In the latest—but hardly final—chapter of the New Jersey gestation crate saga, Gov. Chris Christie prostrated himself before Iowa’s pork kings and vetoed the gestation crate ban that was on his desk. This led to another round of national media attention on the pork industry’s cruelty. While Iowa’s ag-gag-supporting governor applauded the veto, Jon Stewart savaged the governor on The Daily Show *again* for it, and Cher condemned Christie’s callousness, too.

It was a big week in the NY Times, with Nicholas Kristof penning a column about the chicken industry’s rampant abuses. He correctly noted: “Torture a single chicken and you risk arrest. Abuse hundreds of thousands of chickens for their entire lives? That’s agribusiness.” And here’s the accompanying video from our friends at Compassion in World Farming.

Finally, want to fight Big Tobacco? Eat more hummus! (And on that topic, yet more evidence underscores the value of encouraging incremental steps toward more meat-free eating.)

P.S. Video of the week: You knew chickens were cute, but did you know they give dogs back rubs?

P.P.S. Live near DC? I hope to party with you tomorrow!

How far farm animals have come! If you didn’t see it, stop reading this email now and go watch Jon Stewart’s eight-minute segment on The Daily Show this week inserting cruelty to pigs squarely into the presidential race. The must-watch segment, focusing on the HSUS-led campaign to ban gestation crates in New Jersey, is truly breath-taking.

Comedy Central isn’t the only outlet taking Gov. Christie to task for his thus-far lack of support for banning gestation crates. Former George W. Bush speechwriter Matthew Scully published a potent National Review commentary yesterday on the same topic.

And speaking of New Jersey, one of the state’s U.S. senators, Cory Booker, announced that he’s going vegan for the rest of the year! He’s in good plant-based company, with more schools than ever working with HSUS to implement Meatless Monday, as discussed in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.

P.S. Video of the week: I’d like to think this is what would happen if my cats ever got to interact with a squirrel…

As promised, our pal the prolific Jerry James Stone has a new cookbook, and it’s veg and free and here now! So get it!

Says JJS:

Within the electronic pages of A Vegan Survival Guide for the Holidays, you’ll find the following:

    Festive and seasonal cocktail recipes.
    Exclusive content from Holidazed.
    Yummy starters, like my Roasted Beet Hummus (pictured above!).
    A plethora of side dishes, such as my Bourbon Glazed Carrots.
    Decadent desserts.
    Infographics for easier cooking.
    A charming foreword by my friend Ed Begley Jr. (pictured below!)

As a vegetarian of 25 years, I know just how challenging holiday meals can be. Actually, any community meal, really. Which is why we are here.

Just look at these two adorable veg powerhouses!

Holiday recipes! Boozy holiday recipes! Ed Begley Jr.! All this for free? Yes, so download your copy now and get cooking! Thanksgiving is only a week away!

[images courtesy Jerry James Stone]

Millions of Americans are more familiar with the cruelty of the pork industry this week because of the national media’s coverage of whether NJ Gov. Chris Christie will sign the gestation crate ban bill or not. If you missed last night’s All In with Chris Hayes segment on it, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Seriously, you’ve got to watch it. Other outlets from CBS News to the Des Moines Register to the New York Times are talking about it, too. But if you only look at one of these, make it MSNBC’s. Trust me: it’ll make your weekend.

Feedstuffs—the agribusiness journal—commentator Chuck Jolley published a good column this week. While his words about me may not be the kindest, he discusses what he calls the “colossal failures” ag-gag efforts have been for the meat industry, and why farms should be more focused on preventing cruelty than preventing whistle-blowing.

Finally, California Congressman Tony Cardenas has a great op-ed in the LA Daily News about why anyone concerned about his state’s drought should think about taking a holiday from meat.

P.S. Video of the week: Your chance to see happy turkeys stampeding to freedom!

Time’s running out and Megan Rascal wants these ballerina flats!

No One’s Skin is an Italian line of “plant-based shoes and accessories” and the three pairs of shoes the founder, Ivana Basilotta, has up right now are pretty hot.

You can also get wallets or whatever, but if you’re going to give Ms. Basilotta all your money for gorgeous vegan shoes, you’re not going to need something to store it in, right?

The No One’s Skin kickstarter has 16 hours to go (as of 5:30 p.m. EST) and needs a loooooooot of money to make its massive goal. So give! If you can! Because I have 10 pairs of vegan shoes under my desk right now and guess what: NEVER ENOUGH.