Episode 66: “Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much the larger and better in every way.”

Welcome to the 66th episode of Our Hen House, featuring James E. McWilliams.

In today’s episode, we will tell you about the fundraiser we attended, Comedy for Karma, including our take on the amazing vegan comics, and the pitiful, un-funny bullies who also took to the stage. We’ll give you the round-up on Mariann’s birthday celebrations, including our gallivant to the best raw restaurant on the planet, and our role in the mention of “vegan” and “cruelty-free” on NPR radio.

We’ll tell you about Jasmin’s new article in VegNews and why it will likely make you ravenous, and we’ll give you the skinny on the undercover investigator who spoke at Mariann’s animal law class. We’ll also give you the latest on Jasmin’s Pinup for Pitbulls adventure, our upcoming talks on activism, and so much more.

Joining us today is none other than James E. McWilliams, esteemed columnist for The Atlantic and the New York Times and author of several books, including Just Food: Where Locavores Get it Wrong and How We Can Truly Eat Responsibly. James, a true environmentalist, will give us his take on veganism, and how sustainable food choices should be shaped by what our food is, not where it comes from.

For our review, we’ll be telling you all about the new documentary, The Elephant in the Living Room, which examines the world of exotic pet-keeping.

All that, vegan banter, and of course, current events from the world of animal rights.

This week’s news items include:

• “An Inconvenient Truth: Free-Range Meat Isn’t ‘Natural’” from The Atlantic (by James E. McWilliams)
• “Congress, in a First, Removes an Animal From the Endangered Species List” from The New York Times
• “Vegan Wins on Food Network” from VegNews
• “CBS Sunday Morning Animal Show — Animal Episode” from CBS Sunday Morning

“Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much the larger and better in every way.” -John Muir

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