Loving Hut CNY special meal

Make your Lunar New Year Resolution to Being Vegan!

By Claire
Gong xi! gong xi! gong xi ni! Happy Chinese New Year!
Live a Healthier Life … Starting Today! Consider making your resolution & lunar new year as simple, meaningful & more compassionate style by being a vegan. Going vegan is actually very easy as most vegetarian restaurant or organic cafe now offer great-tasting & delicious healthy vegetarian selections.

Some people become vegetarian overnight for example:

1) Pamela Anderson The former Baywatch star is a vegetarian, an advocate for animal rights, and an active member of PETA, taking part in several campaigns for animal rights.
She became a vegetarian in her early teens when her father brought home a deer that he had killed.

2) Paul McCartney The superstar has been a vegetarian for over 30 years. He famously once explained his vegetarianism by claiming that he doesn't eat anything with a face,
"Many years ago, I was fishing, and as I was reeling in the poor fish, I realised, 'I am killing him — all for the passing pleasure it brings me'. Something inside me clicked. I realized as I watched him fight for breath that his life was as important to him as mine is to me." McCartney said.

3) Portia de Rossi When Portia married Ellen DeGeneres, the wedding featured a vegan meal for guests, as well as a vegan wedding cake.

4) Ellen DeGeneres The talk show host has recently gone vegan! She has always been a huge animal supporter and encourages eating local and organic food.

5) Daryl Hannah The actress has been a vegetarian since was was 11-years-old.
She is also doing her part to save the whales, working with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in an attempt to stop Japanese whaling activity in the Antarctic Ocean.

6) Moby The singer has been a vegan for close to 20 years. Moby's veganism has been a constant thread through his music career.

In 2002, he opened Teany, a cozy vegetarian tea shop in his Manhattan neighborhood that immediately became a popular hangout

source: http://www.parade.com/celebrity/slideshows/famous-vegetarians

While others make the change to veg gradually. Do what works best for you. Below are some tips/informations in helping you in making your transition to a vegetarian diet:

1)Oprah's 21-Day Vegan Challenge Support Page
2)PETA challenges us to 30-day pledge to eat veg
3)Refer valuable resources e.g:

http://www.vegparadise.com/basics.html#Getsta rted
http://vegweb.com
http://www.cok.net/

Read a couple of Veggie food blogs:

http://www.vegalicious.org/about/
http://www.veggiechic.com/
http://anotheronebitesthecrust.wordpress.com/

The impact of meat production & consumption on climate change II

Deforestation:
Deforestation playing a major role in climate change. More than 300 experts stated, "If we lose the forests, we lose the fight against climate change." But Amazon deforestation increases 69 percent due to demand for meat during Aug 2007 and Aug 2008 . The livestock sector is by far the single largest anthropogenic user of land

* Livestock production accounts for 70% of all agricultural land and 30% of the world's surface land area
* 70% of previous forested land in the Amazon is occupied by cattle pastures, and crops for animal feed cover a large part of the remainder
* 20% of pasture land is degraded because of overgrazing, compaction and erosion
Source: FAO, 2006; Goodland R. et al,1999

Food Shortage:
Rising food prices have plunged an additional 75 million people below the hunger threshold, bringing the estimated number of undernourished people worldwide to 923 million in 2007.(1)

But are we really short of food?
36% of the world's cereal harvest and over 74% of soya is used for animal feed, despite inherent inefficiencies. Grain currently fed to livestock is enough to feed ２ billion people.

It takes 10 kg of animal feed to produce 1 kg of beef
4 to 5.5 kg of grain to produce 1 kg of pork
2.1 to 3 kg of grain to produce 1 kg of poultry meat
Source: FAO, 2006; CAST 1999; B. Parmentier, 2007

"Everything else takes too long and we don't have time. So we have to choose the vegetarian diet; no more animals breeding. Choose organic farming, helping each other, sharing the food that we have.

Because if we are vegetarian, all of us, we will have so much food to share with everybody; no one will ever go to sleep hungry at night anymore. And then we will have saved a lot of time, energy, money to help them also combat disease and rebuild their lives. Everything's possible, because there will be no more war, even with animals. Peace begins at home."
- 2008 Critical Moments to Save the Planet: What Can I Do? Seminar -June 29, 2008(2)

新年快乐！ Happy Lunar New Year !

