Natalie Portman Turns Up the Heat on 'Top Chef' October 29, 2009

Posted by Patricia at October 29, 2009 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 6 ) | TrackBack

JFL / CC
Did y'all catch last night's episode of Top Chef? I admit, I do watch from time to time but their dishes are usually pretty, well, flesh-filled, and I can only take so much of that before I start yelling at the screen.

So last night, the always lovely and newly twenty-year vegetarian turned vegan activist Natalie Portman was the guest judge ... you can see where this is going, can't you? (Warning: If you haven't watched it yet, there are a few spoilers ahead.)

The "Quickfire Challenge" was about creating TV dinners that were inspired by iconic TV shows, and were of course, all meat-based. Then they announced that the "Elimination Challenge" would be at judge Tom Colicchio's Vegas steakhouse, Craftsteak ... yay, more dead animals, right? Wrong!

Enter Ms. Portman who quickly told the anxious chefs, "I love food. I love eating. I'm pretty adventurous with flavors and different cuisines and the one thing is, I'm a vegetarian." Yes!

Now I won't give everything away in case some of you haven't watched the episode (you must though, it's a good one!) but let's just say, she taught the chefs a thing or two. And score one for the animals!



P.S. Natalie says that it was an advance copy of Jonathan Safran Foer's new book Eating Animals that made her go vegan. For me it was all about the cruelty to animals that I learned about by watching videos like Meet Your Meat. What made you decide to stop eating animals or to make the switch from vegetarian to vegan?

Travis Barker is Veg Again October 28, 2009

Posted by Megan Rondeau at October 28, 2009 2:58 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 5 ) | TrackBack
hollywoodismyhood / CC

We try to stay on our toes with the all the latest Blink 182 news, and today I'm happy to report that in a recent interview Travis Barker stated that he's back to being vegetarian and is "almost full blown vegan"! A longtime vegetarian, Travis fell off the proverbial wagon after sustaining serious injuries in a plane crash last year.

Fresh off Blink 182's sold out reunion tour, he's healthy as can be and back to being meat-free! He's even kicking it up a notch by ditching the dairy, saying that "once you find out all the crazy stuff with dairy, you'd probably second-guess it too." I'd say so!

Glad to have you back on the team Travis!

Win Heidi Minx's 'Home Rockanomics'! October 27, 2009

Posted by Patricia at October 27, 2009 4:24 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 31 ) | TrackBack

The fabulous Heidi Minx is at it again. Our good friend has penned herself a fab new book, Home Rockanomics, for all you DIY types out there whose style is a bit edgier than what you might find on one of those oh-so-popular design or home-makeover shows.

The talented mastermind behind Franky & Minx, Built On Respect, and Punk Rock Domestics, Heidi has often been labeled a "poster child for DIY," so who better to write this guide, right? I'm just happy she's sharing her crafty works with the rest of us!

Home Rockanomics is packed full of decorating tips, ideas for revamping your wardrobe, and yummy vegan and vegetarian recipes from Heidi herself, as well as some of her friends like Theo Kogan from Lunachicks/TATS, Sick of It All, Bif Naked, and Flogging Molly to name but a few.

Want to get your hands on your very own copy? Just comment below with your favorite DIY decorating or style tip and 10 lucky winners will be chosen at random by November 17, 2009. Winners will be notified by November 20, 2009.

Just so you know ... by commenting here, you're acknowledging that you've read and agreed to our privacy policy.

Also by commenting, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.

Good luck!

5 Questions with Sleeping at the End of the World October 26, 2009

Posted by Megan Rondeau at October 26, 2009 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 0 ) | TrackBack

I'm a little tired this Monday morning, but I have just the thing to get my day going—the newest installment of our beloved "5 Questions" blog! This week I'm stoked to introduce you guys to Sleeping at the End of the World. These upstate New Yorkers have gained an avid following through their energetic live shows and DIY ethos. After being tipped off to them by a good friend, I caught up with singer Peter Bruno for a quick chat. Here he is in his own words ...

1. What prompted you to become vegetarian? Were there any bands or books that influenced your decision?
I think that when you're a child you don't really think about how the food that is in front of you is getting there. However, as I started to get older and the internet became available, I saw videos of animals being brutally slaughtered and that was the turning point for me. I also think that the Twilight Zone episode "To Serve Man" helps put it into perspective for people, as far as what if the tables were turned?

2. What are some of your favorite vegetarian foods?
Lately I've been eating tons of Spanish food like rice and beans as well as vegetable quesadillas and burritos. I always tend to keep a good amount of Italian foods in my diet, as well as salads.

3. Of all of the major animal rights issues are there any issues that are particularly close to your heart?
Any animal getting injured or killed definitely upsets me. But I would have to say that factory farming is the number one for me though. Any living creature that is simply born to be slaughtered will never sit right with me.

4. If a fan were to approach you with questions about how to get involved with animal rights, what advice would you give him or her?
I would actually tell them to take a visit to your site. Do some research to make sure if you're going to do anything that you do it right.

