GOING COCONUTS !!!

A good friend emailed me a list of very interesting info on the goodness of coconut water and thought I ought to share with you all.

Back when I was younger (yes... I was young once!)I often would hear the older generation telling us girls to stay away from consuming too much coconut water. The main reason being, it is too cooling for our body system and also would give us 'wind' and not at all good for our bones. This was, especially true (they said) for pregnant ladies and those having their monthly periods.

I am not surprised that many of you out there may have heard of such old wives tales. So, when my Malay friends told me that they would drink lots of coconut water during their pregnancies , I was, like... get out of here... you wanna end up COCO-NUTS???

Well, maybe the following will help to ease your mind and erase doubts on what we were taught to believe otherwise. By the way, we are talking about young, green coconuts here and NOT the "low yea" (old ones with hard brown husks).

WHY DRINK COCONUT?
In Sanskrit, the coconut palm is known as kalpa vriksha, meaning 'tree which gives all that is necessary for living,' since nearly all parts of the tree can be used in some manner or another.

Coconut Water is naturally: Low in Carbs 99% Fat Free Low in sugars
Coconut Water contains organic compounds possessing healthy growth-promoting properties that have been known to help :
Keep the body cool and at the proper temperature
Orally re-hydrate your body; it is an all-natural isotonic beverage
Carry nutrients and oxygen to cells
Naturally replenish your body's fluids after exercising
Raise your metabolism
Promote weight-loss
Boost your immune system
Detoxify and fight viruses
Cleanse your digestive tract
Control diabetes
Aid your body in fighting viruses that cause the flu, herpes, and AIDS
Balance your PH and reduce risk of cancer
Treat kidney and urethral stones
Boost poor circulation

It's a natural isotonic beverage, with the same level of electrolytic balance as we have in our blood. It's the fluid of life, so to speak.' In fact, during the Pacific War of 1941-45, both sides in the conflict regularly used coconut water - siphoned directly from the nut - to give emergency plasma transfusions to wounded soldiers.

Most coconut water is still consumed fresh in tropical coastal areas - once exposed to air, the liquid rapidly loses most of its organoleptic and nutritional characteristics, and begins to ferment.

Coconut Water is More Nutritious than whole milk - Less fat and NO cholesterol!
Coconut Water is More Healthy than Orange Juice - Much lower calories
Coconut Water is Better than processed baby milk- It contains lauric acid, which is present in human mother's milk
Coconut water is naturally sterile -- Water permeates though the filtering husk!
Coconut water is a universal donor-- Its identical to human blood plasma
Coconut Water is a Natural Isotonic Beverage - The same level we have in our blood.
Coconut water has saved lives in 3rd world countries thru Coconut IV.

Coconut water is the very stuff of Nature, biologically Pure, full of Natural Sugars, Salts, and Vitamins to ward off fatigue.... and is the next wave of energy drinks BUT natural!', according to Mortin Satin, Chielf of the United Nation's Food & Agriculture Organization.

Coconut water contains more potassium (at about 294 mg) than most sports drinks (117 mg) and most energy drinks.
Coconut water has less sodium (25mg) where sports drinks have around 41mg and energy drinks have about 200 mg!
Coconut water has 5mg of Natural Sugars where sports and energy drinks range from 10-25mg of Altered Sugars.
Coconut water is very high in Chloride at 118mg, compared to sports drinks at about 39mg.

Data is based on a 100ml drink

Well, so much on the goodness and nutritious value of drinking nature's wonder juice.
Are you ready to go coconuts and have a go...?

COCONUT WA-TAH, here I come,
COCONUT kawan , I'll remember to leave you some!
Yeah... Yeah.... Yeah..

Adakah Haiwan Juga Mempunyai Kesedaran

Adakah haiwan juga mempunyai kesedaran?

Akar umbi kesedaran mungkin terletak dlm nafsu dan rangsangan yg paling asas kita - kelaparan, kesakitan dan sebagainya - menurut sebuah teori baru. Ini mungkin memberi implikasi penting utk perdebatan tentang kesedaran haiwan kerana ia menegaskan peranan bahagian otak yg paling primitif dan purba dlm kewujudan kesedaran, dan bahagian-bahagian ini boleh ditemui dlm semua burung, ikan dan reptilia, serta haiwan mamalia dan manusia....

Sumber (dlm bhs Inggeris): Are animal conscious too?

===========================================
Are animals conscious too?

The roots of consciousness may lie in our most basic desires and sensations - hunger, thirst, pain and the like - according to a new theory. This could have profound implications for the debate about animal consciousness because it emphasises the role of the most primitive and ancient parts of the brain in the emergence of consciousness, and these regions can be found in birds, fish and reptiles, as well as mammals and people.......

Source: Are animal conscious too?

Setakat Mana Nilai Kemanusiaan

Hujan turun lebat. Aku sedang memandu pulang bila aku lalui sebuah lori besar, belakangnya penuh dgn sangkar² yg ditimbun tinggi secara terbuka di belakang lori itu. Setiap sangkar sempit dan kecil, muat dgn ayam-ayam. Penuh, semua ayam tak bergerak langsung. Serta-merta hatiku rasa terpenggal. Aku rasa amat simpati dengan mereka.

Basah, sejuk, sempit, sesak nafas, busuk, najis bertaburan di seluruh badan, demam, berpenyakit,… sengsara sekali. Aku terfikir, nanti sampai rumah sembelih, banyak lagi penderitaan dan penyeksaan yg sedang menunggu. Hiba sekali hatiku. Aku hanya boleh berdoa untuk mereka.

Tidakkah manusia lihat, haiwan yg mereka sayangi seperti kucing dan lain-lain, yg mereka akui tahu rasa sakit dan sengsara, serupa dgn haiwan-haiwan ini, yg mereka santapi setiap hari..........

SMELL THE ROSES...

My co-blogger has been harping on me to come out from hibernation and do my job otherwise I will have to take my leave permanently!

My apologies to all as I was caught up with matters which needed immediate attention.
Sometimes we get so meshed up with life's priorities that we tend to neglect things that matter more. I would like to share the following message with everyone who, like me, are guilty of living a 'fast-track' life. I have no idea who the author is, but I hope it will help us all live a better life....please be patient and read to the end.


"It's been 18 years since I joined Volvo, a Swedish company. Working for them has proven to be an interesting experience. Any project here takes 2 years to be finalized, even if the idea is simple and brilliant. It's a rule.
Globalized processes have caused in us (all over the world) a general sense of searching for immediate results.. Therefore, we have come to posses a need to see immediate results. This contrasts greatly with the slow movements of the Swedish. They, on the other hand, debate, debate, debate, hold x quantity of meetings and work with a slowdown scheme. At the end, this always yields better results.
In other words:
1) Sweden has 2 million inhabitants.
(2) Stockholm has 500,000 people.
Volvo, Escania, Ericsson, Electrolux, are some of its renowned companies. Volvo even supplies
NASA.

The first time I was in Sweden , one of my colleagues picked me up at the hotel every morning. It was September, bit cold and snowy. We would arrive early at the company and he would park far away from the entrance (2000 employees drive their car to work).
The first day, I didn't say anything, neither the second or third days. One morning I asked him, "Do you have a fixed parking space?
I've noticed we park far from the entrance even when there are no other cars in the lot."

