How Palm Oil Threatens Ecosystems and Endangered Species

Western consumerism continues to devastate ecosystems and endangered species with its demand for palm oil. Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil which is very attractive to profit-driven businesses and corporations because the tree from which it is derived has a high oil yield. Palm oil is ubiquitous – it’s added to many types of…

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The Stigma of Not Wanting to Get Married or Have Kids

There is a heavy stigma attached to people who don’t (and don’t want to) get married or have kids. Both are essentially rites of passage in modern society. I myself don’t have any urge to get married or have kids, but I am only 22, so I cannot rule out the possibility that in the…

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The Problem with Charity Organisations

It may seem harsh to criticise charity organisations. After all, they are dedicated to ameliorating some ill in society: a terrible physical or mental condition, abuse (to humans, animals or the environment), emergency situations, injustice, poverty, inequality, discrimination, and so on. These are all worthy causes. However, the problem with charity organisations is that they…

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Fracking: Dodgy Economics, Health Risks, and Environmental Concerns

First of all, what is ‘fracking’? Hydraulic fracturing, also known as ‘fracking’, involves fracturing shale rock by means of hydraulic pressure – what you do is drill into the ground and inject fluid (water and chemical additives) at a high pressure. Once the shale rock is fractured, shale gas can be extracted and then used…

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Lab-Grown Meat: Animal Welfare and Animal Rights Perspectives

On Monday the world’s first lab-grown, in vitro burger was cooked and eaten in London. Professor Mark Post from Maastricht University, along with his colleagues, took adult stem cells from a cow and then turned them into strips of muscle, which they combined to make a beef patty. Some have dubbed the patty, the ‘Frankenburger’.…

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