Eat A Sausage. Do It For The Animals.
Fantasy #1: The Humane Society of the United States is not promoting the “compassionate” consumption of meat. The HSUS caption with the Facebook post: “More great news for pigs! “Like” this to give props to these companies for doing the right thing. :)” So let’s support companies marketing meat and animal products that are doing […]
My Debate with Libertarian Philosopher Tibor Machan
On January 12, 2012, I debated prominent libertarian philosopher Tibor Machan. Machan holds the R. C. Hoiles Chair of Business Ethics and Free Enterprise at the Argyros School of Business & Economics at Chapman University in Orange, California. He is a research fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and an adjunct scholar at […]
A Response to James McWilliams–And It’s Not Debatable
Columbia University Press posted an article on the call in Slate.com by Professor James McWilliams for all animal advocates to support the welfare-reform efforts of The Humane Society of the United States. On the following day, the Press printed my reply to Professor McWilliams. After I read Professor McWilliams’ Slate essay, I thought it would […]
“Farmed Animals” vs. “Farm Animals”
I have been asked by a number of people as to my views on using the expression “farmed animal” rather than “farm animal.” I suppose that the former is a good expression in that it emphasizes that these are nonhumans who are exploited by being farmed and gets away from the notion that they represent […]
Nicholas Kristof: Please Wince. Please.
Once again, New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof provides us with a glimpse of the how the postmodern liberal mind struggles with the violence and immorality of animal agriculture. Kristof obviously knows there is something wrong here. If he didn’t think so, he would not write these columns about our moral obligations to animals. […]
An Invitation to Professor McWilliams
James McWilliams, professor of history at Texas State University and author of Just Food: Where Locavores Get It Wrong and How We Can Truly Eat Responsibly, had a provocative essay, Vegan Feud on Slate.com. The subtitle of his essay: “Animal rights activists would accomplish a lot more if they stopped attacking the Humane Society.” McWilliams […]
Only Sentience Matters
Animals Who Are Almost Human, part of an online psychology program, provides a perfect example of reinforcing the seriously problematic notion that the cognitive capacities that matter morally are humanlike ones–and not just sentience, or subjective awareness. To the extent that we link the moral status of animals with cognitive characteristics beyond sentience, we continue […]
“Pets”: The Inherent Problems of Domestication
As a practical matter, there is simply no way to have an institution of “pet” ownership that is consistent with a sound theory of animal rights. “Pets” are property and, as such, their valuation will ultimately be a matter of what their “owners” decide. But you might ask: “What if it were possible? If, as […]
Do Abolitionists Have a Position on Human Rights? You Bet We Do!
Someone said to me today (in an email): “I’m totally for animal rights but I don’t think that means I have to be for women’s rights or gay rights or whatever.” Wrong. Think about the logic. Speciesism is wrong because it’s like racism, sexism, heterosexism, etc., which also involve focusing on an irrelevant criterion (race […]
Veganism and Nonviolence
If the principle of nonviolence means anything, it means that you cannot justify any killing or suffering for transparently frivolous reasons such as pleasure, amusement, or convenience. And doing something “with compassion” that is not morally justifiable does not change the fact that it’s morally unjustifiable. When you decide what you want to eat, wear, […]
Road Kill, Abandoned Eggs, and Dumpster Diving
I am frequently asked whether it is “vegan” to eat “road kill,” the abandoned eggs of hens who are kept as companions, or animal products that you find in a dumpster. The short answer: no. The explanation: Although these activities do not contribute directly to demand for animal products, they are deeply problematic as a […]
Commentary #23: Lennox and Moral Reasoning in Animal Rights
It’s been a while since I did a Commentary and I have been meaning to start up again but, alas, it’s been a busy time. I was planning to do a podcast on the topic of my essay, Moral Concern, Moral Impulse, and Logical Argument in Animal Rights Advocacy, which I published in May and […]
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Sentience
A sentient being is a being who is subjectively aware; a being who has interests; that is, a being who prefers, desires, or wants. Those interests do not have to be anything like human interests. If a being has some kind of mind that can experience frustration or satisfaction of whatever interests that being has, […]
The Legacy of Lennox
Yesterday, July 11, 2012, Lennox, allegedly a pit bull, was killed by the Belfast, Northern Ireland, City Council. Pit bulls are illegal in Northern Ireland. There had been an international campaign to save Lennox and now there is international outrage over his death. And there ought to be. It is nothing but ignorance to regard […]
Animals Today on Sunday, July 8
I will be a guest on Animals Today, airing Sunday, July 8, at 2 p.m.-3 p.m. Pacific; 5 p.m.-6 p.m. EST. ********** If you are not vegan, please go vegan. It is easy and better for your health and for the environment and, most important, it’s the morally right thing to do. The World is […]
Got Practical Vegan Information? You Do Now.
Adam Kochanowicz and Sandra Cummings have produced a terrific resource, the Vegan Starter Kit. This sort of project is of great practical value and I am glad that Adam and Sandra did this. I am sure that you will find it of great use. ********** If you are not vegan, please go vegan. It is […]
A Facebook Exchange About Religion and Animals
This is from an an exchange that occurred in a thread on the Abolitionist Approach Facebook page: Someone asked: Doesn’t the bible inform us that animals are provided by its god for the use of man, and the koran & jewish scriptures ordain how (and which) animals must be slaughtered for human consumption? Skirting past […]
Debate with Professor Michael Marder on Plant Ethics
Professor Michael Marder, author of the forthcoming book, Plant-Thinking: A Philosophy of Vegetal Life, and I had a brief debate on the issue of plant ethics at the Columbia University Press website. You can find the debate here. ********** If you are not vegan, please go vegan. It is easy and better for your health […]
Upcoming Abolitionist Approach Podcast on Effective Animal Rights Advocacy: A Preview
This past week, I posted two essays: Moral Concern, Moral Impulse, and Logical Argument in Animal Rights Advocacy and Violent Imagery in Animal Advocacy. The response I got was overwhelming and it’s only been a few days. I have received 52 emails (as of right now) asking questions about applying these ideas in concrete circumstances. […]
Violent Imagery in Animal Advocacy
I am asked with some frequency about whether it is advisable to use violent imagery, such as films depicting slaughterhouses or factory farms, as part of abolitionist vegan education. When I express hesitation and concern, people who know of my background will often say, “But didn’t your visiting a slaughterhouse have a profound effect on […]