FOLLOWING UP ON LAST WEEK'S POST (Updated Oct 5)

"In a report this year, the World Health Organization called antibiotic resistance 'a problem so serious it threatens the achievements of modern medicine.'"

                                                                                       - Reuters 

     Update:  Here is yet another article on the relationship between human and animal suffering.  This one is coauthored by Paul Shapiro from the Humane Society of the United States and Eric Nicholson of the United Farm Workers.  It addresses ag-gag laws and their impact on both animals and workers in factory farms: Industry Hides Animal Cruelty Instead of Ending It.   This one opens by saying that workers at a factory farm that is a member of the Darigold Cooperative in Washington have been advised that employees caught taking photos or videos of the facility will be "subject to immediate dismissal."  The article continues: "We have been hearing from many Darigold farmworkers about poor treatment of both cows and workers. Too often, workers are forced to milk sick and injured cows instead of helping the cows get treated. Too often, workers bring their own drinking water to work because of filthy conditions at the dairy."

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     Here are some links to a couple of things I saw this week that relate to my post last week.  The first one is an article from Reuters regarding the use of antibiotics in the poultry industry and its impact on the rise of antibiotic-resistent "superbugs:" 

Farmaceuticals: The Drugs Fed to Farm Animals And The Risks Posed To Humans.

Here's how it opens:  "Major U.S. poultry firms are administering antibiotics to their flocks far more pervasively than regulators realize, posing a potential risk to human health."

     Here is an article from Huffington Post by Moby, discussing the connections between factory farming and harm to the environment and world hunger- it includes a lot of excellent information, including this tidbit, "It takes around 15 pounds of grain to make one pound of beef - which can feed a couple people for a few hours. In comparison, 13 pounds of grain fed to humans directly can feed 13 people for most of the day."  Save The Humans.

       Finally, here  is a photo posted on Facebook by VegNews Magazine:  

       Animal welfare is not just about what's good for animals.  For Christians called to live in the image of God, however, even what's good for animals should be enough.