After 130 consecutive days of blogging, I find myself becoming more concerned and saddened about the extremely irresponsible behavior of humankind. Clearly the most intelligent species, we have exploited that intelligence as we have taken “possession” of all of the land, all of the oceans and all of the other species.

Please take the time to watch this entire movie. Sincerely, J. Morris Hicks

With all of that power and control should come responsibility to make sure that all that we control is respected and nurtured. Instead, we have run roughshod over the planet; fouling the land, the air and the sea, while treating all of our fellow “earthlings” as if they were created to serve at the pleasure of the human race.

While I started out trying to learn about the optimal diet for humans, I have now become more motivated to help correct the horribly wasteful, irresponsible and cruel behavior of humankind toward the environment and our fellow “Earthlings” with whom we share this planet.

We forget that life began on this planet some 4 billion years ago and we humans didn’t arrive on the scene until a mere 200,000 years ago. But, it has been in just the past few hundred years that we have done most of our damage.

Swelling from less that one billion to over seven billion during that period, the human race has become the “infestation” of planet Earth. And, as the movie HOME reported, we have inflicted more damage to the fragile harmony of the planet in just the last fifty years than was inflicted by all generations of humans before us.

Although relative newcomers to the planet, we have adopted the attitude that we “own” everything and every creature. This blog and this movie is all about those other creatures. While surveys show that almost everyone claims to love animals, most of us have adopted an out-of-sight, out-of-mind mentality when it comes to every non-human species on earth. Most of us have no idea what goes on behind the scenes and most of us don’t want to know.

But, if we’re ever going to be able to fix the disastrous mess that we have created, more of us must become aware of exactly what has been happening between we humans and all of the other creatures. This powerful documentary, while painful at times, is a real good place to start.

EARTHLINGS is a feature length documentary about humanity’s absolute dependence on animals (for pets, food, clothing, entertainment, and scientific research) but also illustrates our complete disrespect for these so-called “non-human providers.” The film is narrated by Academy Award nominee Joaquin Phoenix (GLADIATOR) and features music by the critically acclaimed platinum artist Moby .

The following introductory trailer is less than 3 minutes, is painless, and gives you an excellent preview of what you will see in the full 95-minute movie.

Now, before you proceed to the full movie below, I invite you to take just three more minutes and watch this appeal from the Director, Shaun Monson, as he talks about the challenges he faced during this project. He eloquently and movingly explains why we ALL really need to see this entire movie and we need to watch ALL of it.

If you’ve been thinking about walking away from meat and dairy in your diet, but just can’t bring yourself to make a commitment to give up some of your favorite dishes, the movie Earthlings may help. If you can watch this entire 95-minute documentary, there is a real good chance that you will never even want to eat meat again — ever. So, get yourself some popcorn, put this movie on your full screen and watch this movie carefully and thoughtfully. Then, you will know what to do.

An early morning view of the Oakes organic farm in Florida -- this is the kind of place where I like to think my food is grown -- without harming the environment or a single creature.

So, let’s end this blog on a positive note. Now that you have seen how a major portion of our typical western diet foods are produced, let’s take a moment to consider how nature intended it to be. Take a look at the Oakes farm on the right — the kind of place that I believe nature had in mind for our bread basket.

Then, think long and hard about what you just saw in the documentary; then decide what you’re going to tell your children when you see it with them. Are you going to accept some of the responsibility? I am convinced that with enough knowledge, you will do the right thing.

If you like what you see here, you may wish to join our periodic mailing list. Also, for help in your own quest to take charge of your health, you might find some useful information at our 4-Leaf page. From the seaside village of Stonington, Connecticut – Be well and have a great day.

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—J. Morris Hicks…blogging daily at HealthyEatingHealthyWorld.com

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