Since, as the holiday classic explains, "the weather outside is frightful," you have to admire the dedication of PETA's "Mistletoe Misses," who have been braving Arctic breezes wearing nothing but mistletoe-covered bikinis to share "kisses"—along with the word about the many advantages of a vegan diet.

The delightful duo has been giving away vegan chocolates with tags saying, "Be Sweet to Animals," along with PETA's vegetarian/vegan starter kits.

What do Bill Clinton, former President George W. Bush speechwriter Matthew Scully, and the Rev. Al Sharpton have in common? They're all political animals who don't eat meat. Sharpton first got an idea of what happens to animals on factory farms when he appeared in PETA's video exposing cruelty in slaughterhouses that supply KFC and called on the black community to join PETA's boycott of the fast-food chain. His message to KFC? "That's foul!"  

We caught up with Sharpton, who now hosts MSNBC's show PoliticsNation, to ask him what inspired him to change his eating habits, how his new diet makes him feel, and what his favorite foods are.  

"I overhauled my diet after a 40-day hunger strike when I was in jail for the Vieques [military bombing practice] protest," Sharpton told us. "I dabbled with weight loss ideas, wanting to keep off the pounds I lost. First, I gave up red meat, then chicken. I ran into Bill Clinton, who told me how he has more energy, needs less sleep, and can think more clearly since going vegan, and I can tell you the same thing happened to me. I also kept in mind the words of another vegetarian friend—Coretta Scott King—who always spoke of the ethical reasons to give up meat."

Sharpton dedicated his PETA Humanitarian Award to King when he accepted it at PETA's awards gala in New York City in 2006.

To date, the reverend has lost more than 120 pounds. To read more about Sharpton's triumphs and tribulations, check out his essay in PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk's book One Can Make a Difference.

If you want to be a champion for animals, take the pledge to go vegan. Not only will you enjoy reduced stress and more energy, you'll also be less likely to suffer from obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.

Written by Monica Alexander

The turdoggie hybrid we rolled out on billboards just in time for Thanksgiving proved so popular that we decided to return to the laboratory and craft a new creation for Christmas—the puplet:

Dog: © iStockphoto.com/Angelika Schwarz • Pig: © iStockphoto.com/Clint Scholz

Pigs are a lot more like dogs than you might think. Piglets and puppies both love to play and have their ears scratched, and they can easily master skills like sit, fetch, and jump. When in their natural surroundings—not on factory farms—pigs are social, playful, protective animals who bond with each other, make nests, relax in the sun, and cool off in the mud. Pigs are known to dream and recognize their own names, and they are thought to be more intelligent than 3-year-old human children. And just like kids—and dogs—pigs don't want to be eaten.

To celebrate a compassionate Christmas, keep the ham off the table and whip up a pig-friendly feast with the holiday recipes available on our "Living" page.

Not everyone can afford to buy an electric vehicle (EV), but there is one thing that we all can do to help the environment, even in a down economy: go vegan. That's the message that PETA's lovely—and apparently frostbite-proof—Lettuce Ladies took to the streets of Seattle, where the delicious vegan jerky they handed out in front of an EV charging station went like hotcakes in the 33-degree weather.

Raising animals for food wastes land, water, and other resources, and it takes more than 11 times as much fossil fuel to make one calorie from animal protein as it does to make one calorie from plant protein. A recent United Nations report concluded that a global shift toward a vegan diet is necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change.

Even if you wouldn't wear a bikini in freezing weather to spread the word about the benefits of a vegan diet, you can pick up copies of our vegetarian/vegan starter kit to hand out to friends and family or passersby.

A family is suing American Airlines after their loved one died on a flight, reportedly after consuming chicken contaminated with bacteria.

Fluke? Not so much. The Food and Drug Administration reports that there are 48 million cases of foodborne illness in the U.S. every year, resulting in 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. Consumer Reports found the leading bacterial causes of foodborne illness—salmonella and campylobacter—in two-thirds of the chickens that it purchased nationwide.

If you don't enjoy your meals served with a side of vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps, not to mention cruelty, maybe it's time to jettison chicken from your diet. Check out a wide variety of chicken-free recipes at our Living page.

