Noooo! Just give the feminist blogs a week or two, they’re about due for another blowup ;)

but, alas, we do agree. i am just not fond of the dichotomous nature of left/right. then again, people like me have been killed and persecuted by both left and right. and i’m not fond of the centrist policies of liberal/conservative either. but that’s a different conversation. you are right, though. such issues of social justice are more often associated with leftist politics. i’m certainly not buying in to the whole compassionate conservative bit.

we definitely seem to be coming from the same place. i think we just use slightly different language.

yeah, i followed your link to several other links and finally found a working version of the PDF (the boing boing link is broken). priceless.

I agree, I don’t think veganism has to be a left- or right-wing thing. My impression, though, is that animal rightists tend to lean to the left, for example, in supporting gov’t restrictions on how we’re allowed to treat animals, and – more importantly – in regards to social issues. And I think they should: as the most exploited group on the planet, you’ve got to have a wide circle of compassion if it’s to include animals. So if you’ve already extended it further than most people are willing to, what’s your justification for excluding all those other groups (ie, women, different “races” and ethnicities, those with varying sexual preferences, etc.)?

(I guess there’s the occasional fundamentalist who advocates for the humane treatment of animals because of the Bible, and the inhumane treatment of women because of the same, but those seem to be rare. Plus as an atheist, “Because the Bible said so” doesn’t strike me as an especially compelling reason. But I digress.)

Of course, in an ideal world, conservatives and liberals alike would strive for compassion, but – blecht! – who am I kidding?

On the other end of the spectrum, I’ve also seen animal rights activists who are so focused on their primary goal that they overlook all others, even trampling over other disenfranchised groups to further their goals. Like, yeah, PETA. Their campaigns attract gobs of attention, but at what price?

Anyway, there’s definitely room for improvement on both sides of the aisle. I think I’m just feeling miffed over the (non-)controversy surrounding AETA, and the ACLU’s complicity in criminalizing ARAs.

Oh, and I linked to Boing Boing, but Wonkette’s takedown is worth a look too.

veganism is not innately connected to any ideology. nor do i think it should be. my claim is simply that veganism is based on more than what we eat. its about compassion. otherwise, vegans would be wearing leather shoes with no ethical dilemma. but i don’t think i need to explain that to you.

because it is based in compassion, i’m simply suggesting that if veganism is to become an effective tool of compassion then such compassion should not be limited by qualifiers and social constructs. its should be embraced and practiced universally. but to mention race, class, gender, ability or any oppressed identity and speak in the same sentence of compassion and/or liberation, then i’m automatically a leftist ideologue. tack onto that my pseudonym, and i obviously have an owl trained to bomb government buildings:)

funny how fear and stereotypes get caught in a perpetual downward spiral, ain’t it?

btw, where did you find that booklet? i need a good laugh.