To which he replied, "Since we're here early we'll have time to walk, don't you think that whoever gets in late will need a place closer to the door?" Imagine my face.
Nowadays, there's a movement in Europe named Slow Food. This movement establishes that people should eat and drink slowly, with enough time to taste their food, spend time with the family, friends, without rushing. Slow Food is against its counterpart, Fast Food and what it stands for as a lifestyle. Slow Food is the basis for a bigger movement called Slow Europe, as mentioned by Business Week.
Basically, the movement questions the sense of "hurry" and "craziness" generated by globalization, fuelled by the desire of "having in quantity" (life status) versus "having with quality", "life quality" or the "quality of being".
French people, even though they work 35 hours per week, are more productive than Americans or British. Germans have established 28.8 hour workweeks and have seen their productivity been driven up by 20%..
This slow attitude has come to the notice of USA , the pupils of the fast and "do it now" brigade.
This no-rush attitude doesn't represent doing less or having a lower productivity
It means working and doing things with greater quality, productivity, perfection, with attention to detail and less stress.
It means re-establishing family values, friends, free and leisure time. Taking the "now", present and concrete, versus the "global", undefined and anonymous.
It means taking humans' essential values, the simplicity of living.
It stands for a less coercive work environment, more happy, lighter and more productive work place where humans enjoy doing what they know best how to do.
It's time to stop and think on how companies need to develop serious quality with no-rush that will increase productivity and the quality of products and services, without losing the essence.
In the movie, 'Scent of a Woman', there's a scene where Al Pacino asks a girl to dance and she replies, "I can't, my boyfriend will be here any minute now". To which Al responds, "A life is lived in an instant". Then they dance the tango.
Many of us live our lives running behind time, but we only reach it when we die of a heart attack or in a car accident rushing to be on time. Others are so anxious to live for the future that they forget to live the present, which is the only time that truly exists.
We all have equal time throughout the world. No one has more or less. The difference lies in how each one of us does with our time. We need to live each moment. As John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans".

May we all take time to smell the roses today.....God bless!

More Warning!!! Time to Change our Lifestyle?

Dear Pencinta Alam

In case our readers are not aware of this ........
==========================================
Posted by : Guest On Planet


Global Warming Time Bomb Trapped In Arctic Soil

PARIS, Aug 24, 2008 (AFP) - Climate change could release unexpectedly huge stores of carbon dioxide from Arctic soils, which would in turn fuel a vicious circle of global warming, a new study warned Sunday.

And according to one commentary on the research, current models of climate change have not taken this extra source of greenhouse gas into account.

Scientists have long known that organic carbon trapped inside a blanket of frozen permafrost covering one fifth of the world's land mass would, if thawed, release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

But until now they simply did not have a good idea of how much carbon is actually locked inside this Arctic freezer.

To find out, a team of American researchers led by Chien-Lu Ping of the University of Alaska Fairbanks examined a wide range of landscapes across North America.

They took soil samples from 117 sites, each to a depth of at least one metre, in order to provide a full assessment of the region's so-called "carbon pool."

Previous estimates of the Arctic carbon pool relied heavily on a relative handful of measurements conducted outside of the Arctic, and only to a depth of 40 centimetres (15.5 inches).

The study, published in the British journal Nature Geoscience, found that the stock of organic carbon "is considerably higher than previously thought" -- 60 percent more than the previously estimated.

This is roughly equivalent of one sixth of the entire carbon content in the atmosphere.

And that is just for North America. The size and mix of landscapes in the northern reaches of Europe and Russia are about the same, and probably contain a comparable amount of carbon-dioxide producing matter currently held in check only by the cold, the study said.

And the danger of a thaw is real, note climate scientists.

The Nobel Prize-winning UN panel of climate change scientists project temperature increases by century's end of up to six degrees Celsius (10.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Arctic region, which is more sensitive to global warming than any other part of the planet.

Commenting on the research, Christian Beer of the Max Planck Institute in Jena, Germany, pointed out that the climate change models upon which future projections are based, do not include the potential impact of the gases trapped frozen Arctic soils.

"Releasing even a portion of this carbon into the atmosphere, in the form of methane or carbon dioxide, would have an significant impact on Earth's climate," he noted in his commentary, also published in Nature Geoscience.

Methane, another greenhouse gas, is less abundant than carbon dioxide but several times more potent as a driver of global warming.

Sick Minds are Killing the Earth's Sound Body

Source: The Belleville Intelligencer
Sick minds are killing the Earth's sound body
Posted By BERT HIELEMA YES, BUT...

six years of Latin and Greek -- keeps on influencing me. While I was searching for a topic for my next column, a Latin phrase popped up in my mind: mens sana in corpore sano: a sound mind in a sound body.

Actually my thoughts went more in the opposite direction: a sick mind in a sick body, when I read that although in the United States in a recent survey 62 per cent of the people were of the opinion that their house value has remained constant or had increased, in reality 77 per cent of all homes there have fallen in value.

Another astonishing statistic is that a full one-third of all homes built in the last five years have a mortgage larger than its value.

What applies to public knowledge about housing is also true for climate change: there too accurate knowledge is missing or ignored.

For all practical purposes our world, our old world that we have inhabited for the last 12,000 years, has ended: we now must be prepared for radical climate instability, which will be accompanied by massive extinctions and global migrations.

Who is my source? None other than some of the most prominent researchers of the Fourth Assessment Report issued last year by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Never believe politicians: they tell us that wealth generated from higher energy prices will ultimately find its way to new technologies and renewable energy.

The sorry truth is that this statement of faith too is just as ill-founded as U. S. homeowners assuming that their residential real estate has increased in value.

As a matter of fact, the economic costs, technological hurdles, and the radical changes in people's mindsets needed to tame the growth of greenhouse gases are so immense that it would require a totally different humanity to accomplish it.

Take Europe, so praised for its climate-friendly policies, yet energy use there, since 2000, has risen while carbon dioxide emissions have even grown marginally faster.

And in North America? Alberta with its oil-sand-derived-sin-against-humanity-fuel, and the U. S. with its farmers' pleasing climate busting senseless biofuel both create only larger problems: frankly nobody wants to make the sacrifices required to save the world.

The sober reality is that worldwide coal production -- the worst of all fuels -- is seeing a re-birth: the filthy 19th coal-century has come back with a vengeance, especially in Olympic-host China.

There, hundreds of thousands of miners are now working under conditions that would have appalled Charles Dickens, extracting the dirty mineral that allows China to open two new coal-fueled power stations every week.

Meanwhile, the total consumption of fossil fuels is predicted to increase at least 55 per cent over the next generation. This time around not miners in Wales or the inhabitants of London are the victims: the life of our planet is at stake.

The United Nations Development Program warns that it will require "a 50 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions worldwide by 2050 against 1990 levels" to keep humanity outside the red zone of runaway warming -- usually defined as a greater than two degrees centigrade increase this century.

Yet the International Energy Agency predicts that, in all likelihood, such emissions will actually increase in this period by nearly 100 per cent -- enough greenhouse gas to propel us past several critical tipping points.

Already the Arctic is melting at a rate not expected for 20 to 30 years. This means that the methane now sealed in the permafrost will burst out accelerating the speed of global warming immensely.

There are credible, well-researched reports that even a few more degrees of temperature rise in the arctic regions of Siberia and northern North America will release as much 400 gigatons of methane gas trapped in a frozen state for millennia -- which would cause global temperatures to soar to levels not seen in 250 million years (methane is 20 times as potent a global warming gas as CO2).

