Anonymous
Animal Liberation: Devastate to Liberate, or Devastatingly Liberal? Contents
BeBecocoming Parart oot f ttf he PrProboblelem ...... 55 On being the Greatest allies of our own gravediggers ...... 99 Guililt-t-Soakeked Cononsusumptiotion ...... 1111 FaFashshioion Vicictitims ...... 1313 ‘‘AlAll hhl umanans are bastardrds,s,’ righght Rononnie? ...... 1414 Desperatatelely seeking sysympaththy ...... 1616 Up shihit’s clclique withthouout a padaddldle ...... 2020 Whatat’s clclasass got to do wiwith it? ...... 2222 Animimatated lilibeberarals ...... 2525 inknkining ffg or ouoursrselelveves ...... 2929 Aererword ...... 3232
22 “One can only empathise with individuals, motivated by a sincere desire for reform, who join ecology groups, consumer organisations and alternative po- litliticall partieties. InIn anyofof thesese groupsthesese indiviividualsls araree directeded byby aa firmlyly enentrtrenched lleaderrshshiipp tthhrrough a maze of f popolitiliticacallylly motivtivaatted comprromiises to an end that is sadly predictable: the indefinite postponement of profound sociiaal trtransf f oorrmatitionon, tthe enririchmentt oof tthe carreeeerrs oof f aa f f ew burreaucrraattss and the permanent disillusion of a number of intelligent individuals. from ‘Call it Sleep’ — Cronin/Seltzer
e movvementt whiich has sprrung up arround aniimal ririghghtts has gaiined wiidede-- spsprread nottooririeetyty and a f f aairir amountt oof f support. It appeallss tto aallll sosortrts oof f peopllee,, generally the compassionate souls and especially the young. Kids, grown up in a world where the cruelty and horror has never been more openly and apparently fraternised by the media, and educational system look for something to do about it all. e lure of the animal rights movement lies exactly in that it appears that you can do something about it. With its sit-ins, hunt sabotage, commando-style Animal Liberation Front (ALF) rraaiids eettcc. tthe movvementt cecertrtaaiinnlyly has tthe aairirs oof f mmilitilitancyy susurrrroundiingng itit and evevenen ifif sosomeononee dodoesesn’n’tt gegett didirerectctlyly ininvovolvlveded inin ststuffuff ththenen ththeyey cacann ststililll fefeelel papartrt of of it. It would be hard to deny that this is where it has its appeal, nestling smoothly alongside the altruistic, caring for the wounded. All sorts of folks pass through tthe movvement, from tthe gentltle and milild mannerreded ttoo tthe angryry oor ttr hehe jjusustt ppllaaiinn weird. BuBut f f t oorr aallll oof ttf he militilitanantt pprreettence ttheherre has allwayys ees xixisstted witithhiinn tthe aniimall ririghghtts movvement tthe belilieef tthahat tthe currrrenentt sociiaall sstrtrucucttuurre can adapt ititseself ttoo eexixissttence witithoutt ananiimall abuse.. AAllll sosortrts oos f f pprressurre gge rroups campaiigns arre sett up, so as to persuade parliament to bring in legislation which will miraculously end humans persecution of other species. Any casual glance at history will of course show that such reformist politics, asking or pressurising governments to reform their practices and laws, offer no rroad tto genuiine change butt a dead end.. Herree iinn tthe cul-l-dede--sac of f hahalf lf ggrranantteded demands and absorbed “sell-outs” you’ll find countless genuine desires for social transformation twisted into new forms of oppression. e meaningful change we crave is permanently postponed by those in power. AAll this amounts to is a constant banging of heads against brick walls and one would’ be forgiven for thinking that the resultant bruising caused to the brains of ananiimal riril ghghtts campaiignerrss iiss rresponsiibbllee f f oor tthe ssttaggeriring naiviveetyty wwitithhiinn tthehe movvement.t. BuBut ititt goes f f uurtrtheher ttr han tthahat- e sse ttupupiid belilieef ttf hahat ttt he huge prroofitfitss involved in the abuse of animals (which are so intricately linked up to financial
33 gain and exploitation in other areas of life) will just be casually given up by the vvasastt cocorrpoporraatitions and govveerrnmentts who benefit from it, iss tthehe rresultlt oof f peopllee allowing themselves to remain blind to the very harsh reality of the society we am forced to inhabit and a refusal to aack the very people who’ve put the blinkers on us. e problem is compounded by people in the animal rights movement enthu- ssiiasastiticacallylly cclluuttchchiing ontto ananyy ssiigngn tthahatt sometthhiing benefificciiaal iis happeniingng f f oorr ananiimalls and cllaaiimmiingng tthahat ttt hhiiss iis partrt oof ttf hehe “r“road ttoo viviccttoory”. In convveerrsasatitions peoplle sse till taallk about tthehe f f uur trtrade as if it has been destrtrooyyeded ((whiichch itit hasn’t)’t) and other such garbage. e trend is to be content that something is happening but never to examine the content of what is happening. At the very most, only the mildest demands could ever be met. Perhaps there will be some reduction in the intensity of farming practices, maybe even an end ttoo vivisectitionon f f oor tthe purrpose of ttesestiting cosmetiticscs.. BuBut tthehe lilikekelilihood iiss tthahatt