In a David-and-Goliath fight against Big Chicken—i.e., Chick-fil-A—Vermont artist and local agriculture booster Bo Muller-Moore is fighting for his right to "eat more kale." Chick-fil-A called "fowl" on Muller-Moore, claiming that consumers would be bamboozled into thinking that there is some affiliation with its trademarked phrase "Eat Mor Chikin" but Muller-Moore is standing firm in what he hopes is just a game of legal "chicken."

One thing's for sure: While eating more chicken poses a multitude of health risks, you can't go wrong by raising (and eating) more kale.

Check out some kaleicious recipes on PETA's "Living" site. You'll get a healthy dose of calcium, beta carotene, and vitamin C and leave the saturated fat and cholesterol at the drive-through window.

Written by Heather Faraid Drennan

Philadelphia and Baltimore may be a little safer after PETA members worked tirelessly to get baby-killers off the streets—the killers of baby turkeys, that is.

A baby doll bedecked with frills served as the centerpiece for this eerie Thanksgiving dinner, making the point that farmers drug and breed turkeys to grow so fast that most are only months old when they are slammed upside down into metal shackles, only to have their throats slit. (What kind of job is that? But who pays someone to do it? The consumer!)

But as we hear out there, ever more people are turning to a meal that celebrates life and spares a turkey, not "pardons" one. After all, what crime could a baby have committed?

Some years ago, when I interned at a sanctuary for farmed animals, I'd sit in the barn, and a turkey named Fern would back up into my lap and demand to be petted. When I'd stop, she'd look over her shoulder imploringly as if to say, "More, please." I always think of Fern at this time of year, when supermarket bins are filled with the frozen bodies of her relatives. If people got a chance to know these interesting and personable birds, I believe they'd balk at baking and eating their wings, legs, and breasts.

Turkeys on farmed-animal sanctuaries quickly prove themselves to be intelligent and industrious as well as outgoing at times and shy at other times, much like human children. Sitting in the barn, the birds' distinct personalities were immediately clear. Some, bold and hilarious, would walk right up and look me square in the eye as if to challenge my right to invade their space. Others, like a coy debutante, would peer over their shoulders, aloof but not wanting to miss anything exciting. Many, like Fern, would purr when petted.

This Thanksgiving, please take a moment to reflect: Can the fleeting pleasure of a meal justify the immeasurable pain and suffering of a bird who didn't want to die? Give turkeys like Fern a reason to purr. Stuff yourself with mashed potatoes, cranberries, pumpkin pie, and other vegan goodies and leave the birds alone.

Via Newsday

Written by Jennifer O'Connor

"What I really want to share with people is the possibility of them having the most healthy and abundant joy they could ever imagine," Alicia Silverstone told UCLA's Daily Bruin newspaper, before she spoke to hundreds of students on campus last night at an event hosted by UCLA's Bruins for Animals and peta2.

Alicia shared with students how changing her eating habits changed her life. "Being vegan truly is the secret to my life's joy and peace," she said. Afterward, she answered questions and signed dozens of copies of her bestselling book, The Kind Diet.

While some of the students likely came just to see the lovely Alicia, her message and the "Glass Walls" video that peta2 staffers screened left quite an impression. peta2 staff were bombarded with questions from people interested in learning how to change their eating habits to improve their health, protect the environment, and prevent cruelty to animals.

The vegetarian/vegan starter kits that flew off the tables and Native Foods Café's vegan Thanksgiving feast that they sampled got them off to a great start.

He can raise a car clear off the ground, toss huge logs through the air, and lift monster dumbbells. And he hates cruelty to animals. Patrik Baboumian, holder of the "Strongest Man of Germany" title, is a plant-eater!

Like many professional athletes and champion fighters, Patrik recognizes that a healthy plant-based diet gives him the protein and nutrients he needs to build muscle and strengthen his immune system, without clogging his arteries with saturated fat. Patrik also knows that only cowards hurt animals and that one of the most macho things a guy can do is to stop eating foods that cause animals immense suffering.

Patrik stands up for what he believes in—on the homepage of his website, right next to his motto, "Born to Be Bada**," there's a PETA Germany video. If this lean, green, weight-lifting machine told me to go vegan and save animal lives, I believe I'd listen to him.

Written by Michelle Sherrow