Vaccine, nut oil may cut cow belching’s contribution to climate change 6

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1. 

   caniscandida Posted 2:40 am
   11 Jun 2008

   What really is going on here?(And what the hell is the problem with the Telegraph?  There was a narrow, ten-inch-long column of text, and they had to interrupt it not once but twice, with extraneous material, because -- why? -- because our attention span is believed to be so pathetic?  Because we are allegedly hopelessly addicted to multi-tasking?  I found the design of that page quite offensive.  You want to tell me a story?, fine, then just tell me, without letting all the nonsensical song-and-dance break in, as though that is supposed to keep me awake.  Sheesh!, what jerks!)
   We need to ask more specifically what this cashew supplement actually does.  Given that ruminants fart, farting should be understood to be a natural element in their life cycle.  A food additive that suppresses farting might very well be unhealthy for animals who naturally fart a lot.
   I do not know that that must be the case, but it is a possibility; and we should inquire into that.  On the basis of these very short articles, one gets the impression that (as so often!) the cattle are being treated as no better than food-producing machines, not as sentient creatures for whose health and well-being their human caretakers are responsible.
   It might also be the case that the feed that has been given to these NZ cattle causes them to fart more than would a diet that is more naturally desirable for them.  In that case -- and quite consistently with other complaints raised regularly in Grist and Gristmill about the way animals are treated in the meat industry -- , there would be yet another problem associated with raising cattle for food.

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2. 

   Mr Dichotomies Posted 3:54 am
   11 Jun 2008

   What about us?Great for cows, but will it work for us? Beano just ain't cutting it!

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3. 

   TitanGreens Posted 4:48 am
   11 Jun 2008

   Cutting the CheeseBeans, beans the musical fruit
   
   The more you eat, the more you...emit carbon?
   Check out a funny and irreverent take on this New Zealand story and a whole host of other eco-news at TitanGreens.com. We love you Grist and good luck with the fundraising!
   http://video.titantv.com/s/Daily-Greens-82---Chicks-Man/0 ...

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4. 

   Wolverine Posted 9:49 am
   11 Jun 2008

   Meaningless TripeWow, what a perfect example of why not to obsess on global warming to the exclusion of other equally important environmental issues!  Cattle grazing causes far greater harms than those caused by the emission of greenhouse gases from the cattle's rear ends, such as desertification and water pollution from too many large animals in one place.  What's needed is elimination of animal husbandry, or at least commercial animal husbandry.

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5. 

   John former Marine Posted 10:57 pm
   12 Jun 2008

   Nobody ever listens to MY ideas!Crazy, they'll develop a vaccine for cow farts but nobody ever listened to my idea!  I developed a contraption (much like Bob Dylan uses to hold his harmonica while playing guitar) that holds a small, electronically-ignited cigarrette-like apparatus that automatically combusts farts as they come out of the cow's ass, instantly converting those harmful methane farts into CO2 having 1/20th the global warming power of methane.  I got the idea from my older brother, who used to burn his farts for fun.  Much like Caniscandida, however, I voluntarily held my product back from the marketplace because I had a concern for the cows...that they might singe their ass hairs if they have a particularly powerful bout of gas.
   
        Anyways, I spent about $3 on the research/development of this gadget.  If any of you want to lend me about $10,000,000, I'm sure I can fine-tune it so that it is more animal-friendly.  They'll probably spend way more than that on developing a vaccine so I'm sure we could easily out-do the competition and monopolize the market on lowering cow methane emissions.
   
   

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6. 

   Wolverine Posted 7:50 am
   13 Jun 2008

   Animal Rights v. The EarthJohn,
   While your sentiments re not wanting to harm cows are laudable, there are other factors that should take priority.  First and foremost, cattle are non-native, unnatural animals (they were bred by humans from water and cape buffalo) and they do great harm well beyond their methane emissions.  The best thing that could be done would be to stop breeding them and eat the remaining ones.  Meanwhile, concerns about individual cows need to be placed well behind concerns for the natural environment, including concerns about global warming.
   So, you should begin marketing your invention immediately.  If a few cows' rears get scorched, meat eaters can just have a barbecue.

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