice, and Gaslight Anthem tour. Could there be a line up that's any better than that? Yeah, I didn't think so!

Tomorrow will be an even better day for me, as Pulin and I will be flying to Canada for the second and third shows of the tour. Not only are we going to eat copious amounts of vegan KFC sandwiches while we're in Canada, but we'll be spreading the word that "Meat's Not Green". That's right, our friends in Rise Against have invited us to come along on the tour, and we'll be at every show letting everyone know that factory farming is not only a cruel industry for animals, but it's also cruel for the environment. Raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gas emissions (See Also: Cause of global warming!) than the entire transportation industry combined! In my opinion, going vegetarian should be synonymous with going green.

We think that Rise Against's video for "Ready to Fall" is a perfect visual to accompany this campaign. This is the version you won't see on television. Check it out below!

Find out why "Meat's Not Green"!

Not only will we be on the Rise Against tour, but when you get their new album, Appeal to Reason, in stores October 7th, you'll be greeted with a peta2 "Meat's Not Green" sticker once you open it. How awesome is that? We love Rise Against because they're passionate about speaking out for animals and the environment (it doesn't hurt that their music rules either, right?)

The tour dates are posted, the peta2 van is loaded, and we're ready to meet you! We'll have peta2 staff members at every show, and if you're interested in helping us out with getting petitions signed for Meat's Not Green, all you have to do is stop by the table.

CHECK US OUT ON TOUR!

Will we see you there?

xoxo,
Shan

Alkaline Trio Speaks Up For Pigs August 15, 2008

Posted by Pulin Modi at August 15, 2008 9:57 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 7 ) | TrackBack

Our friends in Alkaline Trio are touring the world promoting their new album, Agony and Irony. So when they came to town, we were all excited to check out the new songs live, give the band some of our new hoodies and shirts, and drop off a soy cheese pizza!

While we were chatting with Matt, Derek, and Dan (who all signed the Woof campaign petition), we discussed the ways in which people are thankfully so willing to help dogs, but unfortunately rarely consider pigs' emotions and suffering. It's not that people want to see animals suffering, they just need a friendly reminder about being compassionate once in a while, right?

For example, did you know that as piglets, these animals are taken away from their mothers; their tails are cut off, some of their teeth are cut off, and the males have their testicles ripped out of their scrotums, all without any pain relief? They spend their entire lives in overcrowded pens on a tiny slab of filthy concrete. It's horrible, and we all know that clearly this causes them to suffer. So we want to stop this cruelty!

Check out what the Alkaline Trio guys had to say about the campaign:

If you're inspired by what Alkaline Trio supports with being kinder to animals, check out the Woof campaign page to learn more about what you can do to help pigs.

Thanks!

-Pulin

Save Animals With Your Voicemail January 9, 2008

Posted by Pulin Modi at January 9, 2008 8:19 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 76 ) | TrackBack

What do members of Alkaline Trio, Incubus, Simple Plan, Shadows Fall, Good Charlotte, Clipse, and even the infamous Pharrell all have in common? Well, these musicians have all recorded voicemail messages for you to put on your phone because they care about animals.

Matt Skiba from Alkaline Trio

So here's what you need to do:

1) Check out our peta2 band voicemail page. Seriously, there's stuff on there from Alkaline Trio, Incubus, Simple Plan, Shadows Fall, Good Charlotte, Pharrell, and Clipse.

2) Put your phone up to your computer speakers and make one of the messages your voicemail.

3) Email us at StreetTeam@peta2.com to let us know which message you used!

4) Become the envy of all your friends because you'll have a cool message and be helping animals.

5) Wait a couple weeks and you'll have 1000 Street Team points in your account!

Chuck from Simple Plan

Imagine the look on your friends' faces when they call you to chit chat about some homework assignment and instead hear Pharrell telling them to check out peta2.com or Ben Kenney of Incubus encouraging them to consider vegetarianism! Brilliant!

If you don't really like what we've got on the voicemail page, just come up with your own script encouraging people to visit peta2.com (it can be as funny, serious, or creative as you want!), and we'll still hook you up with points when you email us to say how it went.

Cool deal, amigos?

Rock!

-Pulin