Oprah...

I tried. I really did. I wanted to give Oprah the benefit of the doubt. I wanted to think that maybe something about veganism would come about on her show today. And I really wanted my next entry to be positive and not ranting. Unfortunately, wrong on both counts.

I should point out, I am not an Oprah watcher nor fan. Her "Favorite Things" shows drive me over the edge with it's opulence. But, she does have A LOT of viewers. On today's show, which talked about factory farms, she had Lisa Ling (I'm not sure why) and Wayne Pacelle (President of the HSUS) as guests, as well as a host of "farmers". The show essentially gave three viewpoints: Those of the HSUS which included all of your basic welfare thoughts, larger cages, free range, blah fucking blah. Those of the factory farmers, who had the gall to state on national tv and on video that they thought animals on factory farms were better cared for than those on a traditional farm. And finally "free range farmers" who believe that as along as the chicken/pig/veal calf had a good life, it was fine to off them. Whatever.

Again, I believe that most of the show was bullshit. What really got to me was this: during a discussion about how this woman could afford free range eggs but not free range chickens, not once was it suggested that maybe she didn't need the eggs or the chicken. Not once was going vegan mentioned on the show.

The show had many moving video clips, at least I thought they were moving. They showed pigs in gestation crates while their "caretaker" talked about how comfortable they were. The pigs were lying on cement. I wouldn't be comfortable on cement. They showed a film of veal crates and the burns veal get from sitting in their own urine and feces. They showed hens in battery cages, I think you get the picture. Unfortunately, then they showed pictures of "humane" farming methods. Which makes people think it is okay to kill something, as long as you treat it well before it goes.

A much ado about Amazon.com

As many already know, since February of this past year, the Humane Society of the United States has been "demanding" that Amazon.com remove books relating to dog and cock (roosters you pervert) fighting. A simple web search yields many results.

Various Links

Seattlepi.com (Feb 2007)
HSUS (Feb 2007)
Petitions Online (this is a site enabling folks to sign petitions online)
The Inquirer.net (not like the tabloid) (July 2006)

Assuming that by reading this you know that I am a vegan, it seems pretty obvious that I am going to talk all of you into boycotting amazon.com, signing a petition and bad mouthing them all over town.

Right?

Nope, its not that simple.

**I need again to make something very clear. I do not advocate dog or cock fighting**

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This scenario may seem pretty cut and dry, but it isn't. There are a number of problems with this.

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First off, Amazon.com is a private business. No one has to buy books from Amazon. No one has to buy anything from Amazon. If you don't like what they are selling, the answer is simple. Don't shop there. There are a number of books that many people would probably find offensive.

• I could purchase The Anarchists Cookbook. If I am not mistaken, this teaches you how to get high and make bombs out of house hold items.
• There is a wide selection of books on the KKK.
• This book talks about 9/11 and gives alternate theories on what really happened.
• A number of fiction and non-fiction books cover abortion.
• And finally, there are plenty on homosexuality.

Now, I have not read all of the books or suggestions above. Some of them I have no desire to read. I don't give a shit about the history of the KKK. Point is, Amazon.com has the right to sell what ever they want as along as it is not breaking the law. So they can't sell drugs (damn, I was looking for a good hook-up). I am pretty sure they couldn't ship weapons. I think you get the picture.

If Amazon was hosting dog fighting or cock fighting. That would be a whole different story. They are distributing information. Shit, if laws like this went so far, they could take away my blog.

The other big problem that I have with the argument that the HSUS is making, is that it is covering up a much bigger issue. If the HSUS is really an animal rights organization (which it's not), it would not only be after dog fighting, cock fighting and animal abuse, but it would be asking people to go vegan and explaining the effects of factory farming. It would take a stance against things like free-range and cage free. In short, it would grow some big, hairy balls (or ovaries for that matter).

HSUS will state that Amazon is not a proponent for free speech. They have pulled books of their shelves numerous times in the past. Again, that is their choice.

I believe that this case is completely out of line. Again, no one has to shop at Amazon.com. You have a choice. If you don't like what they stand for then don't shop there. Think about it before you jump on the "Down With Amazon" wagon. What if they took all blogs away? What if we weren't allowed to peacefully protest? What if I wasn't able to hand out vegan literature?

Use your brains. If you believe in free speech, you believe in it. That's the way it works. You can't decide who has freedom of speech and who doesn't. We all do.

Beautiful, isn't it?