DENVER, CO---APRIL 17,2003---FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Prominent vegan Attorney, Author and Activist Mark Reinhardt spoke at the MENSA Denver Chapter Saturday, April 12^th. MENSA is an international organization with over 100,000 members. To qualify for membership, applicants must score in the top 2% of the general population on an intelligence test.

Mark Warren Reinhardt has been writing and lecturing on vegetarianism and animal rights issues for 15 years. He is a past board member of the Vegetarian Society of Colorado. Mark’s popular humor column, On or Off the Mark, has been published by the Vegetarian Society of Colorado for more than a decade, and has been reprinted in numerous US and international publications. His book, The Perfectly Contented Meat-Eater’s Guide to Vegetarianism, was published by Continuum in 1998.

Reinhardt’s speech "What’s Wrong With Plain Old Meat-Eating, Anyway?" dealt with the three primary reasons vegetarians avoid meat products and by-products: the increasingly damaging effects of factory animal farming on our environment, health concerns, and animal rights and well being.

"Factory animal production is incredibly inefficient. Think of the sheer mass of food required to feed the animals that are raised for human consumption, not to mention the water and land needed. Especially for a drought-stricken state like Colorado, this just doesn’t make sense," Reinhardt stated.

The commonality of food poisoning cases and other health concerns was also discussed, with Reinhardt pointing out to MENSA members that the most bacteria prone food is poultry. "Ever hear of anyone coming down with a case of bad broccoli?" Mark asked.

Finally, the issue of animal rights and welfare was discussed, with Reinhardt admitting to MENSA members that even among vegetarians, there are two schools of thought concerning this: many vegetarians believe that animals should in no way be used for food or other products; some believe that it’s ok, as long as strong animal cruelty laws are upheld. But current conditions in the majority of factory farms seriously question whether the industry is being checked – since the goal is to produce the most meat and dairy products as quickly as possible, using the least amount of space, conditions for the animals are cramped and rampant with disease. Often, animals are fully conscious as they are slaughtered, despite laws on the books making this illegal.

MENSA members seemed most interested in the health aspects of a vegetarian diet, asking questions such as "Where do you get your B12 and iron?" None of the members asked perhaps what is the most common question posed to vegetarians: "But where do you get your protein?" It appeared that MENSA members already knew what many Americans don’t: that protein is found in abundance in many other sources besides meat products.

Vegan refreshments were served and provided to members by Ann Swissdorf, noted vegan chef and caterer. Ann also heads up the Rocky Mountain Animal Defense’s popular HEALTH program, which hosts vegan potlucks and educational events. http://health.rmad.org/

Founded in 1975, the Vegetarian Society of Colorado is a nonprofit, nonsectarian, educational organization dedicated to upholding the standards of vegetarianism.  We sponsor community outreach programs, educational events, potluck dinners, and speakers to bring people together to discuss and live humane, healthful, and environmentally responsible alternatives to the meat-oriented lifestyle. We actively seek inquiries about vegetarianism and are engaged in an ongoing program of literature distribution and public outreach. The VSC now has branches in ten different places in Colorado: Metro Denver, Ft. Collins, Boulder, Pueblo, Grand Junction, Mountain (Evergreen), Durango, Colorado Springs,  Carbondale,  and Pueblo. www.vsc.org