Vast regions of Siberia are already bubbling methane as the permafrost line moves north. There is feedback at work here: more heat will give more gas, which will give more heat, which...

By the way our warmest weather lately has been in Churchill, Man., the home of the polar bears.

The current chaotic market and weather conditions are a faint flicker compared to the cosmic changes that will grow by leaps and bounds when resource depletion, intractable inequality and climate change converge.

The real danger is that human solidarity itself, like a Antarctic ice shelf, will suddenly fracture and shatter into a thousand shards. Mens Sana in Corpore Sano?

This and previous columns can be seen at hielema.ca

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This author knows very well, we are heading to a tipping point of no return of climate change, while the majority of people of the world, are still in ignorance.

I urge you to do your part, be counted! The long term and most effective solution, is by turning to a plant-based diet.

Utah Boy Honored for Fight Against Global Waming

Thank you, Anonymous, for sharing. An impressive young man, indeed... :)

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Dear Pencinta Alam

I hope this article will inspire our young Malaysians to do something... :))

Anonymous

Utah boy honored for fight against global warming
July 16th, 2008 @ 4:46pm
By Jed Boal

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=3781060

Global warming and other environmental concerns have caught the attention of young people everywhere. One Sandy boy, in particular, decided to look for solutions and got some national recognition along the way.

Twelve-year-old Nathan Moos goes to junior high school next year. He hates polluted days and has ideas to reduce carbon emissions and limit global warming.

"The current generation of adults is not really doing much about this," he said.

So, Nathan started a campaign at Brookwood Elementary School a year ago that should have a lasting impact on the students there. With 600 students coming out the doors after school, he wanted to cut the pollution from idling buses and parents' cars.

"A lot of them will come out to this drive-through lane and end up breathing in a lot of these exhaust fumes, aggravating people's asthma and also causing dangerous respiratory illnesses," Nathan said.

Plus, Nathan points out, idling wastes gas.

Last May, he got the principal's support, printed fliers to hand out to parents, and made signs that the students carry on the sidewalks.

"The governor has a campaign to do this statewide. So, I actually think this is pretty bright, what's ahead," Nathan said.

Action for Nature, a U.S. nonprofit group, recognized his steps to solve a local and global problem. He was honored among the top three in his age group as an International Young Eco-Hero.

Nathan says compliance among bus drivers and parents was pretty good, and the students were eager to help. "The only reason as many people signed up as they did is because they knew it was possible," he said.

Nathan receives a cash prize, a certificate and other benefits.

The organization honored 11 people, from California to Kenya, this year.

Campaign on Dec 21, 2008 (Sun) - like to join us ?

Campaign on Dec 21, 2008 (Sun) - like to join us ?

Posted by Guest On Planet

"We are running a campaign to encourage Malaysians to pour garbage enzyme into our rivers this Dec 21, 2008 " says Dr. Oon of Pertubuhan Sudarshan Kriya Pulau Pinang

Making use of your kitchen waste for a good cause,
reported by The Star : A toast to garbage
By ROSE YASMIN KARIM

Committed to leaving the smallest footprint possible, one woman is waging war on global warming.

While a lot of tree-huggers take themselves way too seriously, Dr (H) Joean Oon carries her social conscience without being smug.

Going beyond screwing in compact fluorescent light bulbs and carrying tote bags to the grocers, the homeopathy and naturopathy doctor is tirelessly working towards bringing environmental awareness to the masses by giving free public talks . . . on garbage enzyme.

Fruits headed for the fermenting drums.

Environmental issues are important to Oon because she worries for the future generation.

"I was devastated when I found out that Malaysia was on the brink of sinking due to global warming," says Oon at her Naturopathic Family Care Centre cum garbage enzyme headquarters in Tanjung Bungah, Penang.

"My biggest concern was for the safety of my three daughters, and I knew I had to do something, anything, to save them. That was what drove me to learn about producing garbage enzyme from Dr Rosukon Poompanvong, an alternative medicine practitioner in Thailand," she recalls.

So how does trimming trash help to bring down the earth's temperature?

"The production of garbage enzyme generates ground-level Ozone (O3). The O3 helps to maintain the earth's temperature by releasing the heat trapped by the heavy metal in the clouds. If every household turns its garbage into enzyme, we can protect our ozone, live in a smog-free environment and eat food free from toxins," explains Oon.

By mixing garbage enzyme with chemical cleaning products, Oon explains, the enzyme flowing into our drainage system will cleanse the rivers and oceans.

"We are running a campaign to encourage Malaysians to pour garbage enzyme into our rivers this Dec 21," says Oon,

"The enzyme will help to break down the harmful chemicals. We have done a trial run at Sungai Kayu Ara in Selangor and the results have been encouraging."
The yeast forming on the surface of the enzyme is rich in B complex and Vitamin C. — NURFADILLA A. K. S.

Oon works with 10 dedicated staff to produce the enzyme and to publish booklets. She and her team have gone on garbage enzyme road shows all across Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and India.

"To date, we have given away 15,000 bottles for free because we want to encourage people to try it and eventually make their own," she says.

Funds for the project, according to Oon, have never fallen short.

"Thanks to the public's generosity, we have not been short of brown sugar and plastic bottles to keep the project running," she says.

The new black

So how practical — and useful — is this enzyme?

I don't pick up litter in the midst of a shopping excursion, I don't turn off the tap when I brush my teeth and I sure don't wait until it mellows before I flush, but Oon's suggestion to reroute one third of my household waste away from the landfill by making my own enzyme seems do-able.

While Oon attends to a patient, a staff member, Peter Too, 31, takes me to the porch for a garbage enzyme show-and-tell.

"Glass expands, so it's better to use plastic containers to store the enzyme," Too says, as he twists the lid off an air-tight plastic drum, releasing a whiff of fermenting fruits and vegetables. The smell was a cross between apple cider vinegar and orange juice past its shelf life.

"To make the enzyme all you need is one part brown sugar, three parts kitchen waste and 10 parts water. First, mix brown sugar with water. Then add in the garbage — watermelon rinds, orange peels, carrot shavings, tea leaves, apple cores, banana peels and vegetables.

"You can also put in meat, dairy products and durian, but I have to warn you, it's going to smell really bad. Remember to leave some space at the top of the container for the enzyme to breathe. Every now and then, give it a good stir so it gets enough air. In three months, your enzyme is good for use," says Too.
Volunteers helping to bottle the enzyme.

One of the drums has some funky-looking mould floating at the top.

"It's yeast, and it's perfectly safe to use," Too says, rubbing it between his fingers for good measure.

Another barrel is littered with fat fruit worms, alive and crawling.

"Worms develop when the container is not sealed properly. To dissolve them all, just add one extra ratio of sugar and make sure the lid is tight. The extra protein will be great fertiliser."

The garbage enzyme, Too explains, will never expire.

"The longer you store it, the stronger it will become," he says, sending me off with a bottle and dilution instructions to try out.

Putting it to the test

My poor tresses have been subjected to shampoos that claim to be natural but contain parabens, sodium laureth sulfate and some other stuff I can't pronounce. The enzyme, I figure, is just what I need to disarm the chemicals.

I don't want to mix the enzyme in a full bottle of shampoo so I get a trial-size bottle, add two tablespoons of enzyme and give it a good martini shake.

The shampoo smells good, but leaves a sticky residue after the first rinse. I give it a second rinse. It leaves my locks looking, well, pretty much the same as they always do. Since it works fine on my hair, I decide to use the enzyme on other surfaces.