5. What does Sleeping at the End of the World have coming up that we can be looking forward to?
We just put up two new songs and you can check them out here!

Thanks Peter! Be sure to check these guys out and spread the word!

Win The Summer Set's New Album! October 14, 2009

Posted by Cody Ammerman at October 14, 2009 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 63 ) | TrackBack

With so many great albums being released already this fall, it's starting to get tough to decide which album will be the one you blare in your school parking lot or at the mall to get people's attention. Will it be the new jam by The Swellers? How about the incredible new Paramore album? Hmm, tough decisions! Yesterday I picked up the new full length from The Summer Set, came home to make my BLATMmm, and caught myself wiggling a little bit, followed by some loud mumbles going along with the new music that I didn't know the lyrics to yet, and we all do it! Anyways, Brian Dales, lead singer of The Summer Set, was down to participate in this installment of the infamous "5 Questions" blog. Enjoy!

creative commons/victoria morse

1. What prompted you to become vegetarian/vegan? Were there any bands or books that influenced your decision?
I honestly became a vegetarian a year ago for health and dietary purposes, but last spring when we brought out our new vegan merch guy Dylan on tour with us I started really thinking and learning about the unethical treatment of animals and what I can do to get myself involved.

2. What are some of your favorite vegetarian foods?
I just eat a ridiculous amount of Mexican food on tour. Substituting anything with beans is really easy. When I'm home I really like making pastas and salads with Morning Star Grilled Chicken Strips.

3. Of all of the major animal rights issues, are there any issues that are particularly close to your heart?
Right now I feel really strong about cosmetic/personal care product testing on animals. The stuff I've been reading is awful and the tests that they run on animals are disgusting and unnecessary. I really hope this can be put an end to. Most of the companies don't even need to test their products on animals according to regulations.

4. If a fan were to approach you with questions about how to get involved with animal rights, what advice would you give him or her?
If a fan approached me with questions on how to get involved, I would tell them to reach out and get in contact with someone who works for an animal rights organization and to do their homework. It's very important to know just what's going on and the more knowledgeable and learned you are, the more suited you will be to help bring this to an end.

5. What does The Summer Set have coming up this year that we can be looking forward to?
Well we have our debut full-length album titled Love Like This coming out on October 13th! Right after that we are going out on tour with Cartel and This Providence for the remainder of the year and then you can probably expect us to tour throughout most of 2010 too. Come out to a show!

For your chance to win The Summer Set's new album, Love Like This, please leave a comment below with your favorite song that you like to groove to while cooking a tasty vegetarian/vegan meal. Two winners will be chosen at random. Entries must be received by October 28, and the winners will be notified by November 4.

Just so you know ... by commenting here, you're acknowledging that you've read and agreed to our privacy policy.

Also by commenting, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.

Bridge 9 + peta2 = Awesome! October 6, 2009

Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 6, 2009 4:20 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 0 ) | TrackBack

We started with a DIY approach, our names are followed by numbers, and we both have longtime vegetarians, vegans, hardcore kids, and animal activists as employees. So what the heck am I talking about? Bridge 9 Records and peta2, of course!

Victoria Morse / CC

Aside from being a friend to peta2, Bridge 9 is also home to legendary hardcore bands like Strike Anywhere, Death Before Dishonor, H2O—and newcomers like Defeater and Dead Swans. Aside from great music, Bridge 9 can also promise you several things:

• No neon (Check out B9's Warped Tour shirt here. It won Absolute Punk's best shirt of 2009!)
• No auto-tune.
• Higher stage dives (... or so I hear).
• Excellent customer service.
• The most ridiculous/addictive messageboard ever, the B9.
• No animals were harmed in the making of their products.

AND ... a sheet of peta2 stickers with your order. Yep, you heard me right! When you place an order from Bridge 9 Records, you'll find a peta2 sticker sheet among your hardcore goodies. On the flipside, when you put in an order for peta2 Street Team goods after getting active for animals, you'll find a Bridge 9 sampler CD in your package. This sampler has 14 tracks from bands like Crime in Stereo, Have Heart, Paint it Black, and Ruiner. Trust me, it rules. So if you want a copy, make sure you join our street team and get active for animals!

Bridge 9 and peta2—together, we are an unstoppable force.



P.S. Support DIY labels, record stores, venues, and bands—and continue getting active for animals!

Win the New Paramore Album! September 29, 2009

Posted by Shannon Phillips at September 29, 2009 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 246 ) | TrackBack

Whether you're a diehard Twilight fan who started listening once you heard "Decode," or you've been with the band since All We Know is Falling, I think all of us can agree that Paramore has taken the music world by storm. For me, my love for Paramore started when my friend let me listen to a copy of their platinum-selling sophomore effort Riot! Being someone who listened to a lot of hardcore, Paramore was quite the departure from my usual playlist, but I couldn't deny Hayley's fun and quirky lyrics and their catchy pop-with-an-edge sound.

