May 25, 2009

Animal Agriculture Uses Religion to Defend Killing Rights

In a continued critique of Mr. Jamison's views I can add this...

Another issue that I find extremely offensive about Jamison's flippant dismissal of Animal Rights as a non-sequitur... Does he infer that:
Pythagoras, Bentham, Singer, Regan, Amdur, Salt, Baird, Francione, Descartes, Kant, Diderot, Darwin, Hume, Hobbs, Gilligan, Guyer, Habermas, Jamieson, Frey, Lewis, Nagel, Locke, Schweitzer, Thomas, Taylor, Rousseau, Adams, Martin, Austen, Best, Burns, Butler, Carson, Marcus, Frost, Erskine, Keats, Mill, Moore, Hawthorn, Napoleon, Paine, Shelley, Shakespeare, Wilberforce, Franklin, Gandi, Lincoln, Aquinas, Goodall, Chomsky, Dawkins, DeGrazia, Aristotle, Aquinas, Davis, Plutarch, Assisi, Shaw, Muhammad, Buddah, da Vinci, Einstein...
and countless other philosophers and scholars who studies and wrote about Animal Rights were and are just wasting their time? The idea here is things are not written in stone when it comes to animals and how we interact with them. If it were, there would not be so many questions left unanswered. There are many bibles and religious edicts... They are all compilations gathered by humans with human interests. Is it too impractical to believe that this scenario may have happened?

In the beginning man ate everything... plants, animals, insects... perhaps even dirt. Eventually, man evolved enough to be able to grow his food... And perhaps it became distasteful for some to kill animals which they clearly saw as being like them. Animals are born, they breath, they bleed... they suffer and die. Perhaps many people began to become ill after eating killed animals... and saw this as a "message" from God to discontinue the practice? Indeed, they did not "need" animals any more for food, as they were beginning to farm their staples. But... what happens when the rich kings, and livestock owners have a culture gaining momentum that frowns upon the killing of animals? Surely their riches and wealth were in jeopardy. Indeed, maybe even a Christ-like person saw the selling of animals as evil and made a big fuss over it on the temple stairs? This Christ-like person preached that violence and bloodshed were wrong.  But how do you kill a living being without the two?

So, these kings and livestock owners then call upon priests who will shift the tide... with proclamations "from god" - that the killing and eating of animals is "sacred". And that it is man's "entitlement"... and actually his "duty". Who can argue with priests... with messages from God???  It was then that material wealth subjugated the innocent to a herding culture - sealed in a holy decree of "permission" to sacrifice... A social license to enslave, exploit and destroy others.

As told by man - it's a "god-given right" to use nonhumans... How convenient too that man could create an invisible criteria such as a soul, to further the myths along.

Well this is just one possibility... And since there is no proof otherwise - it just might make sense.

But the question here is... is it necessary now? Necessary for anything... other than the financial aspect? There is nothing that meat has nutritionally that cannot be gotten from a plant based diet. There is nothing about animal agriculture that is to the good for the eco-system - So why, if not economics... are we still using animals for food? Minister Jamison says that "God commanded that we eat animals"... And that he "commanded" the sacrifice of 2 - 3 million animals during the passover - Sounds like a good old fashioned profit motivated "cull" to me.
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We have the free will to decide what's right or not...
part 2 of 3 part 1 of 3

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Bea, this is a great post. I commend you for bringing to light something that so many people are afraid to say. Thank you!!! I do not believe that ANY one's God would want any creature to be hurt or suffer, especially by a creature that has full knowledge of what they are doing --like a human! Go Bea!!!

Bea Elliott said...

I'm glad you're in agreement Serenity - It just doesn't make sense for a "divine plan" to include willfull suffering. It's also the terrible violence that we grow to accept that's so contrary to peace. No, the current market of animal "sacrifice" is evil not
Go(o)d, at all.

Site Closed said...

Wow that was quite a read! Oh and yeh Bea I am still alive!!!!! :)

~K~

one and only hypnos said...

Nice post. It has always struck me how easily christian conservatives can brush aside the idea of animal rights and vegetarianism. Maybe they should read some Andrew Linzey...

Good post!

Bea Elliott said...

Klem - nice hearing from you again! Good decision on your 365. And thanks for the recongnition... But you came to the conclusions - on you're own. :)

Yes... I did get serious with this post - It was the mocking of the poor dolphins that did it. And the insults to kindness.

With a thousand different interpetations and views - I just thought I'd throw one more into the mix...

And please come back 6/1 - I want to celebrate!

Bea Elliott said...

one and only hypnos - Yes... thank you! On animals and religion - Norm Phelps usually comes to mind and I had totally forgotten about Andrew Linzey.

His benevolent views should be taken seriously by any who profess the desire for a "divine" order.

In a vegan nutshell, (not unlike you I'm sure)... all I really want is "peace". No matter whose named "God" it's for.

Stay the good fight. :)