There is some lime scale collecting at the bottom of my bathroom pail. I fill it a quarter full with water, and add a tablespoon of enzyme. The flaky white stuff comes off after a good rub with an old loofah.

On a roll, I get to work on some dishes that have been sitting overnight in the kitchen sink. With the sink plugged, I squeeze a generous amount of liquid suds, three tablespoons of enzyme and some water and let the dishes soak for awhile. The suds smell light and fresh.

Getting rid of the crusty scrambled eggs in the skillet takes a bit of elbow grease but it all comes off.

I am so thrilled, my eyes start darting around trying to find something else to clean.

The kitchen tiles are in need of polishing, I decide. Rolling my sleeves, I soak a rag in a bucket of water and enzyme. A lot of dirt comes off. The result isn't exactly sparkling, but it's better than spraying toxic cleaning products.

Trigger-happy, I drop a tablespoon of enzyme into a brand name glass cleaner and set to work on my mirrors. Seeing my grinning reflection in the stain-free mirror totally pumps me up, but I can't help but roll my eyes when I notice I still have zits at 27.

I dab a bit of enzyme onto some zits along my hairline. It stings a bit, but next morning, the pimples seem to have shrunk a bit. This is magic.

Feeling pretty pleased, I prop my feet on the ottoman and snack on pesticide-free grapes that have been soaked for 45 minutes in a bowl of enzyme and water. Being a domestic goddess sure isn't easy, but at least with garbage enzyme there's no little voice nagging at your eco-conscience.


For further info : pls log on to


in Chinese & campaign contact : 生活艺术协会/Pertubuhan Sudarshan Kriya Pulau Pinang

in English
Garbage Enzyme - an Anti Greenhouse Effect (Anyone Can Do It)

in English
Dr. Rosukon Poompanvong

Recycling Centre in Bandar Sri Damansara

By JF

Here's the directions to the recycling centre in Bandar Sri Damansara.

(Note: For folks in KL/PJ, here's a recycling center that takes in not just regular plastic bottles and aluminium cans but others as well.)

Directions from Kepong/LDP Toll:
1. Take the 1st left after the toll into Bandar Sri Damansara & go up the road to the end
2. At the T-junction traffic lights, turn right
3. Go straight till u come to the next traffic lights
4. Keep left & bypass the traffic lights
5. Take the 1st left after the traffic lights
6. Go up the road & pass one road hump
7. Immediately after the Shell station on yr left is BSD police stn
8. Right next to the police stn is the recycling centre

Some weeks back, I passed the centre & I stopped to read the signage. I noticed that the place was all locked up. The signage read
"Bring yr recyclable items between 9am & 12noon every 4th Sunday of the month"

So it is not left open like before. Let me give u the directions from Manjalara as well...

Directions from Bdr Manjalara:
1. Exit Bdr Manjalara onto the Kepong - Sungei Buloh highway
2. Take the flyover to Sungei Buloh (bypassing the exit to Bdr Sri Damansara SD1-5)
3. Take the 1st left exit after the flyover into Bdr Sri Damansara SD6-10 (about 200metres after the flyover)
4. Follow the slip road as it turns sharply to the left
(the road is pretty bad so pls go slow)
5. Keep right & head towards the traffic lights but stay on the left lane at the traffic lights
6. At the traffic lights take a right & take the 1st left
7. That is already the road that will bring u to the Shell stn, police stn & recycling centre

I hope my directions are helpful & that u will be able to visit the recycling centre sometime.

Take care & have a Terrific weekend !

Shortage of Food in the World?

The more meat we eat,the more crop are needed to feed the animals

-More than 70% of the cereal crop produced in developed countries is fed to animals raised for food.1

-At least 80% of the world’s soybean crop and more than 50% of all corn go to global livestock.1

-Meat is the most resource-costly form of food because livestock
waste most of the energy and protein value of their feed in digestion
and bodily maintenance. Cattle convert only 6% of their energy
intake (mainly grains & soya) into flesh, the remaining 94% is
wasted as heat, movement, etc. 2

And more:
1) http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/
2) http://www.flex.com/~jai/articles/101.html
-----------------------------------------------

Lagi banyak daging kita makan, lagi banyak tanaman yg diperlukan utk menyuap haiwan

-Lebih drpd 70% tanaman bijirin yg dihasilkan di negara-negara membangun diberi sbg makanan kpd haiwan yg diternak sbg makanan manusia. 1

-Sekurang-kurangnya 80% tanaman soya di dunia dan lebih 50% drpd semua jagung, diberi kpd haiwan ternakan sedunia. 1

-Daging merupakan makanan yg paling byk menggunakan sumber kerana haiwan ternakan membazirkan kebanyakan tenaga dan nilai protein drpd makanan mrk, melalui pencernaan makanan dan pemeliharaan badan mereka. Lembu mengubah hanya 6% drpd pengambilan tenaga mrk (kebanyakannya bijirin dan soya) menjadi daging, baki 94% dibazirkan melalui haba dan pergerakan badan, dll. 2

Dan lebih (dalam bhs Inggeris):
1) http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/
2) http://www.flex.com/~jai/articles/101.html

THE ASTRONAUT WHO CARES...

Acquiring the much-sought-after honor of being the most handsome astronaut and Malaysia's first man in space, DATUK SHEIKH MUSZAPHAR SHUKOR is also a medical doctor to boot! This time around, he is on another mission - to help save the lives of fellow Malaysian women from the two deadliest cancers to strike the weaker sex, BREAST and CERVICAL CANCERS.

It is estimated that one in every 19 women in Malaysia is at risk of getting breast cancer which is, and still remains, the most common cancer among women worldwide. In the USA alone, a woman is diagnosed to suffer from it every 3 minutes! Unfortunately, not only women are afflicted, men are also known to suffer from it.

AVON Cosmetics Malaysia joins over 50 countries in the 4th AVON WALK AROUND THE WORLD FOR BREAST CANCER (WAWBC) on Sunday the 10th of this month to initiate a worldwide series of events that will mobilise thousands of committed people to help end this silent killer and to break barriers to access quality health care for the unfortunate victims. This is Malaysia's very first participation with a turnout of some 5,000 men and women wearing pink T-shirts and walked 3km to kick-start the event. Joined by Dr Sheikh Muszaphar and a host of local celebrities, the Walk netted a sum of RM50,000 which was donated to the PRIDE FOUNDATION, a charity body for the fight against breast cancer.

Launched by Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen, (Women,Family and Community Development Minister)plans are underway to spearhead mobile clinics in rural clinics with mammogram detection facilities to increase awareness of this much feared disease. Dr Ng encourages all women above the age of 40 to go for regular breast examinations as early detection and treatments can help save lives. On record, in the space of one year from May 2007 to June 2008, out of a total of 5217 women who underwent mammogram checks, 20 were diagnosed positive and 368 were categorised as high risks.

CARES - (CERVICAL CANCER AWARENESS ASSOCIATION) a non-profit organisation, sheds light on cervical cancer that plagues the female population. It is also the second most common cancer among our Malaysian sisters. Leading consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist and CARES medical advisor, Datuk Dr Nor Ashkin Mokhtar firmly states : "Every year, about half a million women have cervical cancer and about a quarter of million die, and it is sad to know that every two minutes a woman dies of cervical cancer." (This is based on worldwide observation). In Malaysia, an average of 2-3,000 women are diagnosed with it and about 500 die from it every year.

