Vegetarian Star

Michelle Obama "Ladies Home Journal"

Michelle Obama‘s interview with Ladies Home Journal available on the stands August 10th, reveals her suspicion of a “dislike beet gene” she shares with the president.

‘I am a believer there is a beet gene,” she said. “People who love beets love them and people who hate beets can’t stand them. Neither the President nor I have the beet gene.”

A study examining the food preference of twins found liking fruits and vegetables is somewhat influenced by genes, but environmental factors also play a big role. But judging a veggie to taste bitter may be a case of genetics of the tongue receptors.

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Kristy Lee Cook has already drawn the ire of PETA after news that she’s starring in a new hunting show called Goin’ Country. The former American Idol finalist fired back–this time with words and not a rifle.

“Instead of angering thousands of would-be fans by killing helpless animals on camera in attempt to get her ’15 Minutes of Shame,’ Kristy Lee Cook’s fame crusade would be better served by following in the footsteps of fellow Idol alum-turned-country-stars Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler—as well as Simon Cowell—all of whom have used their fame and talent to speak up for animals,” said a spokesperson from PETA.

Cook isn’t taking the criticism sitting down and has responded by claiming hunters do more for conservation than any other group.

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Michael Franti is the musical creator of Michael Franti & Spearhead, a band that blends hip-hop with funk, jazz, reggae, folk and rock. Franti’s Say Hey (I Love You) reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was featured on the Showtime series Weeds and during the opening credits of the 2010 film Valentine’s Day. Franti is an outspoken proponent for social justice and will perform a live acoustic version of his upcoming September 21, 2010 album release, The Sound of Sunshine, at the 12th Annual Power to the Peaceful Festival in San Francisco.

In an exclusive interview with Vegetarian Star, Franti addresses the issue of raising children vegetarian, Meatless Monday, John Mayer and more.

You have children. What’s your take on raising children vegetarian/vegan? Should parents force it on them? Or wait until they’re old enough to decide?
I feel when you raise a child, you raise them with whatever circumstances you live in. If you take an Inuit family in Alaska, for example, they eat fish year round and there’s no choice. They don’t have an option so the kids grow up eating fish and never think otherwise. Whatever you choose to feed your kids is your decision and in America we have a lot of choices. You’re not forcing your child, you’re just choosing to eat a certain way. But I do think as kids get older, just as they want to play video games, sports, watch TV or whatever – it’s their own choice and we have to respect the choice of others. My oldest son decided to become vegan when he was 14 and that was on his own accord. He’s now 23 and still predominantly vegan. My 11 year old son eats chicken from time to time but he’s never wanted to have any kind of beef or pork or anything like that.

Between tofu, tempeh and seitan, what’s your favorite?
Tofu. Because it doesn’t give me gas and the others do. I like the flavor of tofu. Some people don’t like the flavor of plain raw tofu, but I love it. I toss it into just about everything – salads, smoothies, shakes, everything.

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Does anyone remember Emily Deschanel‘s character, Dr. Temperance Brennan, announcing she was a vegetarian early on the show? Deschanel didn’t want a mirror image of her own self in Brennan, so she preferred the forensic scientist not go vegan. Deschanel told Vegetarian Times in the September 2010 print issue:

“I can’t remember if it was my idea or not. I didn’t want her to become vegan–and she’s vegetarian for health reasons, not because of animal rights. It’s important to keep a separation between actor and character. I do always ask for episodes touching on animal rights in the same way. And I ask that there’s a character to present the case for animals in every episode.”

Since Dr. Brennan is a scientist, it’s completely reasonable for her to eschew meat for environmental reasons too. Plus, handling so many human bones would turn anyone away from animal flesh.

Deschanel says that while she used to have an addiction to seitan piccata, now she’s into soups.

Photo: PR Photos

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Former NHL player Georges Laraque has been named the Deputy Leader of the Green Party in Canada. As a vegan and animal rights activist, Laraque couldn’t have picked a more appropriate organization to align himself with.

The Green Party’s Vision, a lengthy document updated in January of 2010, lists the party’s goals for a sustainable Canada that includes changes made to food, animal, transportation and employee practices. The party would like to give more support to organic farming, for example, by providing assistance for those switching to the process, which can take several years before becoming certified. It would also like to end federal assistance to the seal hunt while supporting an end to the seal hunt entirely.

Here are a few other key points from Green Vision:

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It’s hard to believe that in 2 more years, Real Housewives of New Jersey star Danielle Staub will be 50.

The reality TV actress recently celebrated her 48th at Houston’s in Hackensack, NJ with a friend, and Radar Online reports the two had an almost completely vegetarian dinner–spinach dip, french fries and veggie burgers which probably eventually smelled fishy before the meal was completely gone due to the sashimi salad they shared.

The Houston’s House Made veggie burger consists of “brown rice, black beans and oat bran recipe with sweet soy and melted Jack.”

It’s also a favorite of journalist Nicole Lapin.

Photo: PR Photos

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Mike Tyson shared some funny and painful truths about being over a hundred pounds overweight with ESPN. Like how hard it was to take care of toilet duties and the fact that his butt disappeared.

“It was hard to wipe my butt…Oh man the back fat. The back fat is when it’s so bad, your ass looks like a board. It’s like boom. The back and ass is one.”

It also sounds as if Tyson attributes his major weight loss to his vegan diet, which he began last year.

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Pete Bethune participated in a chat interview where several dozens of people jumped at the chance to ask the famous ex Sea Shepherd member questions about his life and philosophy on animals, the planet and food.
Although Sea Shepherd broke its ties with Bethune after learning he brought bow and arrows on a mission, he still speaks fondly of the organization, especially regarding its policy of eating vegan on the boat. People usually don’t complain about being hungry, for example.

“It is a good thing because many non-Vegans realize it is fine. Some people can change to Vegan / vegetarian through this and some don’t. For many people, getting to be Vegan is like an evolution. Many of us were raised in meat families, and we don’t just one day go Vegan. It takes time. I believe Sea Shepherd is good because it gives people the opportunity to experience it with chefs that really know how to cook good Vegan food.”

So what about that story about Pete eating the eye-fillet, otherwise known as a beef tenderloin for the animal flesh naive?

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