No way.

Killing cannot be made “humane” when it has nothing to do with the animal’s benefit. It matters little that they live a life of supposed luxury (unlikely and far *Iess* common than you believe – family farms are not the heavens they’re marketing make them out to be) if they’re killed at just a few years old, still have their babies taken away from them, etc.

And, by the way, there’s no way that family farms raising meat are “sustainable” for a world like ours with a rapidly increasing population.

I have no interest in promoting “humane” killing because it’s still killing, it’s still unnecessary, and it does little to move people away from consuming animal products. Indeed, to me it seems to have the opposite effect, instead making vegetarians all of a sudden feel OK about eating meat again.

But the death of animals for our consumption isn’t necessary in the vast majority of cases today. Remember, we breed animals simply in order to kill them. Trying to justify their deaths as “just a part of life” trivializes the issue.

Unless you are an extremist, and are making your dogs go vegetarian.
:/

Just a thought.

I’ve been a vegetarian (and I must shamefully admit that for a while, I was one of those idiots that called myself a vegetarian even though I still ate fish) for thirteen years and only fairly recently made the transition to veganism. For my part, I find preachy vegans (despite the fact that I agree with them on moral grounds) just as annoying and pretentious as people who are fanatical about their religion. Whenever I feel like being all “vegangetical” (thank you veganfreak.org for that wonderful term), I first think about how I would feel about someone trying to force their religious views on me. Not good. Not good at all.

If someone wants to discuss animal rights or veganism with me, that’s great and I’m always up for a good discussion, but I prefer to just go about my freaky vegan life… no soapbox required.

i think most people would agree that animals, if given the choice, would rather not be enslaved and eaten. the only morally acceptable reason for subjecting them to this would be if it were somehow necessary for own survival, much the same way killing of another human can be excused if it is in self defense or defense of an innocent person, but millions of healthy vegans (i can provide lots of accounts if needed) are proof positive that one can thrive without any animal foods. here’s the moral argument laid out:

1. If eating animals is necessary, meat eating is not immoral.
2. Eating animals is not necessary.
3. Therefore, meat eating is immoral.

this argument is both valid and sound.

imho, making the morally superior choice is required of all responsible, educated, sensitive human beings :).

~erin

Yes, you get some resistance when you do that – it’s natural for people to defend their lifestyles and to avoid cognitive dissonance – but I’ve found that the more I discuss the subject, the better I become at responding to those defenses while keeping the other person engaged and the conversation friendly and productive.

Of course one has to be respectful of others: we don’t know exactly what it’s like to be them, and everyone has their fears and unique experiences and hot button issues. Nonetheless, it is possible to persuade people to make changes to their lifestyles in a civil and cordial manner.

Sometimes it helps to be patient. For many people, giving up meat, dairy, and eggs at first sounds impossible and off the wall. It often takes a while to acknowledge that what we eat is largely arbitrary and the result of habit and taking the path of least resistance, and that one can have a perfectly satisifying, diverse, and healthy diet without eating flesh, milk, and eggs.

So by discussing veganism – and animal rights and all those related issues – with others, I’ve been able to reduce the amount of exploitation and human-caused animal suffering in world.

If you never inform others about veganism, the violence in slaughterhouses, and the moral transgressions inherent in killing animals for pleasure, they may remain ignorant and avoid thinking about those topics their whole lives, and never change. That’s a missed opportunity. Often, one conversation, or one book that you lend someone, can make a profound difference.

Granted, not everyone feels comfortable doing one-on-one outreach, or even writing letters to the editor. But there is probably some form of activism for everyone; perhaps for you it’s handing out veg restaurant guides or vegan starter kits, or urging your city council to ban rodeos, or requesting that your school cafeteria provide more vegan options – or starting a petition to do that – or simply sharing delicious vegan food and recipes with friends and co-workers.

For more ideas and a compelling explanation of why your activism makes a difference, check out “Striking At The Roots” by Mark Hawthorne.