Just like breast cancer, with early detection and appropriate treatment, cervical cancer is preventable and curable. The only obstacle in the way is IGNORANCE. So it is to educate and create awareness that CARES and WAWBC are being activated, to remove the stigma of these two maladies and to help allay the fears that come with these forms of cancers.

Heart-throb Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar, the spokesman for both these NGO, had done cancer research through the ANGKASAWAN program which sparked off his intense interest and commitment to support these efforts.

Recent seminars on these subjects were also held with informative knowledge for a woman to learn about her body and ways to keep it in optimum healthy condition.

It is hoped that with the support of these good people, Malaysian women will have greater access to medical advice and treatments with regard to both breast and cervical cancers. We need to constantly remind ourselves that, the first step towards preventing illnesses is to open ourselves up to help that is made available by people who care.

(POST SRCIPT: For husband-hunting females on the prowl, it's hands-off for Dr Sheikh Muszaphar. He is planning to get hitched next year to someone he has been dating for the past 5 years. So, like me, let's join in to wish them all the very best for the future and may they live happy and healthy for evermore!)

IF YOU CARE ENOUGH TO HELP SUPPORT THIS CAUSE, JUST SPEND A MINUTE AND 'CLICK TO GIVE A FREE MAMMOGRAM' TO SOMEONE WHO NEEDS IT : http://www.thebreastcancersite.com

Log on to these websites on BREAST CANCER and CERVICAL CANCERS:
http://www.yapstuff.org/page/healthy_breasts
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/breast
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/cervical/

For the news articles on WAWBC and CARES:
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story
http://thestar.com.my/news/story
http://thestar.com.my/health/story

CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF THE OLYMPICS

If you, like me and billions of others who sat glued to their TV screens yesterday night to catch the much-awaited opening of the BEIJING OLYMPICS, you would have to agree that it was worth the time.

Touted as the "Beautiful Olympics", it was declared open at the "Bird's Nest" stadium by China's President Hu Jintao in view of at least 90,000 spectators and a worldwide TV audience of up to 4 billion. Chinese gymnast, a 3-gold medalist in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Li Ning lit the Olympic cauldron and so the extravaganza began at precisely 8:00pm on the auspicious evening of 8/8/2008.

The Chinese has always been known to be lavish on all things that goes on show as
anything less would mean " losing face". So, it is no surprise at all, that an estimated US$40 billion (RM132 billion) was spent to dress up the 29th Olympic Games. Whatever one may have to say about such extravagance, the Chinese have waited for a hundred years for this Day and deserve our applause for putting up a thrilling and spectacular opening ceremony.

The absence of China's icons, the panda and dragon dance, indicate that they have finally emerge from behind the bamboo curtain and assimilate into the 'international'
scene. The combination of modern technology against a backdrop of the traditional, blended beautifully to show the best of what they have created for the years and months of effort. Dazzling colours and pleasing music accompany the art-performances where thousands of Chinese took part in what seem to be "a sea in perpetual motion".
It really was awe-inspiring as everyone of them performed in perfect synch.

The recent tragic earthquake which struck Sichuan in May did not stop the Games' preparations although the whole world did momentarily held their breath for a while. The resilience and fortitude of the Chinese came through loud and clear when they cleared up the debris and continue on with matters at hand.

Shrouded by political controversies with Tibet, many had waited along the sidelines to see how the Chinese will handle the situation. A few world leaders had refrained from giving their support and did not turn up for the opening ceremony. But many did come including the President of USA, George Bush and his wife, Russian PM Vladimir Putin and even French President Nicolas Sarkozy changed his mind and attended.

Personally, I think that the Olympics is not a time to air our differences, no matter how strongly we feel about them. When I watched the competitors from 204 nations paraded pass the grand stand, I only saw beautiful people, all smiling and happy to be together at one place and sharing a common spirit. The slogan "One World, One Dream" truly reflects the feelings of all those who were present in the stadium and those who were watching from near and far. For that perfect moment, I could actually feel the whole world coming into focus on the faces of those participants yesterday night. It is only on such an occasion that we get to see so many different peoples joining hands to celebrate life. And it is a celebration of sorts ... I could feel good and happy energy pervading everyone and spreading like a Whirlpool to even those of us watching the event on our TV screens.

But of course, there are also those who would want to make their sentiments known and in the most 'un-Christian' way. A pastor checked into different hotels in Beijing and painted two rooms with a slogan "Beijing 2008 Our World Our Nightmare" and then disappeared without even paying his hotel bills! Surely there must be a better time and a better way to make yourself heard? Oh well, I guess you have to say he had the guts to do what he did... he could have ended up in the gutter for all we know!

The first Olympiad Games took place in ancient Greece around 776 BC and aimed to unite all people of all nationalities, spiritual and racial beliefs.Even in times of wars and unrests, differences were put aside so that the Games could proceed in a peaceful manner which led to the formation of the OLYMPIC TRUCE.

Since 1896, the OLYMPICS have been taking place every 4 years but, sadly, the ones in 1916, 1940 and 1944 had to be cancelled due to the 1st and 2nd World Wars and not even the ideals of the OLYMPIC TRUCE were able to overrule the cancellations.

The opening ceremony of the BEIJING OLYMPICS has received raving accolades from everyone and I can't wait to see what the organisers have in store when they close the event. I am sure it won't be any less spectacular and magnificent and the Chinese will surpass even themselves then.

We wish all who are in Beijing, participants and spectators alike, the very best and may the time they spend together bring mankind closer in understanding and harmony through the spirit of the Olympic Games.

By the way, our Malaysian contingent was resplendent in their 'gold' baju and I had to suppress myself from giving them a cheer when they appeared in the parade. Way to go, Malaysians...do your very best and win, not only medals, but friends from all over the world!!

Read about the spectacular opening ceremony:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/

If you missed it, enjoy it all here:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/

For more on the history of Olympic Games:
http://www.aroundgreece.com/ancient-greece-history/

Pilihan Mudah, Kesan Mendalam

Ramai member I kata: tak guna kalau saya sorang yg makan (vegetarian)
ada yg kata: mereka semua sudah mati, dah disembelih, kalau tak makan, membazir la. Dan banyak lagi alasan yg diberi.

Pi ingatlah, kalo takde permintaan, takde bekalan. So, lagi kurang permintaan, lagi kurang lah yg disembelih, lagi kurang la haiwan diternak, lagi kurang penggunaan air, tenaga, pencemaran air, udara, lagi kurang penebangan hutan utk membuat ruang bagi industri ternakan dan daging / kawasan ragut haiwan ternakan. Kurang lagi pengangkutan daging ini ke merata tempat yg sentiasa perlukan pembekuan... Blah, blah....

Hal ni memang ikut pilihan diri. Dlm hidup kita, semua yg berlaku hasil pilihan kita. Segalanya, walau sekecil mana pun pilihan tu kelihatan, ia masih membawa perubahan.

Bagai apa yg berlaku di mana-mana negara, khasnya Malaysia, mengapa setiap rakyat, didesak utk membuat undian mrk semasa pilihanraya, kerana itulah akarnya. Setiap manusia mempunyai kuasa utk membawa perubahan. SETIAP SEORANG. Keadaannya sama. Kaitan yg sama.

