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Wayne you're speaking my language applying physics, laws of thermodynamics in particular, to social systems. I tend to do that with economics and ecological issues as well. There are many current examples of these points of vulnerability in the anima ag sector: avian Influenza, child labor abuses, worker issues, climate change contributions, and so on. These examples represent jenga pieces that have already been pulled. Any good battle strategy will exploit existing system weakness. In addition, as you've pointed out, natural laws will also exploit those weaknesses. The law of entropy is quite simple at its core: heat (not hot air) flows towards cold until equilibrium is reached. It's about systems equilibrating, or revving a point of balance. It's what the entire universe is doing. Animal suffering caused by humans has created a massive imbalance that will by default be seeking to equilibrate. And we can (and must) take advantage of that Even pro fighters know that you create (or identify) a weakness in the opponent and then keep attacking it. So let's take Avian Influenza and figure out how to use the momentum of that existing weakness to jiggle the system and

and accelerate its collapse. Yes, the government will backfill the space that's created through subsidies and reimbursement. But I'm willing to bet that eyebrows are starting to raise about just how much longer they can keep the house standing by injecting wood epoxy into the rotting piers of the foundation. At some point it becomes an unsustainable endeavor. How can we exploit this weakness, or utilize the existing momentum, to accelerate the collapse? And to be clear, I am not suggesting anything physical or biological as a solution. I'm suggesting information- based targeted solutions. The Avian Influenza crisis in the industry is like the iceberg that the ship ran into, except in this case the ship created the iceberg. In order to stay afloat they try to bail the water as fast as, or faster than the ship takes it on. To take advantage of this weakness we could either A) widen the hole where the water is coming in or B) reduce the ability to bail. Since the bail (out) comes from the government which has been infiltrated by industry players, widening the hole seems like the path of least resistance. But what does that actually look like in terms of actions we can take? Again. Not physical. I'm being metaphorical. We could also talk about child labor in the same way. Can we get a think tank going? Public messaging is always at the top of my mental list, but funding is the challenge to be overcome.

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"how much longer they can keep the house standing by injecting wood epoxy into the rotting piers of the foundation."

This is a wonderful turn of phrase.

Also, hope to connect again before Ridglan! Thanks for all your efforts, Sarah!

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With respect to the subsidies/bailouts problem, and in the context of "working within the system", Agriculture Fairness Alliance is a vegan backed lobbying organization influencing Farm Bill policy for several years now. If only all vegans would support it, the impact could be that much greater. We have the numbers, but sadly we just aren't using our own political power to its greatest potential. The idea and opportunity to unite politically seems like a no-brainer to me, but oddly the interest is not what it should be.

I have my thinking cap on alot too about public messaging ... and how we can break through the media blackout that Jane Velez Mitchell speaks of. My dream is for some vegan tycoons to create our own mainstream tv network. Wondering if public access cable tv could be of any use ... but just don't know the viewership.

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Thank you for this information. I'll check out the alliance for sure! We should talk.

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yes we're friends on fb. :)

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