One Little Thing

Sunday, May 25th, 2008

Eat 20% Less Meat

Can’t afford a hybrid car but want to do your part against climate change? U. Chicago researchers have determined that eating 20 percent less meat is climatically equivalent to switching to a hybrid car. That’s because it’s incredibly energy-intensive to raise cows, chickens, and other animal-meat products. Those animals also require lots of land, which means forest clearing. And don’t forget about More…

Wednesday, April 11th, 2007

I bought shoes made of ‘all man-made materials’

State Street shoes make cows happy.

Staying on the anti-leather theme today. It might seem difficult to find dress shoes and running shoes that aren’t made from dead cow parts. But I’ve discovered that, once you start looking — and particularly once you start to know where to look — it’s actually not that hard. You might not have the same selection, sure, but you can find some sweet kicks.

Today I bought a nice pair of dress shoes and some Doc Marteniques from Payless. Yep, Payless. Turns out they sell a lot of shoes made of “all man-made materials.” I doubt they stock them for the same reasons I like to buy them, but who cares. I’m also not quite sure what exactly is meant by “all man-made materials,” — probably I should try to find out — but for now I know it’s not leather anyway.Check out the brand State Street. They do some good work, and no cows are harmed in the process (that I know of).

To buy online, check out vegshoes.com — they’re based in the UK, but they’ll ship anywhere.

Tuesday, April 10th, 2007

I avoided JetBlue today

I don’t have a problem with JetBlue leaving its passengers on the tarmac for hours on end. Frankly, screw-ups like that happen in all facets of life from time to time, and I can forgive them. What I do have a problem with, however, is JetBlue’s seat covering.

You see, I think animals have the right to not be raised and killed for their hides. I took back my leather jacket a few years ago. I don’t buy leather belts anymore. And I prefer not to fly airlines that use lots of leather for their seats.

You’ve probably seen JetBlue’s commercials touting their leather seats. A quick google search turns up their leather seat giddyness on their Web site, in press releases, annual reports — all over the place. Well I’m not so giddy. So, given the choice between Frontier and JetBlue, I bought a Frontier ticket today.

(By the way, if you are an animal lover, check out this global campaign for a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare — it’s called “Animals Matter to Me” and they’re getting close to 500,000 signatures.)