(Posted August 25, 2015) Wanted to share another email exchange I had that might help you deal with closed-minded folks.
Q: The animals we eat are already dead. Aren’t we doing them a favor by eating them so they didn’t die in vain?
A: The animals you’re referring to didn’t die in vain. They were murdered with premeditation! Eating their cut-up corpses and the things that came out of THEIR bodies isn’t honoring them, or doing them a favor. It just makes you another excuse-filled hypocrite who proudly supports the oppression of innocent beings. If I employed YOUR thought process, wouldn’t we be doing raped children in the porn industry a favor by watching child porn? After all, they’ve already been raped, and the movies have already been made. And doesn’t the pornographer need money to support his family? Why should those kids be raped in vain? Somehow I bet you won't think of some trite, vacuous excuse to support the child porn industry, because you aren’t an abuser of children, you’re an abuser of animals!
And to add to YOUR hypocrisy, it’s not even like you hate all animals. Just the ones your parents, government, school teachers, religion, media and society told you to hate. If I asked you to help me find homes for abandoned dogs and cats, you'd probably assist or at least refrain from making sarcastic, vile comments. In fact, have you noticed when there’s an Internet story about poachers killing rhinos and elephants, the comment section is overflowing with threats to harm, torture and kill the poachers in the most vile way imaginable? I don’t disapprove of those comments at all as I feel the same way. But why does that mentality disappear when cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys and fish are the victims? Using YOUR thought process again, why not excuse the poachers and the ivory dealers? After all, the rhinos and elephants have already been murdered at that point. Wouldn’t you be doing them a favor by purchasing THEIR severed tusks so they didn’t “die in vain”? Don’t the poachers and ivory dealers have families to feed? But somehow AGAIN I bet you won't think of some stupid excuse to support those killings because society taught you to condemn that shit.
I am desperately trying to get you to see the illogic of the irrational behavior you so proudly exhibit when cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys and fish are victims. Why can’t you realize that they, too, have an inherent right NOT to be abused, commodified and killed? Besides size, shape and color, they're NO different from the dogs, cats, elephants, rhinos, and human children you’ve extended compassion to. It’s okay to admit when you’re wrong. It’s okay to apologize for what you’ve done, and to make amends and proclaim: “I do care. I have feelings. I can empathize. I will embrace the vegan lifestyle. And I will do the world a favor by removing myself from the list of people who don’t care.” How can extending compassion and caring about the most oppressed beings on the planet be a disservice to you, or the victims? Please reconsider.