Bagi korang yg tak tau lagi:

Kawasan hutan hujan seluas saiz 7 padang bolasepak dimusnahkan setiap minit utk dijadikan kawasan ragut bagi lembu-lembu ternakan.
sumber: http://www.un.org/apps/news/

Pada hakikatnya industri daging menyebabkan penebangan hutan, hakisan tanah, kekurangan kawasan paya, pencemaran air dan udara, perubahan iklim, penghijrahan penduduk, penyebaran pandemik, ekologi yg tdk seimbang dll.

So, utk diri kamu dan demi generasi masa depan, kurangkanlah pemakanan daging..mudah saja...katakan sehari setiap minggu, kamu makan makanan berasaskan tumbuhan saja.
Elakkan sebarang daging utk hari itu.Semua orang boleh lakukannya. Cuma samada rela atau tidak.

SAVING OUR RAINFORESTS

Tropical rainforests are being destroyed at an alarming rate to make way for cattle grazing and the growing of crops to feed the livestock industry. A survey showed that, an area the size of 7 football fields is being levelled every minute to sustain
our insatiable appetite for meat!!

Besides logging and for planting of commercial crops, the ever-increasing demand for land to accommodate commercial animal farming is one of the major factor for the continuous deforestation of our rainforests and contributes the most damaging effects to the environment in terms of GREENHOUSE GASES.

TROPICAL RAINFORESTS are normally found near the Equator and are common in ASIA, AFRICA, SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA and the PACIFIC ISLANDS. Sometimes called
Equatorial rainforests, they are homes to almost half of all living animal and plant species on earth. They are also significant for their natural medicinal value as
many of our modern medicines are derived from its plant species. With its high biological biodiversity, rainforests support a wide spectrum of fauna and flora - many are now extinct or endangered due to deforestation.

As they are Earth's oldest ecosystems, rainforests play an important role in the
preservation of the environment. Notably, they - :
(a) produce oxygen and store carbon dioxide (acting as carbon sinks)
(b) regulate temperatures and weather patterns
(c) absorb rainwater and prevent erosion
(d) are homes to indigenous people
(e) one-fifth of the world's fresh water is found in the Amazon basin
(f) more than 2000 of its plants have been identified as having anti-cancer
properties
(g) a typical 4-sq mile area contains as many as 1,500 flowering plants, 750 species
trees, 400 species of birds and 150 species of butterflies

Clearing and burning of rainforests release huge amounts of carbon dioxide and accounts for 20-25% of the global CO2 emission. Deforestation causes untold loss of biological diversity - 100 species of plants and animals become extinct everyday.
Scientific findings state that there were 6 million square miles of tropical rainforests worldwide but, as a result of deforestation, only about 2.6 million sq miles remain. At the rate we are going, it could be less than this figure by now.

Many of us are unable to come to terms with the ugly truth that we are losing our rainforests due to our meat diet. Or we are just ignorant of the consequences of the harm raising of livestock for food is causing. Not only will it destroy our rainforests but more potent is its effect on global warming.

Is there a solution to saving our tropical rainforests and in doing so also curb global warming? YES - by reducing our meat intake OR adopting a plant-based diet.
It is the quickest and most effective way any individual can help to address current climatic issues.

We need to make changes in our lives when the need arises for us to make choices that will benefit ourselves and the world at large. Old habits are hard to put down but we need to give them up if we want to live a healthier life in a better world.
Nothing comes without a price and it's up to us to pay now or later.

"If we lose our forests, we lose the fight against climate change."
(GLOBAL CANOPY PROGRAMME - an alliance of leading rainforests scientists)


To read more on TROPICAL RAINFORESTS:
http://www.nature.org/rainforests/explore/facts.html

For CAUSES OF DEFORESTATION:
http://www.ru.org/ecology-and-environment/

ZERO PLASTIC FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

Living in a world where PLASTIC rules, challenging oneself to abstain from using it for a month takes alot of courage and perseverance. And to CHRISTINE JEAVANS of the United Kingdom, we take our hats off in salute to your ambitious venture in your bid to help save the environment.

She wrote an article, published in BBC NEWS, giving reasons why she is taking up this formidable task and also gives an honest list of a month's worth of plastic waste (a total of 603 items!!)she currently is guilty of, as a barometer of abstinence. Married and with an 18-month old son in tow, she will constantly need to be on her toes to stop buying or accepting anything which contains plastic or is packaged in plastic. She will have to rely on recycling and reusing those she is having.

We cannot deny the bitter fact that the advent of PLASTICS is one of the most useful of all inventions in the last century. We can list a thousand and one things that make use of it - from household products to high-tech devices, from durables to disposable wares. Even money comes in the form of plastic viz: credit cards!

Undoubtedly, it is one of the most versatile product in our modern society - one that has ingrained itself into almost every person's daily life. Even a newborn babe is not free from its grip - if you take into consideration the amount of disposable nappies he/she will go through before being potty trained. Yet, despite it being indispensable, PLASTIC products is one of the most hazardous form of waste on earth.
It takes between 10 to 20 years for plastic bags to decompose and 50 to 80 years for plastic containers to disintegrate. And for STYROFOAMS, it can take FOREVER!! Plastics are synthetic substances produced from chemical reactions and almost all of them are made from petroleum. The manufacturing and disposal of such products have very negative impact on the environ and contributes heavily to global warming.

In June, SELANGOR state kicked off a campaign aiming towards a ZERO PLASTIC BAG ZONE in a year's time. All the 12 municipals and city councils in the state kicked start the project in July and will extend it to include hypermarkets, shopping complexes, offices and homes. During the campaign, plastic bags and styrofoam would be totally banned from these areas. Employees will be educated on the need to reduce its usage and encouraged to use eco-friendly alternatives and to bring their own containers
to pack food etc. If everyone pitch in and commit to carry out this worthy act, it will certainly help to lessen the amount of solid waste in our landfills.

It is estimated that plastic waste accounts for 14.3% of the total solid waste in the state. Research also shows that the usage of a plastic bag lasts an average of only 12 minutes, after which, it is discarded as waste.

In line with the ZERO PLASTIC campaign, TESCO STORES in Malaysia are also jumping onto the band wagon and doing their part to save the environment. They launched a TESCO GREEN CLUBCARD POINTS last month in which customers are rewarded with points for every carrier bag that they reuse while shopping in their stores. They have started giving out reusable bags to customers and even encourage the usage of reusable carrier bags from their competitors. TESCO's officer David Hobbs said that they aim to reduce their carbon footprint intensity by 50% by year 2020. Kudos to TESCO STORES for their corporate social responsibility in tackling the problem of climate change and global warming.

And before we sign off, let us all be mindful of Christine Jeavans who has committed herself to do something postive for Mother Earth. She deserves our respect and admiration. We would all do well to emulate and follow her example. You can send her an encouraging note by filling in a form at this link:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7508321.stm

To read on PLASTIC-An Environmental Menace (GREENPEACE):
http://www.things.org/~jym/greenpeace/

For more on SELANGOR'S "ZERO PLASTIC BAG ZONE" campaign:
http://thestar.com.my/metro/

For TESCO STORES effort:
http://thestar.com.my/

P.S. MAKE TOMORROW a PLASTIC-FREE DAY!

Effect of Plant-based Diet is Immense!

UK Video Conference June １３, ２００８ with Supreme Master Ching Hai:

"And I said already ８０％ of it, will be cut almost immediately, and we can see the results in a few weeks.
Because if you don't keep breeding more animals, and then there is less methane.

