Viva! vs. the RSPCA…And Don’t Forget the “Donate” Button
Dear Colleagues: In the wake of a controversy in Britain over the sale of halal meat, which involves exsanguination rather than stunning, and the comment by British new welfarist organization Viva! that, “Consumers can do their bit by boycotting places that persist in selling meat from unstunned animals,” I wrote two essays. In the first […]
Effective Animal Rights Advocacy—in Three Easy Steps
Dear Colleagues: Do you want to be an effective animal rights advocate? It’s easy. Here are three simple steps: First, go vegan. If you regard animals as members of the moral community—if you reject the notion of animals as things—you really have no choice but to stop eating, wearing, and using animals or animal products. […]
IndyMediaLive–Tuesday, October 5
Dear Colleagues: I will be a guest on IndyMediaLive on Tuesday, October 5. The show airs on WRIR 97.3 FM in Richmond, Virginia from 12:30 p.m.- -1:00 p.m. The host is Rebecca Faris I will be discussion the abolitionist approach, veganism, and nonviolence. I hope you have an opportunity to listen. The show streams and […]
Abolitionist/Vegan Theory in Canada
Dear Colleagues: This weekend, I will be doing two presentations in the Toronto area. On Friday, October 1, at 3:30 p.m., I will be discussing, as part of the University of Guelph Philosophy Department Speaker Series, the welfarist view that nonhuman animals have a lesser moral value than do humans. According to welfarists going back […]
Singer’s Position on Fish is Fishy
Dear Colleagues: In a recent article, Peter Singer argues: We need to learn how to capture and kill wild fish humanely – or, if that is not possible, to find less cruel and more sustainable alternatives to eating them. An alternative? How about vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, and grains? As I have argued here and […]
Sit Down, Shut Up, Be Happy, Write a Check, and Watch the Show
Chris Hedges has written a terrific essay, “Retribution for a World Lost in Screens.” Although Hedges does not discuss the animal issue, his essay can help us to understand the present animal “movement” and why it is failing. Hedges argues that in our modern computer-focused culture, we no longer seek the ability to understand or […]
Animal Welfare, Militant Direct Action, Mantras, and Blind Faith
Dear Colleagues: Many of you express frustration that when you seek to engage other animal advocates in discussion about the abolition vs. regulation debate or the nonviolent vegan education vs. militant direct action debate, you find that the defenders of welfare reform or violence have nothing of substance to say. The explanation is that belief […]
The Meaning of “Humane”
Dear Colleagues: We always hear the word “humane” used in conjunction with the state of affairs that will exist if only this or that welfare reform, which is the subject of this or that campaign by this or that large animal welfare corporation (and for which your contribution is needed “for the animals”), is adopted. […]
Viva!’s Reply and My Response
Dear Colleagues: I posted an essay about the remarks of Viva! as reported in The Sunday Mail (a U.K. paper), concerning the sale in the U.K. of meat from animals slaughtered in the halal method. A “Reply from Viva!” was posted on Opposing Views, where my essay was reprinted: Reply from Viva! Gary, you may […]
Message to Viva!: The Problem is Not Religious Slaughter
Dear Colleagues: I am always saddened when an issue comes up in the news and animal advocates pass up the chance to educate the public about veganism because they want to jump on the new welfarist bandwagon and make people feel better about animal exploitation instead. The British newspaper, The Mail on Sunday, ran a […]
An Inspiring Message
Dear Colleagues: Yesterday, I posted a blog essay about the need to promote veganism as a baseline moral principle and to reject the negative (but very self-serving) attitude of large animal groups that omnivores simply cannot understand the vegan message. This morning, our site received an email, which was forwarded to me directly, from Professor […]
Important Announcement: No Factory-Farmed Small Fish Friday
Today marks the beginning of a new and important campaign for the animals. No Factory-Farmed Small Fish Friday The goal of the campaign is to encourage people not to eat factory-farmed small fish on Friday and, instead, to consume other animal products, in order to raise public awareness about the plight of factory-farmed small fish. […]
Commentary #19: Talking With Non-Vegans About Veganism: Five Principles
Dear Colleagues: In this Commentary, I address a topic that I have been asked to cover by a number of you: how do we talk with non-vegans about veganism? I present five general principles: Principle #1: People are good at heart. Our default position when we talk with people ought to be that they are […]
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Response to George Monbiot
Dear Colleagues: Guardian UK columnist George Monbiot, who expressed support for veganism, has recanted his support and, in an editorial entitled, I was wrong about veganism. Let them eat meat – but farm it properly, Monbiot jumps on the “happy” meat bandwagon. I wrote a brief comment that was posted on the Guardian website: Dear […]
Ingrid Newkirk on Principled Veganism: “Screw the principle”
Dear Colleagues: In an article in Time Magazine, PETA co-founder Ingrid Newkirk discusses “flexitarianism,” or “[p]art-time vegetarianism.” The goal for many activists is simply to get more people to eat less meat. “Absolute purists should be living in a cave,” says Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). “Anybody who […]
Commentary #18: A Step Backward, the Importance of Veganism, and the Misuse of “Abolition”
Dear Colleagues: In this Commentary, I discuss several topics: First, I talk about the announcement by the new welfarist Mercy for Animals that the retail giant Costco has taken a “step forward” by agreeing to market “humane” veal. I maintain that having animal advocates praise this as a “step forward” and characterizing the issue of […]
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This Sunday, August 22, on Animals Today Radio with Dr. Lori Kirshner
Dear Colleagues: I will be a guest this Sunday, August 22, on Animals Today Radio with Dr. Lori Kirshner. The program airs live from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and will be archived. Go vegan. It’s better for your health (animal foods cause physical harm); it’s better for the environment (animal agriculture is an ecological […]
Commentary #17: Discussion with Ronnie Lee and Roger Yates
Dear Colleagues: In this Commentary, I have two guests: Ronnie Lee, who founded the Band of Mercy in 1972 and the Animal Liberation Front in 1976, and Roger Yates, an adjunct lecturer in sociology at University College, Dublin. As I am sure you are aware, I am opposed to all violence and I do not […]
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Vegan Philosophy in Spain!
Dear Colleagues: I have the honor of presenting the two keynote addresses at Ethics, Ecology, and Animal Rights, a conference being held at the University of La Rioja in Spain. My two addresses, which will occur on Monday, April 26 and Tuesday, April 27, will be followed by round table discussions involving Spanish scholars from […]
Live Call-In on Michael Medved’s Radio Program
Dear Colleagues: After debating animal-rights opponent, Wesley J. Smith, on Michael Medved’s radio program, Medved decided to have Smith and me back on a live call in. That will take place on Monday, May 3, 2010 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Medved is conservative and if the past is any guide, most of the […]