祝幸福随你走过一年中的每一天；快乐陪你度过一天中的每一时；平安伴你走过一时中的每一分；健康牵你度过一分中的每一秒。祝你一切都好！新年快乐！呵呵

Cold Snap Hits Thailand

At least five deaths reported as temperatures in the north plunge to 2 deg C

BANGKOK: An unusually severe cold spell has hit tropical Thailand, with temperatures falling to as low as 2 deg C in northern parts of the country.

At least five people have died as a result of exposure to the unusually cold conditions in northern areas such as Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, which have prompted the authorities to declare an emergency zone across more than half of the country yesterday.

While cold weather is not unusual in Thailand, especially between November and February - with temperatures dropping to 8 deg C in the north and 18 deg C in Bangkok - this year's weather has been exceptionally cold.

In Bangkok, the temperature fell to 15 deg C on Monday, which saw many residents and commuters leaving their homes clad in cardigans and jackets.

While this is cold for the Thai capital, the temperature is far off its record low of 11 deg C recorded in 1974, according to the Meteorological Department.

The department attributed the cold spell to intense cold air blowing in from China.

'Because the high pressure from China keeps coming, the cold weather will stay in Bangkok at least until this weekend,' a meteorological official said.

The cold snap has hit the northern parts of Thailand especially hard. Strong winds coupled with the cold snap brought temperatures in most parts of the north and north-east below 14 deg C, with one mountain recording 2 deg C on Sunday morning.

Temperatures in central Thailand dropped to 13 to 15 deg C, while the south remained a little warmer, at 17 to 23 deg C.

Government officials said that 42 of Thailand's 76 provinces, mostly in the north and north-east, will get a special budget to provide blankets and warm clothing.

The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation had last month warned northern residents about plunging temperatures and started declaring some northern provinces as cold-spell disaster zones.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, BERNAMA

Vegetarian Market for Kids

By Sarah Hills , 13-Jan-2009

A new survey which offers an estimate on the number of vegetarian children in the US highlights a potential emerging market for those on an ‘ethical diet’ needing alternative sources of protein.


The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) study, which is said to be the first government estimate of the number of children who do not eat meat, showed that 367,000 children in the US are vegetarian.

This figure is estimated to be about in one in 200 children and it is animal welfare, not health, that most often causes kids to stop eating meat, according to Richard Schwartz, president of Jewish Vegetarians of North America, who was quoted in an Associated Press report.

However, experts claim that children who are vegetarians could lack essential nutrients if they don’t eat meat, such as protein. Therefore it is important to eat alternative sources such as soybeans and nuts.

This is more the case for vegans who do not eat dairy produce or meat.

Ethical children

The research adds weight to a separate report published last year by Business Insights - called “Ethical and Wellness Food and Drinks for Kids” - which said that children are becoming more aware of environmental issues from an earlier age.

This found that the main drivers for parents when purchasing ethical food and drinks for their children were environmental, food quality and food safety.

It said that increasing awareness of environmental concerns, such as animal welfare, means parents are purchasing these products to feel they are doing good, and are pushing these ideals onto their children.

In the US there will be 20.8 million 5-9 year olds by 2011, compared with 19.6m in 2006.

Research

The CDC report which presents selected estimates of complementary and alternative medicine use among US adults and children, using data from the 2007 National Health Interview Survey, conducted by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics.

The results were based on over 9,417 interviews for children aged up to 17 years.

The report defines vegetarian diets as those totally devoid of meat, red or white.

However, it said there are numerous variations as, for example, some vegetarian diets are restricted to plant products only, while others may include eggs and dairy products.

Another variation limits consumption to raw fruit, sometimes supplemented with nuts and vegetables. Also, a number of vegetarian diets prohibit alcohol, sugar, caffeine, or processed foods.

The Impact of Meat Production & Consumption on Climate Change

By Earth Care News Group

Meat and Climate Change

* According to the UN IPCC report "Livestock's Long Shadow," livestock production is the greatest contributor to global warming.
* Animal waste and feed cropland dump more pollutants into our waterways than all other human activities combined.
* Meat-based diets require 10-20 times as much land as plant-based diets – nearly half of the world's grains & soybeans are fed to animals.

