Letters to the Editor
thatboy
Published Letters: 189 Editor's Choice: 14
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Spare me
[Read the article: Breach of faith]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Let's take a look at the comments of some of the Christians posting here.
"As a Christian myself I am sad that political 'use' of the Christian right has made so many potential allies (people I want to work with on poverty or whatever) think that Christianity = hypocrisy."
-- Thinking
"I'm also a Christian, the politically liberal variety (yes, we do exist), and I hate how the actions and beliefs of right-wing Republican Christians have led to a false image of how the rest of us operate."
-- Moniwash
"He looked at me and said 'Now the Republicans...they're the Christians, right?' As both a lifelong Christian (although not an evangelical) and Democrat I was totally taken aback."
-- WEP
Gosh Thinking, Moniwash, and WEP. How could people believe those icky extremists represent *good* Christians, such as yourselves? Could it be because you let them? Could it be because the whiff of school prayer and faith-based initiatives and other theocratic nonsense was in the air and lulled you into silence and complicity?
No? Then where were the *good* Christian voices? Where were the howls of protest as the *bad* Christians slowly took over our country during the last 25 years? Why weren't *good* Christians picketing Jerry Falwell and shouting down Pat Robertson? Even the most extreme, hateful Christians were left to their own devices. I saw little if any dissent from *good*, or, if you prefer, *moderate* Christians. What I saw was a lot of smugness and glee as Christians of all stripes took control of our politics and lawmaking to force their beliefs on all of us.
Spare me the pleas that you were speaking out but the MSM wouldn't listen, or that your were bullied off the pulpit by the extremists. You sold your souls to a bunch of false prophets for power, and now you want to feign innocence and ignorance and dismay.
And finally, there's this additional howler from WEP...
"The abortion and gay rights issues are particular hot buttons for a lot of people and as a result a great many very well intentioned people end up getting hoodwinked into casting a vote for candidates..."
Which "well intentioned people" would those be, WEP, that respond in lockstep to the "hot buttons" of abortion and gay rights? The homophobes and anti-choicers? The ones who want to deny that ALL Americans should have full access to civil rights? The ones who were blowing up abortion clinics and gay bars and assassinating health care workers until 9/11 made terrorism unfashionable? Not the best group to point to when you're trying to make the case for *moderate* Christians.
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Deceptive "veterinarian"
[Read the article: "Fast Food Nation"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Very interesting letter from "a veterinarian" (perhaps one who's salary is paid by the food industry?), and also rather misleading. What he or she doesn't mention is the horrid conditions animals are kept in *before* slaughter. Jammed together beyond all reason, existing from birth to death on concrete and in cages (often never seeing the outdoors), living in their own feces, beaks cut off chickens so they can't attack each other because of the constant stress, living on diets they were never meant to eat, and on and on. Why? For the convenience of the food industry.
The REASON animals so frequently need antibiotics in the modern meat industry is exactly BECAUSE of the awful and unnatural conditions forced on them. So, to be the cause of disease and misery animals suffer and then portray yourself as a white knight because you medicate them for it is a bit of a stretch.
"A veterinarian" is right about one thing, though. Labels stating "organic," "natural," "free-range," "cage-free," etc. are all but meaningless. This, too, is thanks to heavy lobbying by the food industry so that they can use these terms deceptively to bilk unwary consumers. Do a little research about the places and organizations you buy from if you are looking to be a responsible consumer.
Suggested reading, beyond "Fast Food Nation": Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma."
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Pot Calling Kettle
[Read the article: Diary of a turkey killer]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]What's laughable, Farm Boy, is that nobody posting here is more dogmatic than you. And if you're really a "committed environmentalist" interested in "saving the world from habitat destruction," then I can only assume you are equally as appalled by factory farming as any vegan here. Being so well read, you must be aware of the huge amount of environmental damage caused by factory farms not only in their immediate vicinity, but around the globe.
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Well, now, Farm Boy...
[Read the article: Diary of a turkey killer]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]That's a much nicer and more reasoned post than your previous ones.
From dictionary.com:
dog-mat-ic - asserting opinions in a doctrinaire or arrogant manner; opinionated.
I, too, grew up on a farm, in a family of hunters (I sometimes went along on the hunt, but never shot an animal. No, I'm not a hypocrite, just didn't want to. I did help dress and clean the animals).
It's exactly this backround that makes the modern meat and dairy industry so dismaying to me. I know it doesn't have to be that way. I'm a city boy now, mostly vegetarian because of the outrageous practices of factory farming. Dairy animals seem to be treated even worse (if that's possible) than the meat animals. Can't even take solace in fish or seafood having lived decently, because most of that is factory farmed now.
Now back in a city with a downtown farmer's market supplied by many Amish farmers, I may investigate a couple of the stands to see if their animals are raised humanely on a sustainable farm (almost all Amish farms I've seen fit this description) and, if so, may resume eating meat or poultry several times a month.