Day 83
Convention can blind people.
I've felt for some time that the way we classify and treat animals to be an archetypal example of how norms cause people to focus their outrage and praise in illogically narrow ways. We love and take care of our pets, and look down upon those cultures who slaughter cute little dogs for food. As Canadians, we are up in arms and outrage every year when the greusome ice-pick baby seal hunt happens back east... all those adorable, fuzzy big-eyed creatures whose blood stains their white coats and the white snow. A disgrace to the nation!
As I wrote once in a letter to the newspaper: perhaps we should simply gather them up live instead, and slaughter them mechanically in industrial buildings with no windows. Out of sight, out of mind, yes? If we do that, the difference between the seals and cows, pigs, or chickens is naught. Well, perhaps the seals are more cute, admittedly. But in spite of ourselves, we must be able to accept as intelligent beings that cuteness cannot possibly be a morally relevent quality.
Anyway. Sometimes our meaty conventions lead us to contradictions that unfortunately pass right through our senses without notice. And this is a shame, because as a result, creatures suffer for absolutely no good reason, and people miss out on some hilarious irony:
I've felt for some time that the way we classify and treat animals to be an archetypal example of how norms cause people to focus their outrage and praise in illogically narrow ways. We love and take care of our pets, and look down upon those cultures who slaughter cute little dogs for food. As Canadians, we are up in arms and outrage every year when the greusome ice-pick baby seal hunt happens back east... all those adorable, fuzzy big-eyed creatures whose blood stains their white coats and the white snow. A disgrace to the nation!
As I wrote once in a letter to the newspaper: perhaps we should simply gather them up live instead, and slaughter them mechanically in industrial buildings with no windows. Out of sight, out of mind, yes? If we do that, the difference between the seals and cows, pigs, or chickens is naught. Well, perhaps the seals are more cute, admittedly. But in spite of ourselves, we must be able to accept as intelligent beings that cuteness cannot possibly be a morally relevent quality.
Anyway. Sometimes our meaty conventions lead us to contradictions that unfortunately pass right through our senses without notice. And this is a shame, because as a result, creatures suffer for absolutely no good reason, and people miss out on some hilarious irony:
I mean seriously. Anybody?
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