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Respect and gratitude abounds! Seeing a lawyer (and DxE team) openly confront the abhorrent practices of industrialized animal agriculture in broad daylight using existing animal welfare laws to highlight the hypocrisy, corruption, & lies has been a dream come true. It seemed that, thanks to the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act & Ag-Gag …
Respect and gratitude abounds! Seeing a lawyer (and DxE team) openly confront the abhorrent practices of industrialized animal agriculture in broad daylight using existing animal welfare laws to highlight the hypocrisy, corruption, & lies has been a dream come true. It seemed that, thanks to the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act & Ag-Gag laws, the bigger animal rights groups just clamed up in regards to factory farming. Animal rights advocates & activists have pretty much only existed in the margins, on the fringe, and in the dark so I am extremely grateful for the space being made within the mainstream consciousness and in the media.
This is a colossal endeavor. Animal rights activists, environmentalists, anti-nuke activists, etc. are treated like enemies of the state & terrorists because (in government's eyes) we are screwing with their standing on the world stage. Animal agriculture affects almost every part of our economy. There is the culture aspect as well. The whole "macho men eat dead flesh" nonsense, the religious "dominion over animals" crap, the addicted crying about the proposed loss of their half-pound meat slab like a bunch of little kids whining about a "Happy" Meal, and then people who profit from the putrid practice. We need to put forth examples of new economic models (I know there are equitable and compassionate nerds out there that do this kind of thing for fun). We need to introduce proposals for tax incentives and grants for new meat alternatives. I would love to see those ranchers that have switched from animal farming to mushroom farming (or whatever) to team up and create an information bank with a basic easy to follow outline consisting of the steps that need to be taken in order to facilitate a switch, and it would be outstanding for those ranchers to have a booth at various county & state fairs in effort to present the idea in a casual non-confrontational way -grab a cotton candy, watch a Shammy-Wow demo, gander at the constant rotation of swollen bovines being hooked up to industrial yuck-suckers, and Hey! ..pick up a pamphlet and take in a brief testimonial about switching to a more sustainable and healthy product! We also need blood thinners and other drugs that are not derived from animals, it would be great if the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine spearheaded the initiative.
The looming trial will hopefully be one for the history books and perhaps now more than ever is the time for all factions of animal rights and environmentalism to unify and show support. Any gripe or grudge that manifests between groups needs to be squashed. From the ALF to PETA to Mercy For Animals to Sea Sheppard to Greenpeace... We are all on the same team. There is no room for tribalism and in-fighting. Too many lives are at stake including our own.
Much love.
Thanks for this very thoughtful comment. I love the idea of harnessing the stories of ranchers who've "switched" at county fairs. Have you reached out to PCRM or other groups about that? Renee Sonnen-King's Rancher Advocacy Program may also be interested.
And agree about the infighting. Gotta stop that if we're going to succeed, together. (Across movements, too!)
Thanks Wanye for the reply. To be honest I have not reached out to PCRM (yet) and the county fair idea hit me as I was writing my comment. Renee's work is what made me think of it. I love that you tossed the ball back at me. I suppose my intention was to plant a seed so those in closer proximity and with a better understanding would be (also) inclined to delve into those proposals. Any medical doctors read/listen to this podcast?.. Any ex-ranchers, ranch hands, or ex-4H members visiting this domain? I will reach out, though it will basically be from (what I feel is) a somewhat uninformed laymen's perspective, especially when it comes to the medical industry.
I would like to continue to implore all of us (especially the academics amongst us) to help create tangible and comprehensive models of a humane and ecological world. I feel the lack of imagination and the fear of the unknown is a huge part of the reason we are met with such venom and distain within our society.
On a side note, but perhaps it relates: With maybe the exception of steak (in the USA at least) people are really only savoring the sauces. It's funny to watch their faces drop when pointing that out.