Animal Rights

Humans rights abuses are pimples on the face of society, showing time and again that people are easily able to forget their own humanity. But what about animal rights abuses? People have a hard time remembering their human relatives, let alone that they are also animals. Animal rights is a pimple on the face of society too, but it is one that lies deep under the surface, causing much pain and redness, but not yet emerging to heal. It's one of those you know is simply filled with sebum, waiting to explode, but you can't pop it or do anything to heal it until moves to the surface.

What I'm trying to say is, I feel like animal rights is an issue that has been recognized by some, but definitely not taken seriously by others, and, therefore, has not even begun its biggest fight. I am often tempted to add in the question of, "was that person vegetarian?" when evaluating moral character, but as soon as that idea is brought into the topic, people seem to take away my legitimacy and refuse to hear what I have to say. It is crazy enough for me to mention women's rights or immigration law reform... god forbid I mention animal rights! But these issues are interrelated as all injustices are. We must fight "the man" in unison.

Which led me to thinking about how the animal rights movement might play out in the future. Will it be like other movements that have continued to marginalize groups within the larger group? Will pigs' rights come before cows' rights? Will we fight vivisection before we eliminate factory farms? Will we forget how other injustices are related to the cause? How environmental injustice is directly related to farm animal injustice, for example?

I am wondering how this will play out.

I am hoping we remember the necessity for inclusion.

I'm going to eat 3 year old children

This is equivalent to eating pigs.

Species don't exist. Get over yourselves. That ugly kid you see is just a rearrangement of the same molecules that make up a pig.

So go on and feast upon the flesh of intelligent beings! Just be fair in your judgment of food. Hypocrites aren't allowed into heaven.

Vegan Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a difficult holiday for vegans. It is a holiday based on the murder of members of other species, particularly turkeys. I could not help but be offended at the utter disregard for life at the latest presidential turkey pardon. The whole issue is treated as a joke. Bush says of the two pardoned turkeys: "They will not be trotting to their finish," which of course is met with laughter from the audience. They recognize that many other turkeys are perishing, which is acceptable to them, and saving a turkey is somehow humorous. For now my strategy for surviving Thanksgiving is to surround myself with other vegans and vegan food and when eating with my family at the table I will proudly display my separate tofurkey, non-dairy mashed potatoes, and vegetable broth stuffing.

Not a Hamburger, Just a Salad

Short and sweet (sour?):

So I was thinking about what Rachel posted about the vegan quiz and vegan stereotypes. Why would vegans be labeled as militant? I know not everyone's reasons for veganism are the same, but for me, a lot of it is about compassion and nonviolence. I would propose the rest of society is much more militant as people support abuse and murder.