Livestock production emissions: 18%
Global Transportation emissions: 13.5%

-18% of all greenhouse-gas emissions from human activities, including:
-9% of CO2
-37% of CH4 (methane) - 23 times the Global Warming Potential of CO2 over 100 years,62 over 20 years
-65% of N2O(nitrous oxide) -296 times the Global Warming Potential of CO2 over 100 years, 275 over 20 years

Source: FAO, 2006 (1)

Producing 1kg beef:

* Leads to the emission of greenhouse gases with a warming potential equivalent to 36.4 kg of CO2 .
* Releases fertilising compounds equivalent to 340 g. of sulphur dioxide and 59 g. of phosphate
Consumes 169 megajoules of energy .
* 1 kg of beef is responsible for the equivalent of the amount of CO2 emitted by the average European car every 250 km, and burns enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for 20 days .
* Over two-thirds of the energy goes towards producing and transporting the animals' feed.

Source: Animal Science Journal, 2007

" the permafrost layer is melting each day. And the methane gas,or other gas even, are releasing into the atmosphere. I really hope and pray that someone is listening.Methane and nitrous oxide is made by stock raising, stock keeping, animals keeping. So they are far more poisonous, far more dangerous than CO2.

Because the atmosphere is getting warmer and so the methane is bubbling out. If we stop the worst cause of global warming,meaning stock raising, animal breeding,then we will be able to save the planet. We have to stop the killing of man or animals. We have to stop producing animals products. And we have to stop using it."
- Supreme Master Ching Hai - 6 July 2008– London Conference (2)

Si lembu seronok

Aku memandu menuju ke dlm suatu jalan yg sempit. Kebetulan seekor lembu, warnanya perang jingga, juga berjalan di depan lorong. Aku perlahankan kereta. Dia memberi laluan, mengetepikan dirinya ke sebelah pagar. Sambil keretaku melaluinya, :) bola matanya yg besar, suci, juga memandang mengikut kelajuan keretaku. Cantik sekali dia. Aku ingat dia mungkin dah sesat ni. Aku teruskan menghala ke tempat tujuanku yg tak jauh dari situ.

20 minit kemudian, aku kembali mengikuti lorong itu, aku lihat lembu itu masih kat situ. Eh? Lembu ni gerak-gerakkan badannya. Aku laluinya. Rupa-rupanya dia sedang mengusap dirinya pada ranting-ranting pokok yg berdaun kecil lebat, yg tumbuh keluar dari dalam pagar. Begitu asyiknya dia :) Mungkin badannya rasa gatal.

Hai, comel betul kawan haiwan kita ni. Tahu rasa nikmat :)

Main Climate Change Solution - Vegetarianism

SUPREME MASTER CHING HAI
- a world-renowned spiritual teacher, artist, and humanitarian

"The root of our problem is that we have been unkind to our co-inhabitants: the living, feeling, walking, acting, loving beings, like animals, of all size and shapes. And we have also been unkind to our environment. We have been massacring our co-inhabitant animals, and we have been destroying our environment, like deforesting and destroying the water and destroying the air. So, in order to solve the problem that we are facing right now, we have to reverse our actions. We have to be kind to our co-inhabitants. Instead of killing them, massacring them, sacrificing them, we have to take care of them. And instead of deforestation, we have to plant trees again. Take care of whatever environment that we have."

DR. JAMES HANSEN - NASA's top climatologist

"There are many things that people can do to reduce their carbon emissions, but changing your light bulb and many of the things are much less effective than changing your diet, because if you eat further down on the food chain rather than animals, which have produced many greenhouse gases, and used much energy in the process of growing that meat, you can actually make a bigger contribution in that way than just about anything. So, that, in terms of individual action, is perhaps the best thing you can do."
"My message to you is: Be Veg, Go Green, Save the Planet."

