The Hardest Part of Living Vegan – Imperfection
For most people becoming vegan or plant-based is a journey and not a switch that was turned on one day. In fact, I don’t know anyone who was a carnivore one day and a vegan the next. The change is really an evolution which occurs over time. Very often, as was with me, a person becomes vegetarian because of a nutritional concern and then learns about the animal livestock and dairy industries and gradually cuts out dairy products out of a moral, ethical, or religious belief. And, then there is the third part of the vegan triangle which is the environment because there is no doubt the animal livestock and dairy industries are destroying the environment with the CO2 emissions, contaminated water systems, and forest destruction. Read more 
Remembering Faina Rapoport
Faina Rapoport was 45 years old when she died on September 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center. A computer programmer for Accenture (a global professional services company that provides consulting services in digital, technology, and operations), Rapoport worked as a consultant to Marsh & McLennan, the corporation that had offices on eight floors (93-100) of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. When American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower between the 93rd and 99th floors, the individuals on these floors were killed, including Rapoport. Read more
PlantPure Summit 2016
PlantPure Summit 2016 is a 10-day on-line series (September 7 – 16, 2016) that brings together healthcare industry experts from around the world to promote the benefits of plant-based nutrition and lifestyle changes to fight against heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, hypertension, and obesity. The summit is free and is a public service to learn more about nutrition and health so take some time, scroll through the schedule (the link is below), and listen to a few life-changing experts tell you how to lead a healthier life. 10 days. 60 speakers. 59 talks. Invaluable Information. Read more
Elie Wiesel, Night, and July 4th
Three years ago, I posted a book review of Elie Wiesel’s Night – the story of his family and how the teenage Wiesel survived the Holocaust during World War II. On this July 4th as we celebrate independence and the passing of 87-year old Wiesel just a few days ago, it seems only fitting that we honor a man who spoke out against violence, racism, and repression, told us why we need to stand up to injustices, and how important it is to listen to those with the courage to speak out. With that in mind, the post of Night – one of Wiesel’s most important works – is reprinted below: Read more
The Purple Carrot
With our plant-based recipes, you’ll soon be cooking the world’s most delicious meals-
The Purple Carrot is an economical meal service provider of delicious entrees that will rock your culinary world by providing perfectly portioned fresh seasonal ingredients along with recipes to make it easy to cook up a flavorful plant-based meal at home in 30-40 minutes.
Everything is pre-measured (including spices) and of the highest possible quality, often organic, ethically sourced and always non-GMO so that all you have to do is follow the simple instructions for a delicious meal. Read more
McDonald’s and US Hospitals
You have to hand it to McDonald’s for getting their fast food inside hospitals. Having a fast food chain like McDonald’s in a hospital is like having a candy store in the American Diabetes Association headquarters or a liquor store in a building that hosts AA meetings. When I was growing up, there was a word – nimrod – for someone who did something stupid or for someone who was inept. But allowing McDonald’s within the walls of US hospitals goes deeper than that. Read more
Through the Door of Life
When Sam Harel Price, 21 and a junior at Oberlin College died on March 24th following a suicide attempt on her 21st birthday, I struggled to help my daughter cope with the death of a friend she loved. Loss leads to grief but asking why a smart, compassionate, and beautiful person would take her life when she had so much to look forward to, help us understand the importance of compassion and acceptance in this world. Read more
Superdelegates and Animal Farm Revisited
All animals are equal. ~George Orwell, Animal Farm
Americans pride themselves on the democratic principle of “one person, one vote.” Well, sort of. Registered voters cast their ballots for a presidential nominee in the primaries leading up to the political conventions where the party representative is formally nominated by the delegates, not the voters. Read more
Why GMO’s Don’t Matter but What You Eat Does
The recent defeat of the Senate bill that would have created voluntary national standards for food labeling with genetically modified ingredients would have prevented states (including Vermont, the leader whose food labeling laws go into effect July 1, 2016) from mandating labels on food that contain genetically modified ingredients. Read more
Where does a $1 contribution to United Way of Central Iowa Go?
United Way of Central Iowa (UWCI) is just one of 35 United Way chapters in Iowa and one of 1,256 chapters in the United States, but this mid-west chapter office raised more than $29 million last year and distributed $21.9 million (75%) in grants to local organizations that focus on health, education, and income. United Way is – for lack of better words – a way to unite people and organizations – with UWCI focused on the people and organizations in central Iowa. Read more
Paddock Post 