And if we don't eat meat, then there is no transportation necessary for it and much less fuel needed.
And all these people can be trained to do something else.

And there will be less hunger because we will use the agriculture products, cereals, to feed humans instead of feeding more bred animals in the future.

So we don't have hunger anymore and there will be no more war because of hunger.
So the effect is immense. Keep multiplying it, and then you know what I mean."
=================================================

Persidangan Video UK 13 Jun 2008 bersama Mahaguru Ching Hai:

"Dan saya telah beritahu, 80% drpdnya, akan dikurangkan hampir serta-merta, dan kita boleh lihat hasil perubahannya dalam masa beberapa minggu saja.
Disebabkan jika anda tidak terus menternak lebih haiwan, gas metana akan berkurangan.

Dan jika kita tidak makan daging, pengangkutan kenderaan tidak diperlukan untuk tujuan itu dan bahan api/minyak kurang diperlukan.
Dan semua tenaga kerja ini boleh dilatih untuk melakukan kerja lain.

Kebuluran akan berkurangan kerana kita akan gunakan produk pertanian, bijirin, sbg makanan manusia, sebalik diberi kpd lebih haiwan ternakan utk masa depan.

Jadi tiada lagi masalah kebuluran dan tidak akan ada peperangan disebabkan kebuluran.
Jadi kesan pengaruhnya adalah besar. Terus gandakannya, dan anda akan tahu apa maksud saya."

MEAT OF THE MATTER (Part 3)

Final part of 'Meat of the Matter' - This report is a clear illustration of why meat industry is major cause of climate change.

Read more from Jim Motavalli:
So You're an Environmentalist; Why Are You Still Eating Meat?

=============================================
A very big change

In the United States, Most people grow up eating meat and seeing others doing the same. The message that "meat is good and necessary for health" is routinely reinforced through advertising and the cultural signals we're sent at school, work and church. Vegetarianism is regularly depicted as a fringe choice for "health faddists." The government reinforces this message with meat featured prominently in its food pyramids.

Jim Mason, co-author of The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter (Rodale Books), offers another possible reason we've kept vegetarianism off the mainstream agenda. "People who eat meat and animal products are in denial about anything and everything having to do with animal farming," he says. "They know that it must be bad, but they don't want to look at any part of it. So all of it stays hidden and abuses flourish — whether of animals, workers or the environment."

Even such an enlightened source as the 2005 Worldwatch report "Happier Meals: Rethinking the Global Meat Industry" is careful not to advocate for a vegetarian diet, including it in a range of options that also includes eating less meat, switching to pasture-raised "humane" meat, and opting for a few nonmeat entrées per week. Vegetarianism is the "elephant in the room," but even in a very food-conscious age it is not easily made the centerpiece of an activist agenda.

Danielle Nierenberg, author of the Worldwatch study, works for both that organization and for the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). She's a vegan, and very aware of the climate impacts of meat-based diets. But, she says, "Food choices are a very personal decision for most people, and we are only now convincing them that this is a tool at their disposal if they care about the environment."

Nierenberg says that some of the Worldwatch report was published in Environmental Health Perspectives, and there was concern that it wouldn't see print if it overemphasized vegetarian diets. "People have a very visceral reaction when told they shouldn't be eating the core meats they grew up with," she says. "They get upset."

David Pimentel agrees that Americans are acculturated to eating meat. "The nutritionists say we're eating way too much meat for our health," he says. "The public knows this but it doesn't change their dietary habits. What will alter their behavior is higher prices for meat and milk, which are inevitable because of higher fuel prices and [with the diversion of corn crops to making ethanol] the rising cost of corn."

Although he admits it's an unpopular position, Pimentel says he'd like to see gas reach $10 a gallon, because it will encourage energy conservation and increase prices for environmentally destructive meat, milk and eggs. "Right now, we have some of the lowest food prices in the world," he says. "In the U.S. we pay 15 percent of our budgets for food, compared to 30 percent in Europe and 60 percent in Indonesia."

Jacobson agrees. "People are pretty wedded to what they eat," he says. "The government should be sponsoring major mass media campaigns to convince people to eat more fruit, vegetables and whole grains."

He argues that cutting meat consumption should be a public health priority. "From an environmental point of view, the less beef people eat the better," he says, citing not only the release of methane from livestock but also increased risk of colon cancer and heart disease. Jacobson adds that grass-fed, free-range beef (which has less overall fat) is a healthier alternative, but grazing takes longer to bring the animals to market weight "and they're emitting methane all that time."

He posits that the Centers for Disease Control or the Environmental Protection Agency should be convincing Americans to eat lower on the food chain. "There are the environmental and animal welfare problems caused by 'modern' agriculture," he says. "The animals' retribution is that we die of heart disease and cancer." Is there an environmental argument to be made for livestock? Gidon Eshel, co-author of the report "Diet, Energy and Global Warming" and a professor at Bard College, says that livestock "has an important role to play in nutrient recycling. Minerals are taken up by growing plants, and when those plants are eaten by grazers, some of it ends up in their tissues and some is returned to the soil in their waste products. But what's good in small quantities becomes toxic and devastating in large amounts. So it is only beneficial if we were raising livestock in much smaller numbers than we are today."

Eshel calls for enforcement of the frequently ignored federal Clean Water and Clean Air Acts, which contain provisions to protect against harmful discharges of both animal wastes and the fertilizers used to grow animal feed.


Eating more meat

A record 284 million tons of meat were produced worldwide in 2007. In most developing countries, meat consumption per capita is expected to double from the 1980s to 2020. Meat is an economically important product in most parts of the world in 2008, and it has powerful lobbies and enormous vested interests. There's just one problem: It's hurting the planet, and wasting huge resources that could easily feed a hungry world.

Offer these facts to many meat-eaters, and they'll respond that they can't be healthy without meat. "Where would I get my protein?" is a common concern. But the latest medical research shows that the human body does not need meat to be healthy. Indeed, meat is high in cholesterol and saturated fat, and a balanced vegetarian diet provides all the protein needed for glowing health. Were humans "meant" to eat meat, just because our ancestors did? Nonsense, says Dr. Milton Mills, a leading vegetarian voice: "The human gastrointestinal tract features the anatomical modifications consistent with an herbivorous diet."

With the recognition of meat's impact on the planet (and the realization that we don't need it to stay healthy), is it possible that the human diet will undergo a fundamental change? The fact that the cornerstone of the American diet aids and abets climate change is an "inconvenient truth" that many of us don't want to face, says Joseph Connelly, publisher the San Francisco-based VegNews Magazine. He takes a dig at Al Gore for not mentioning meat-based diets in his film and only dealing with them glancingly in his book, An Inconvenient Truth (Rodale Books).

A 2003 Harris Poll said that between 4 and 10 percent of the American people identify themselves as vegetarians. So far, Connelly says that number seems to be holding steady. "From a sustainability point of view, what's really needed is for people to understand the connections between factory farming, meat-eating and environmental impacts," he says. "That's the first step."

Lisa Mickleborough, an editor at VegNews, is probably right when she says that animal concerns are a powerful force for turning meat-eating into a moral issue. To be an animal rights leader is almost by definition to be a vegan. But few environmental leaders have gone that far. "As an environmental issue, it's pretty compelling," she says. "The figures on methane production speak for themselves. But when it comes to doing what's right for the environment, most people don't take big steps — they just do the best they can."

