Paul McCartney once went to Kansas City to get his baby back, and now PETA is blazing the same trail to help teens get their baby faces back.

A new study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found that teenagers who drank more milk had more problems with acne. It confirmed similar findings by the Harvard School of Public Health. So PETA plans to take this message to high schools around the country, starting with the ad that we've placed in the Kansas City, Missouri, metro area:  

Besides being crappy for the complexion, milk is cruel to cows.  Want to save face? Grab a carton of tasty nondairy soy, almond, or rice milk the next time you're at the grocery store and keep your skin and your conscience clear.  

Rejection is tough, but Ella PhantzPeril doesn't let it get her down. Initially snubbed by St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo., officials, Ella PhantzPeril just wouldn't take no for an answer.

This week, Ella can be seen stopping (foot) traffic in Washington Square Park in Kansas City—where she received a warm welcome. And, judging by the photo, even George is behind her all the way.

Ella's found a place to unpack her trunk for the moment, but she's still shedding tears for all the elephants who face much longer, much more difficult journeys as they're dragged in shackles to circus appearances across the country and beaten with bullhooks behind the scenes.

Check back to see if your city will be receiving the privilege of Ella's company, and in the meantime, remind everyone you know that circuses are no fun for elephants.

Written by Heather Drennan

Snubs by Missouri cities have PETA's "Ella PhantzPeril" statue singing the blues.

Poor Ella PhantzPeril. Everywhere she tries to go, she gets a chilly reception, even though she is drop-dead gorgeous and was designed by renowned New Yorker cover artist Harry Bliss.

First, Kansas City gave her the cold shoulder when we tried to arrange for her to take up residence in a city park for a month to coincide with a visit from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The city banished her because of her "political" message. Now, St. Louis has said she is unwelcome because she is an "advertisement."

Since all we want to do is remind the public about the abuse that elephants endure while constantly traveling and performing in circuses, separated from their families and their natural environment, we are crying "foul."

We say that both rejections sound an awful lot like infringements on free speech, and we're not taking them lying down.

Keep checking back, and we'll be sure to let you know when Ella finds a home.

Written by Alisa Mullins

dailymail.co / CC

As the high cost of health care was debated this week in the nation that was once the most powerful on Earth and is now just the fattest, two announcements were made. Time showed a slab of meat on its cover and declared, "The real cost of cheap food" (meat, in particular) costs Americans big-time when it comes to our health. And KFC--whose suppliers have been caught on camera breaking chickens' legs and wings and scalding the birds to death in order to produce "cheap" chicken--came out with a new "sandwich" that substitutes fried chicken parts for bread and is stuffed with artery-clogging and waistline-expanding bacon and cheese. Why would KFC executives decide to do that? For the same reason that there is a Whopper and a Fifth Third Burger: Because they know that people want unhealthy foods almost as much as they want health care.

Also this week, the fat hit the pan over PETA's pro-vegetarian billboard in Jacksonville, Florida, which read, "Save the Whales. Cut the Blubber. Go Vegetarian," and led to the PETA website where people could download our free "Vegetarian Starter Kit" as well as take the "30-Day Veg Pledge." There wasn't a peep about the advertisements for meals that spell death to one million animals per hour and that contribute to our nation's ever-expanding waistlines. There were no angry phone calls and blog messages about the audacity of the purveyors of the chicken and cheese that is turning humans into blubbery masses, or..."whales."

America's obesity epidemic calls for tough love à la Dr. Phil and America's Biggest Loser, not more coddling and mock shock over a billboard pointing out that the majority of fat people need to have some discipline and remember that being fat means being a bad role model to our children, many of whom are now so fat themselves that "teeter-totter" has come to describe their wobbly gait. Only three percent of the population has a medical condition that genuinely prevents them from losing weight. The rest of the obese people hiding behind them are obese because they shovel in food and haven't a clue (or don't want to have a clue) about a healthy diet. They haven't listened to or perhaps haven't heard the polite admonitions from health experts (real ones) urging them to eat their fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, nuts and beans. So America is getting fatter, largely because we don't realize that killing animals and squeezing the cheese out of them, perhaps especially the cheese, is slowly killing us too.

A study published last year in the journal Obesity found that if current trends continue, nearly 90 percent of adults will be overweight or obese by the year 2030 and the number of overweight children will double. This is a serious health crisis: Research has shown that higher body mass index is associated with a greater risk of premature death from all causes. For example, according to the American Heart Association, obesity contributes to heart disease, America's number one killer. What's more, one out of every six health-care dollars will be spent on costs related to our growing girth.

Going meat-free can make a huge difference. Studies show that vegetarians are, on average, 10 to 20 pounds lighter than meat-eaters and that a vegetarian diet reduces our risk of heart disease by 40 percent and adds seven or more years to our lifespan. A study published in The American Journal of Medicine found that people who eat a low-fat vegan diet (no meat, no eggs and no dairy foods) lose about a pound per week--even without exercising or counting calories.

PETA's billboard was fueled by a healthy respect for all the animals who are raised cruelly and killed in painful ways as well as for our own species's potential to be kind and healthy. I read the communiqués from fat people who said "thank you" and from those who told us where we can go. To all the people considering gastric bypass or tummy-tuck surgery or who tried a low-carb diet and only got constipation and bad breath in return, I say, just try it: Choose the oatmeal with Silk soy milk instead of bacon and milk; the bean instead of the beef burrito; and the mushrooms, tomatoes and peppers instead of the meat balls. All animals would thank you for it if they could, and I'm betting that you will feel better, both inside and out.

Written by Ingrid E. Newkirk

Thanks for all of your wonderful comments on this Win It Wednesday. The winner of Veganopoly is Jenny. Congratulations!

At my house, we turn Scrabble into "Vegan Scrabble" by tripling points for animal-friendly words. Instead of seven measly points, "t-o-f-u" is suddenly worth a whopping 21 points. It can get a little heated, and game night at my house often goes like this:

My husband: "Applesauce?! I've never baked in my life! How am I supposed to know applesauce can be an egg replacer?"

Me: "Well, you should try baking once in a while. You'd learn a lot—and improve your Scrabble game."

My husband: "And you should try not cheating once in a while."

Me: [Feigning shock] "Well, I never …"

Veganopoly to the rescue!

veganstore / CC

In a vegan twist on an old classic, players try to succeed in the restaurant biz instead of becoming the main course. My husband will no longer be able to claim that I have an unfair advantage on game nights.

Luckily for you, I can't enter "Win It" Wednesdays or I'm certain somehow I'd be the winner of the Veganopoly board game we're giving away. But you can win it. Simply list the ways in which your vegan diet has improved your health. We'll select one winner who offers the most complete and compelling list of reasons to go vegan.

The contest ends on September 9, 2009, and we'll choose the winning entry on September 11, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting. Good luck!

Written by Karin Bennett