Letters to the Editor
DurianJoe
Published Letters: 1508 Editor's Choice: 69
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Animal abuse is real, widespread, and legal
[Read the article: Cruel to be kind]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This documentary puts the lie to all the people who defend animal experimentation, the meat industry, fur industry, and every other industry that abuses animals every single day. These industries are SYNONYMOUS with animal abuse: it's what they do.
No, they don't treat the animals well, despite what their fancy PR departments say. What happened to those dogs in the documentary happens every day, and worse, to literally billions of animals. Everytime you eat an egg that doesn't say "free range" on the box, you're giving money to an industry that severely abuses chickens. Buy fur, and you're paying someone to inflict terrible pain on an animal for the sake of fashion. Buy a product from a company that is not cruelty free, and you're paying for someone to pour caustic chemicals in rabbits' eyes.
The fact is, animal abuse is the American Way. People can change that, of course, but it means facing the ugly truth, ending the lies and apologies, and taking a stand for animal rights.
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Those dogs aren't volunteers
[Read the article: Cruel to be kind]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It's fitting to reward heroes for their service, but dogs and other animals used in experiments never volunteer for the job. Let's give the medals to the brave men and women who go undercover to expose cruelty to animals, but for the dogs and other animals, let's just give them deliverance from their suffering and a good home.
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O'Hehir, that's some chip you've got.
[Read the article: Introducing the Guilties!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]If Hollywood pumps out mindless drivel, it's criticized, but even when it tries to make intelligent, thought-provoking films, it's still criticized (as O'Hehir admits). Even worse, some filmmakers try to use their art form to -- gasp! -- manipulate their audiences. How horrible! To think that the makers of "Crash" not only oppose racism, but want to use their medium of film to persuade other people to oppose racism too, why, that's unacceptable! That's too middlebrow! All the smart people know that the only proper way to get a message across is to make it so subtle, so obscure, that nobody sees it.
The cherry on Mr. O'Hehir's poisoned sundae is that filmmakers make movies like "Crash" not because they have certain ethical and moral stances, e.g., opposition to racism, which they seek to advance, but because they suffer from guilt. I forget: is Mr. O'Hehir Salon's film critic or its film cynic?
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The problem is depression, not veganism
[Read the article: I'm so vegan it hurts]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I too am a vegan and animal rights advocate, and I understand that when you learn about the terrible suffering animals endure in factory farms and slaughterhouses, of course it is depressing. It is only natural to be upset at scenes of cruelty and pain. However, if you're a reasonably mentally healthy person, you can avoid having this terrible reality overwhelm your life. Unfortunately for the person who wrote in, he/she is clearly depressed, and so is unable to deal in a healthy way with what he/she knows is happening to animals.
This is not exclusive to animal rights. Anyone who dwells on the problems of this world is susceptible to depression. Woody Allen once said half-jokingly that he could never be happy knowing that right now, somebody in the world was starving to death. And it's true, as I write this and as you read this, children are starving to death and women are being brutalized and men are being hideously tortured, right at this very moment. Anyone who chooses to combat those particular problems is at a higher risk of being overwhelmed by them, and sadly, some are.
I know some people mock vegans, but anyone who eats meat without pondering the ugly truth of how that meat is produced is the one truly deserving of contempt.
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Eating animals and eating plants: here is why it is different
[Read the article: I'm so vegan it hurts]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I will suspend my disbelief and play along with those here who ask why vegetarians and vegans believe it is okay to eat plants but not animals.
Here is why:
1. Animals have central nervous systems and feel pain. Plants do not.
2. Animals can experience mental distress, such as fear and depression. Plants cannot
3. The ability to suffer physical and mental pain increases as you travel up the food chain.
4. The study which "proved" that plants can think, "The Secret Lives of Plants," has been debunked.
5. People have to eat something, so vegetarians and vegans attempt to reduce the suffering we cause by eating as far down the food chain as possible.
6. Still not convinced? Here is an experiment you can try, at least in theory: plunge a knife into a cabbage, plunge a knife into a dog, and then plunge a knife into a person. Observe what happens. As they say on Sesame Street, one of these things is not like the others.
Those are the ethical reasons. There are also environmental, health, and social justice reasons which support vegetarianism.
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Plants versus animals, redux.
[Read the article: I'm so vegan it hurts]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]To Patricia Schwarz:
You are absolutely right: we should revere all life. It's wrong to step on a bug that's not bothering you, and it's wrong to kill a plant for no good reason.
Back to your claims on the secret lives of plants. Sure, plants are wonderful things, biological wonders, objects of awe and mystery. Still, if I kick a plant, and I kick you, which of you do you think will consciously experience more pain? Which of you will experience more fear? Which of you will be more aware of your suffering?
The defense rests.
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Response to CosmicMojo
[Read the article: I'm so vegan it hurts]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]CosmicMojo,
No one on my side of the issue is going to try to force you to be a vegetarian. That goes against everything we believe. But your dietary choices don't just affect your life; they affect the lives of all those animals who suffer and die for your "balanced" diet. For that reason, we on my side of the issue will continue to advocate our position in an attempt to persuade you and those like you to change your minds. Just so you know, we're not going away, but it's going to be a civil debate, so don't fret.