DR. RAJENDRA PACHAURI - The chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

"the entire cycle of meat production and consumption, it's hugely intensive in terms of carbon dioxide emissions. And therefore, I always say that if you eat less meat you would be healthier and so would the planet!
I think it would help the global community enormously, if we consume less meat. But I am only highlighting the fact that the entire meat cycle is very very intensive, in terms of carbon dioxide emissions. "
"I would say Go Veg, Be Green and save our planet! "

http://suprememastertelevision.com/hu/climate-change-solution/#none

A Prayer for Animals by Albert Schweitzer

Source: http://koti.mbnet.fi/neptunia/nature/animpra1.htm

The chief cause of pain to me wass the knowledge of the untold sufferings of animals. ... it seemed to be incredible - this was even before I was old enough to go to school - that I should include only human beings in my evening prayers. So when my mother had heard my prayers and kissed me good-night, I said secretly another prayer, which I had composed myself, for all living creatures: "Dear God, protect and bless all creatures that have breath; save them from all evil and let them sleep in peace and quietness." - Albert Schweitzer


A PRAYER FOR ANIMALS by Albert Schweitzer:

Hear our humble prayer, O God,
for our friends the animals,
especially for animals who are suffering;
for any that are hunted or lost or deserted
or frightened or hungry;
for all that must be put to death.
We entreat for them all Thy mercy and pity,
and for those who deal with them
we ask a heart of compassion and gentle hands and kindly words.
Make us, ourselves, to be true friends to animals
and so to share the blessings of the merciful.

- Albert Schweitzer

www.lovinghut.com.my

Coping with Water Scarcity

Coping with water scarcity

Q&A with FAO Director-General Dr Jacques Diouf

How serious is the problem of water scarcity?

Global water use has been growing at more than twice the rate of population growth in the last century.

Water scarcity already affects every continent and more than 40 percent of the people on our planet. By 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world's population could be living under water stressed conditions.

In order to really understand how serious the problem is we first must take stock of the immense impact water has on our daily lives and our ability to provide for a better future.

Lack of access to adequate, safe water limits our ability to produce enough food to eat or earn enough income. It limits our ability to operate industries and provide energy. Without access to water for drinking and proper hygiene it is more difficult to reduce the spread and impact of life-threatening diseases like HIV/AIDS. Every day, 3 800 children die from diseases associated with a lack of safe drinking water and proper sanitation.

Is water scarcity being caused by climate change?

The water scarcity situation is being exacerbated by climate change, especially in the driest areas of the world, which are home to more than 2 billion people and to half of all poor people. The human impact on the earth's environment and climate must be addressed in order to protect the world's water resources. But there are other factors involved, such as increases in the amount of water needed to grow the food for a growing population. Agriculture is the number-one user of freshwater worldwide. Also, the trend towards urbanization and increases in domestic and industrial water use by people who live in more developed areas are factors that lead to growing water use.

Full story:
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/focus/2007/1000521/index.html

Facts:
70% of the earth's surface is water, 97,5% of it is salty, ocean water. Of the remaining 2,5% of freshwater, 68.7% is frozen in icecaps and glaciers.

The agriculture sector use nearly 70% of world's freshwater, within which the heaviest water use is by the animals we raise for meat.

20,000-40,000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of beef

Scientists have calculated that we would actually save more water by forgoing one pound of beef, or four hamburgers, than by not showering for at least six months.

1 serving of BEEF Over 1,200 gallons of water used
1 serving of CHICKEN 330 gallonsof water used
1 Complete VEGAN meal with TOFU, RICE, and VEGETABLES 98 gallons of water used

http://www.suprememastertv.com/bbs/board.php?bo_table=sos&wr_id=516&goto_url=&sca=sos_8&url=link1_0&#v

"A vegetarian diet will stop 80% of global warming, stop all the cruelty, beginning on our plate. Generating loving, kind energy around the world, stop water shortage and water pollution, stop food shortages, stop world hunger and war, prevent deadly diseases, save enormous tax and medical bills to build a better world, and support new useful inventions and good people's organizations."
- An Interview with Supreme Master Ching Hai by James Bean of Spiritual Awakening Radio -July 29, 2008 - USA (video)

Earth Care News Group

One single solution for all to cope
global warming, food shortage, water scarcity and most of the diseases:

EAT LESS MEAT - BE VEGETARIAN - GO VEGAN

SELAMAT TAHUN BARU!

Selamat Tahun Baru kpd semua, semoga tahun yg mendatang ini membawakan perpaduan erat di kalangan rakyat Malaysia, bagi negara Malaysia yg lebih penyayang, mulia dan sejahtera.