Image by Sebastian Ilari, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.
Happy Saturday y'all! Below, I have rounded up some things for you to think about this weekend:
1. Other animals have some interesting and unique senses that we are still learning about. For example, did you know that octopuses' have patterns in their skin that are entirely invisible to the human eye? And vampire bats are capable of smelling veins? How about the fact that elephants can sense and understand vibrations created by other elephants up to 10 miles away? The world is truly an amazing place, and this collection of weird senses that animals have just adds more evidence to prove that point.
2. An article from the Australian publication Hospitality Magazine explains why veganism is no longer a dirty word in the local restaurant business. The reasons for this include accessing a wider market, encouraging innovation by pushing the boundaries, and boosting creativity and morale amongst restaurant staff. I follow several Australian vegan YouTubers and have noticed that their environment seems to be a bit more vegan-friendly compared to the United States, but this article is encouraging nonetheless. This is one of my favorite quotes from the piece, and something I have tried to drive home to my friends and family time and time again:
"Vegans aren't going to eat from your menu if [there are no options for them]; they can't, they choose not to. But meat eaters and everyone else can eat the vegan items – that's an inclusive product. Even if it's just avocado on toast with mushrooms or whatever, that menu item can feed everybody, and you're also catering to a whole different market – the vegan market – so you're putting money back in your wallet."
Restaurants that choose to not offer vegan items are exclusive, whereas those that do offer vegan items are inclusive. In other words, everyone can eat plants, but animals are not foods that everyone can eat. I truly hope that more restaurants in the United States choose to follow suit.
That's all for this week's edition of Weekend Thoughts. Until next week, keep thinking wilder.