Musings and What-not

Sounds like a bad recipe. Like me, you are probably wondering what autism, cow's milk, and PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) have in common? In a press release earlier today, PETA announced the message of its new billboard. In light of two scientific studies that link milk consumption to autism in children, PETA will be displaying a new billboard parodying a ubiquitous milk ad.  The ad shows a bowl of milk and cereal next to the tagline, "Has Your Child Got Autism?" "Milk may do a body good", but I haven't drank it since I was a kid, and my son is allergic to dairy.  And my "no milk" decision was not based on any scientific study. The release goes on to say, The bad news is that data from a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that metropolitan St. Louis' rate of 7.3 cases of autism per 1,000 8-year-old children is one of the highest among the 14 areas studied. The good news is that a study conducted i...

The circus is in town this weekend, and my husband really wanted to take our son. While fetchin' dinner, he told me he saw a group of circus protestors, hanging out across the street of the BOK Center . He told me they were holding signs that spoke of animal abuse... If I hadn't have transitioned to a holistic lifestyle, I wouldn't be sitting in front of my PC right now, blogging about animal abuse and circuses. But I did. And here I am. Fired up. How do I explain this to my son? He doesn't always grasp the other things I try to explain to him.  But abuse, in all its forms, is something I am ill-prepared for. How do I look into those amazingly big, brown eyes, and tell him that I'll never take him to the circus? That it will be a cold day in hotsville before I pay to see abused animals perform for my or his delight? That the elephant isn't trumpeting because she's happy... she's trumpeting because she's been wounded by a bullhook meant to make her ...