EMPTY HEADS = HOT DAYS

A significant size of the Canadian Arctic ice shelf broke off late last month and added to the urgency of how quickly we need to tackle the seemingly unstoppable trend of worldwide global warming.

My friends who read about this bit of news, blamed the current hot and humid weather to the melting of the ice plain. They could be right as far as climatic changes are concerned as what affects the ice caps has untold consequences on the planet as a whole. Lest we forget, the ARCTIC Ice Caps are there for a purpose... to reflect 80% of the sun's heat thus stabilizing ocean temperatures. The ocean are liable to absorb all the solar heat in the absence of the ice caps. This will result in the oceans warming up and - I will leave you to imagine the consequences....

Closer to home, the probable reasons why we are experiencing hotter and drier days are the emergence of hotspots in nearby Sumatra. The local tabloids reported the presence of more than 500 of these culprits last week. Along with this annual malady, a 40-hectares of peat forest was burning up near to our Kuala Lumpur International Airport- courtesy of irresponsible developers who were carrying out open burning!!

At the time of posting, half of the hotspots in Sumatra have shrank, thanks to more moisture in the air and a good sign that rain will follow. Hopefully, heaven will pour and douse them for good. As for the no-gooders who unashamedly contribute to global warming with their open-burnings, may the authorities come down hard on them and give them what they deserve! If they can't think of anything to deter these brainless specimens, I can think of one good way which should send them to where they rightly belong !!

Malaysian ought to be ashamed of ourselves for pointing accusing fingers at others for the part we play towards climatic deterioration. Yes, it's easier to put the blame on others when we are as guilty as sin ourselves! SHAME !

I still believe that Charity begins at home and each one of us has a responsiblity towards our neighbours and the world at large in regard to making this planet a better and cleaner place to stay. We owe it to ourselves, our families, human and animal friends and fellow citizens of planet earth. We need to be kind and care for each other in ways we know that are good for one and all....

I wish you happier days ahead.

For further reading:
1. http://thestar.com.my/news/
2. http://thestar.com.my/news/

MEAT OF THE MATTER (Part 2)

Read on to understand more of the connection between meat-eating and the degradation of Earth's health.

Written by Jim Motavalli

Jim Motavalli is the editorial director of New Mass Media and a frequent contributor to *The New York Times* auto section.
========================================================
Unacceptable risks

The environmental consequences of meat-based diets extend far beyond their impact on climate change. According to the UN report, producing the worldwide meat supply also consumes a large share of natural resources and contributes to a variety of pressing problems. Livestock production consumes 8 percent of the world's water (mainly to irrigate animal feed), causes 55 percent of land erosion and sediment, uses 37 percent of all pesticides, directly or indirectly results in 50 percent of all antibiotic use, and dumps a third of all nitrogen and phosphorous into our fresh water supplies.

A study by the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production (IFAP), released last April, called the human health and environmental risks associated with the meat industry "unacceptable." One of the commission's major recommendations was to "implement a new system to deal with farm waste to replace the inflexible and broken system that exists today, to protect Americans from the adverse environmental and human health hazards of improperly handled IFAP waste."

And livestock forces other animals out. With species loss accelerating in a virtual "sixth extinction," livestock currently accounts for 20 percent of all the animal biomass on the planet. As they occupy 30 percent of the planet, they also displace that much wildlife habitat. The grazing of livestock is considered a serious threat to 306 of the 825 "eco-regions" identified by the Worldwide Fund for Nature, and to 23 of Conservation International's 35 global hotspots for biodiversity.


Upping the volume

Meat production has become a major problem because of its very success as a human food. In 1950, world meat production was 44 million pounds annually; today, it has risen fivefold to 253 million tons per year. Pork production, for instance, was less than five million tons annually in 1950, but it's more than 90 million tons today. The average person on the planet ate 90.3 pounds of meat in 2003, double the figure of 50 years ago.

These sharp increases are partly the result of dramatically higher meat consumption in the Third World. China alone now consumes half the world's pork, a fivefold increase since 1978.

Brazil makes an excellent case history. With 160 million head of cattle, it has the second-largest herd in the world after India. In Brazil, cattle provide 29 percent of the country's methane production, and an amazing 10 percent of the world total. If that were the only issue, Brazil's large cattle herd would be a major problem. But it would be an enormous global warming aggravator even if its cattle produced no methane, because Brazilian farmers burn rainforest land to create pastures.

This process releases carbon into the atmosphere from the heavy fires, and also destroys the rainforests' ability to act as a carbon sink and capture CO2. These fires are Brazil's largest contribution to global warming, which worries Brazilian environmentalists such as Rubens Born of the group Vitae Civilis. He says he's waiting for Brazil's national inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, which will allow him to see more precisely the scope of the problem.


Selective solutions

The few commentators who have taken on the connection between meat consumption and global warming ignore the most obvious solution: not eating meat.

The UN report offers a lengthy section entitled "mitigation options" with a range of other choices. To avoid cutting down rainforests that sequester carbon, the report suggests "intensification of agricultural production on some of the better lands, for example by increased fertilizer benefits." The logical conclusion to this suggestion is the total confinement factory farming methods used in the United States — which, by twisted logic, could be said to have environmental benefits because they are not land intensive (and don't cut down trees). But the environmental problems associated with factory farming are legion, and include polluted air and waterways.

Other UN suggestions include conservation tillage (leaving agricultural residue on the soil surface to enrich its health) and organic farming for better soil health, improved grassland management, better nutrition for livestock to reduce methane gas production, and capturing methane in anaerobic digesters to produce "biogas."

The latter method has been adopted by several Vermont dairy farms and works well. Cow manure is stored in the digesters (huge tanks) at 100 degrees Fahrenheit and deprived of oxygen. That encourages bacteria to break the manure down, releasing biogas that is 90 percent methane. This fuel is captured and burned in an engine to generate electricity. Unfortunately, the equipment is expensive — $200,000 to $1 million, depending on the size of the farm. Only 32 U.S. farms were using digesters in a recent tally, so only a tiny amount of methane production has been mitigated in this way.

A Canadian study by Karin Wittinberg and Dinah Boadi of the University of Manitoba lists 20 separate ways to reduce greenhouse gas production from livestock. These include grinding and pelletizing food for confined animals to make it more fully digestible (a 20 to 40 percent reduction), grazing steers on high-quality alfalfa grass pastures (50 percent reduction), adding canola oil to feedlot rations (30 percent reduction), and separating animals by age group and phasing in food related to their growth stages (50 percent reduction). These are laudable solutions and should be implemented, but, absent legislation, they're unlikely to be put in place.

It takes seven pounds of corn to add a pound of weight to a cow, and that's why 200 million acres of land in the U.S. are devoted to raising grains, oilseeds, pasture and hay for livestock. That land requires 181 billion pounds of pesticides, 22 billion pounds of fertilizer and 17 trillion gallons of irrigation water (not to mention billions of gallons of global warming-aggravating fossil fuel for farm equipment).

Another way of looking at this, supplied by M.E. Ensminger, the former chair of the Animal Sciences Department at Washington State University, is that "2,000 pounds of grain must be supplied to livestock in order to produce enough meat and other livestock products to support a person for a year, whereas 400 pounds of grain eaten directly will support a person for a year."

Because vegetarians enjoy lower levels of blood cholesterol and suffer less frequently from obesity and hypertension, their life expectancies are several years greater. But the benefits of the vegetarian option are rarely on the agenda, even when the environmental effects of the meat industry are under discussion.