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In a YouTube video posted on March 14, 2020, marine biologist Dr. Robert Carter, a senior scientist and speaker for Creation Ministries International-USA (CMI-USA) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, discussed how SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus responsible for COVID-19, emerged: “You’ve probably learned that you have more bacteria in and on your body than you have cells in your body. That’s a lot of bacteria, but do you know what? You have even more viruses than you have bacteria. ‘What? What are the viruses doing?’ They’re controlling the number of bacteria in your gut, and they’re controlling the species of bacteria. So, what they’re doing is, regulating. In general, they don’t cause disease. However, when they jump to another species, that other species doesn’t have the ability to regulate this virus properly. Right now, there’s a new virus in the world, it’s a coronavirus.” The current consensus among the scientific community is that COVID-19 originated in bats. Bats are a major natural reservoir of coronaviruses. Bats do not become ill themselves from the coronaviruses they carry, but can pass them onto other animals. Since humans rarely interact with bats, it is unlikely that bats directly gave the COVID-19 virus to humans. However, humans routinely interact with other wildlife and livestock animals. Over the years, the ever-increasing human demand for meat and dairy has given rise to more numerous, larger-scale animal livestock operations, increasing the frequency of animal-human contact. Moreover, many of these sites are encroaching on bat territories, amplifying the risk of virus transfer from bats to humans. Moreover, as the “crown of creation,” we humans cannot, in good conscience, turn a blind eye to the fact that wet markets and animal livestock operations are a living nightmare for the animals and the human workers involved, flying in the face of the principle of love central to all major faiths. No matter how you look at it, a shift to a vegan lifestyle is a win-win proposition for all. One thing COVID-19 has opened our eyes to is that, collectively, we are willing to make drastic changes to our lifestyles when human lives are on the line. We wear masks, practice social distancing, stay locked down, and avoid mass gatherings. With potential runaway global warming looming large, no less than life on Earth is now at stake. This beckons the question: “Is it time for humanity to make one more simple but giant step – embrace the healthy, environmentally-friendly, and compassionate vegan lifestyle?” The answer is clearly “YES!” And by taking this action, we can solve a myriad of devastating global issues in one stroke, including pandemics, chronic diseases, enormous economic troubles, water shortages, world hunger, species extinction, and climate change.
