Collaboration Can Create Co-Existence For Children of All Kinds For Our Future

"Mama Knows Best" borrowed with credit
 from the Facebook page titled
"United Against Factory Farms,"
which I just joined of course :) - check it out for yourself!

What a pleasant surprise this little porker must have been for this mama hen!  This photo made me smile so much, but it also inspired me to add another entry for the blog.  This time of year, people think about the meaning of Christmas, Hannukah and other holidays, family-related celebrations or gift giving dilemmas or politically correct greetings.  My thoughts have turned to the lack of collaboration seen in the government as well as between human beings.  Seems like listening to someone else's opinion that might differ from our own is a truly lost art.

It's been a while since time has permitted adding a new posting on The Factory Farm As Neighbor blog as was blessed to receive a long term teaching assignment with Special Needs Children last September, as well as other things taking up my time like helping out in other ways.  We've also had a bunch of family stuff happening that reordered my usual priorities and volunteer commitments.  These other circumstances have prevented me from getting to things I normally enjoy in holiday season like church attendance, choir practice and other things.  My teaching assignment and the family happenings opened my eyes to the possibilities of what our children will see as a future if things don't change for the better where our environment is concerned when factory farms become the prevalent wave of future food production because our government seems to be turning a deaf ear and be blinded by the influx of PAC dollars into their pockets.  So it seems as it is the end of this year, it's time to ponder what 2014 was about before 2015 marches out in its New Year's diaper to herald its arrival.  

Baby pigs, cattle and chickens survive best in clean, sustainable and open environments.  Same is true of human or other animal babies, fish and fowl as well.   Seems like common sense to even non-farmers, right? The more facts that come out about factory farming, the more it seems like people who were reasonable, caring and good herdsmen would get motivated to return to a more natural environment for raising their livestock that does not involve inhumane containment of beings that were meant to live in the open air, free to graze and forage as intended in the light of day.

Curiosity got the better of me recently when my brother and I discussed how the Factory Farm next door and others like it dispose of the pork fetuses, dead newborns and other practices that are too unmentionable in a public forum.  Decided to go online - the research library of the masses - to look at mortality rates for factory farms.  Here's one that was particularly upsetting for a practical old farm gal who understands the logical business of farming, as well as the gentle nature needed to grow livestock that is healthy and yields results.  Just a few of the things on here should make you think about what you're putting on your table to feed your family and friends all year round - not just for the holiday meals.  This link was taken off  the Organic Consumers Association website originally found on the Grace Communications website, two nonprofit organizations focused on food safety and sustainable agricultural practices, and has plenty of noteworthy credible backup from knowledgable sources in the way of footnotes to accompany this information.  Do an article search on their website (click here) Organic Consumers Association for this article:  Disturbing Facts about Factory Farms & Food Safety to learn more.   

Two bullet points from this website article really hit particularly hard as related to this posting's subject matter because of the interconnected nature of improper raising of animals creating deaths in human and other species related or living close by wherever the factory farm was located:

• Since 1995, an additional one billion fish have been killed from manure runoff in estuaries and coastal areas in North Carolina, and the Maryland and Virginia tributaries leading into the Chesapeake Bay. These deaths can be directly related to the 10 million hogs currently being raised in North Carolina and the 620 million chickens on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay.
• The pollution from animal waste causes respiratory problems, skin infections, nausea, depression and even death for people who live near factory farms. Livestock waste has been linked to six miscarriages in women living near a hog factory in Indiana.

• Cached

As far back as May 2007, the Encyclopedia Britannica recognized the detrimental effects of factory farming chickens and published an informative article on its impact  "Factory-Farmed Chickens: Their Difficult Lives and Death"  (Click here to read the entire article)

A quote from this article explains how senseless and inhumane this industry segment is when it comes to raising a living, breathing animal that gives us food -- in eggs as well as baked or broiled for the family meals:  

• As in all factory-farming industries, chicken production is designed for maximum efficiency and maximum profit. With these goals, regard for the welfare of the animals involved is a luxury that reduces profits unless the extra costs can be passed on to the consumer (as on the much-publicized but less frequently seen “free-range” meat and egg farms). The results are overcrowding, disease, high death rates, and observable unhappiness for the animals involved.

 It is a fact that we are born into this world and then eventually die.   What we do with the time in between those two occurrences is our choice.  For animals, unless they are born in the wild, they do not possess the free choice of their own living circumstances.  That's up to their owners.  Living and dying are part of the rich circle of life that we all experience. 

As humans, we can talk, collaborate, cooperate and try hard to make things better on the planet, in our lives or for others - even those without a voice like animals or special needs children who were born without the ability to verbalize.  During this holiday season and into the new year, we all need to ponder how we can collaborate and cooperate to create better ways to grow our food, protect our environment, sustain the land that will give back if we treat it right and humanely treat the wonderful animals that feed and clothe us.  Wishing you and yours a magical and peaceful holiday season.  Thanks for reading and supporting those who are committed to sustainability in agriculture and humane treatment of animals.  To borrow from Dickens, "May God Bless You Every One" :)  

"Silent Night & First Snow."  Image courtesy of
Photoartdb Consulting.  Copyright 2014.

And the only Christmas gift that would sincerely be appreciated this year by me and others I know who worked against it is the "repeal" of Amendment One: Right To Farm in Missouri.  Be happy.  Be safe.

Here's another mama bird image to peacefully transition you into thinking of other soft holiday dreams and amazing things that have wings - like angels who are singing on high for a good reason.

Image taken from the internet with no clear source so I couldn't credit the photographer, which I'd be happy to do.  Still it's beautiful and the photographer was amazingly talented in capturing this image.
Photoartdb and The Factory Farm As Neighbor claims absolutely no copyright to it.  Enjoy!

  

Comments are by this individual writing the blog and no other company, nonprofit or other organization has approved or endorsed them. Am not a scientist, so can't claim my own scientific research but just comment on what is happening. These words are my sole opinion and no one else is responsible for these remarks. Anonymous comments not accepted. Stand up for your opinion. Thanks for your thoughtful and kind responses. Please keep language clean and our farmlands green. :)