That said, today is an excellent day for new releases because Paramore's third studio album—Brand New Eyes—hits stores everywhere! Not only is the album ... dare I say ... quite possibly their best release to date, but after releasing album art of what appeared to be a freshly dissected butterfly, the band wanted their fans to know that no animals were harmed for the making of the album. Check it out ...

MTV Shows

Pretty awesome right? Between that video, Taylor mentioning his "unhealthy obsession with puppies" in last month's issue of AP, and Hayley tweeting about eating veggie burgers, I think it's safe to say that Paramore is an animal friendly bunch. That's why we want to give you a chance to win Paramore's latest album, Brand New Eyes, courtesy of our friends at Fueled By Ramen! For your chance to win, please leave a comment with your favorite Paramore song. Three winners will be chosen at random. Entries must be received by October 13, and the winners will be notified by October 20.

Just so you know ... by commenting here, you're acknowledging that you've read and agreed to our privacy policy.

Also by commenting, you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.

Land O'Lakes Supplier's Owners Charged With Cruelty September 29, 2009

Posted by Marta at September 29, 2009 7:27 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 9 ) | TrackBack

The following is a guest blog from PETA's Alisa Mullins. Please take a look and then make the pledge to try veganism.
-Marta

At a news conference in St. Paul, Minnesota, today, PETA unveiled footage from our five-month undercover investigation of a filthy factory dairy farm in Pennsylvania that supplies milk to St. Paul-based Land O'Lakes, the largest seller of branded butter in the U.S.

Undercover Footage Shot Inside a Land O' Lakes Supplier

<embed src="https://www.mediapeta.com/videoplayer/video.swf?v=dairy_factory_farm_pa_p2_high" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="240" height="180" allowScriptAccess="always"</embed> <BR> <a href="https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=2521&s_src=plolec09"> Downed Cows Left to Suffer <BR> for Land O' Lakes.</a>.

Our investigator documented abuse and neglect of cows and calves at the facility, including that cows who were in terrible pain and resisted standing were electro-shocked and jabbed with the blade of a pocket knife in an effort to force them to move and that sick and injured cows were left to languish—often so weak that they couldn't even get out of their own waste—for days and even weeks without veterinary care. In one case, workers were told to wrap an elastic band around a cow's gangrenous, infected teat in order to "amputate" it. The cow's condition deteriorated for 11 days before she finally died.

It's a violation of Pennsylvania law to neglect animals, deprive sick and injured animals of veterinary care, and deny animals clean and sanitary shelter. Charges against the farm's owners have been approved and filed by a local magisterial district judge. The factory farmers are innocent until proven guilty, of course, but they would face up to 90 days in jail and $750 in fines if convicted.

We have also called on Land O'Lakes to buy milk only from farms that meet our 12-point animal welfare plan, which would prevent much of the suffering we documented at this farm.

For those of you who can't stomach the thought of eating butter after watching that video, take a minute to tell Land O'Lakes to implement our 12-point animal welfare plan. Then check out one of the many vegan butter alternatives that are widely available. My personal favorite is Earth Balance margarine. It's 100 percent vegan and free of trans fat, and it tastes even better than butter, at least to my taste buds. Best of all, it's also 100 percent free of cruelty to cows and calves—as well as pus.

-Alisa

It's Been A Great Month! September 28, 2009

Posted by Pulin Modi at September 28, 2009 4:00 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 3 ) | TrackBack

September is coming to an end, but it's been a great month! Here are some highlights!

• Baltimore's public schools are going vegetarian every Monday throughout the school year as part of the worldwide "Meatless Mondays" campaign! Share this really inspiring article with your parents, teachers, and school cafeteria to get them on the path to making changes at your school! If you need any more help, download an action pack!
  
• The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) put out a new list of eating tips for vegetarians! And guess what, it's all vegan!
  
• Justin Bieber's new ad has been super popular and helped reached tons of people about kindness to animals.
  
• Delia's stopped selling shirts which promoted Ringling Bros.' cruelty to elephants.
  
• 'Hug A Vegetarian Day' was a huge success reaching lots of people online, at schools and office buildings across the world, and even making some appearances on news channels interested in this fun, positive day!

Congrats to everyone. Now that most of you are back to school, let's keep up the great work in October with campaigns against dissection and keeping the pressure on McDonald's and Ringling Bros!

What was your favorite animal-friendly news from September?

How Was Your 'Hug a Vegetarian' Day? September 28, 2009

Posted by Rachel-O at September 28, 2009 1:14 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

We know, you're brokenhearted that 'Hug a Vegetarian' Day is over. We are too, but you guys know just how to cheer us up—pictures, of course! We're loving all of the amazing pics you guys are sending in! We've received hundreds so far—check some of them out!

If you haven't yet, make sure you submit your photos of the big day and let us know how it went! If you're on the peta2 Street Team, we'll give you 2,000 points—and if you're not, what are you waiting for? Join for free and start earning shirts, DVDs, books and more!

Think you totally got more hugs than anyone on Friday? Be sure to enter the peta2 "Most Huggable Vegetarian" contest too!