tthese viviccttooririeses ((asas tthe aniimal ririghghtts movvementt woulld no doubtt see it)it) woulldd be merreelyly cosmetiticc iinn tthemselvlveses.. Operraatitions lilikeke tthese coulld be movveded ((and already are) overseas where there is less dissent — ensuring for the capitalists who conduct ttt hem — ttheheirir contitinuatitionon, tt, heheirir pprroofitfitss, tt, he pacifiificacatition oof f oppositiitionon and encouragement of faith in a parliamentary democracy that keeps the wheels of commerce (and therefore exploitation) spinning round and round. II ononcecehehearardd sosomeononee offofferertoto papayy aa blblokokee toto vvototee foforr LaLabobourur —— jujustst bebecacaususee ththeyey had a proposed ban on hunting with hounds in their manifesto! Even if such a ban ddiid come about (veeryry ununlilikekely) the purrpose of ttf hahatt woulld be tto prreevvenentt sometthhiingng eellsese. e pprrospectt oof f morre wwiidesprread activity agaiinsnst tthehe ririch peoplle who go hunting and the police who protect those leisure interests extending beyond the killing fields, into other areas, could, at some point, develop into something more tthhrreaeatteneniingng f f oor tthose who make tthehe llaws (i(iee. tthose who go huntiting and ttheheirir mates) and require pacifying in some way. But they are already dealing with this iin ddiff iff eerrenentt wayyss:: hhiriiring pprivrivaatte security firmm ((whiich ccrreaeattes anottheherr nniiche iinn tthe marrkeket —— makiing huntiting morre pprroofitfitababllee tthan bef f oorre and ttheherreef f oorre morree powerferfullullyy prprotected)d) anandd havingthepoliceandCrCrownPrProsecutionServicee utiutilislisee existing laws more thoroughly. e Home Office are also bringing in a new, catch- all aggravated trespass law, which aims at criminalising travellers, squaers, hunt sabotteueurrs and rraavveerrss, (t(t, hough tthe generraall wwiidede rrangiing nattuurre ooe f ttf hhiis Cririmmiinanall J J usustitice BBillill wwillill gogo f f aar f f uurtrtheher tthan elilimmiinanatitingng tthese merre annoyyances f f oor tthehe dominating elite). e heady militancy of Brixton sabs going out solely to aack huntsmen, looks set to become a upping of the stakes, too lile, way too late. e poiinnt iit ss tthahatt what ttt he peopllee iinn tthe aniimal riril ghghtts movvementt cacallll ananiimall lilibeberaratitionon, isis nonott brbrououghghtt ononee ststepep clclososerer inin rerealalitityy byby ananyy ofof ththee soso cacalllleded susuccccesesseses.s. More laws can never, bring about more freedom (though they can be used to grant
44 llegal ririghghttss iinn rresponse ttoo ‘r‘radadiicacal’l’ demands).). FFrreedom iis sometthhiingng tthahat jjusustt cannott bebe llegegiissllaatteded iinntto eexixissttence. It is nott a bba itit oof f paper ttr o be arrgued ovveerr bbyy EtEtonon ScSchohoololeded WWanankekersrs inin sosome bibigg WWesestmtmininststerer bubuilildidingng oror ‘o‘offefferered’d’ toto usus byby LeLe WWiing Councilil BuBurreaucrraattss trtraaiined iin comprrehensiviveses.. FFrreedom iis an exixissttence that has to be fought for and taken.
Becoming Part of the Problem
1.1. Moderrnn lif lif e bbrirings witithh it tthe ddiisstrtressiingng rreaealilisasatitionon tthahatt aall iis nonott wellll wwitith sociieety.ty. AAllll aarround us we arre acutteelyly awarree, tthahat f f oorr aall tthe gglloss and ggllamourr ooff ff eerreded iinn tthe advveertrts and shop diispspllaayyss, tt, heherre eee xixissttss vvasastt susuff ff eeriring on an unprrecedentteded ‘‘scallee. e hohorrrroorr OOf tthe worlrldd iis nono llongerr sometthhiingng tthahatt iiss iinnvivissiibbllee, it is openlyly onon’’ show,, wwitith ddyiying chililddrren competitingng f f oor tthe same frfronontt page sprread as tthe Royyaall Family. Contrtraary tto whatt manyy peopllee iinn tthehe ananiimal ririghghtts movvementt bebelilieevvee,, manyy oof tthe aatrtrococitiities aarre nonott hhiidden away,y, behiind cllosed doorrss. eeir repeprresenttaatition on filfilm orr ppririnnt iit s sss ttaariring us daily inn tthehe f f ace. If If peoplle aae rre seen tto be apatthehetiticc iin anyy way tty oo tthhiiss iis nott because ttheheyy aarre nott ddiisgustted by it, bubutt hahavve been so sattuurraatted by itss iimages tthehey’ve become anaesthetised to it. And importantly, it’s not just that people are presented with ttoo much iinnf f oorrmatition but tthahat tthehey’re nonott ggivivenen tthe means of f underrssttandiingng how it all adds up. Ever wondered why so few of us care to think about what is happening in Northern Ireland? 2. In today’s society everything is up for grabs. Everything has an economic vvaallueue, frfrom tthe beautif tif uul f f l aces we f f aall iill nn lloovve witith aat tthe movivieses ttoo tthe gorre oof f seseririaall kkillilleerrss.. And witith each aspectt oof f sociieety ttheherre spsprirings f f oortrth an opposiingng viview,, whiichch iis marrkeketted aallongsiidede tthe ooririggiinanal tto doubllee tthe salleses. e ssttaattusus quo can, quite easily, shout out dissent on virtually any particular aspect of itself, whilst at the same time, joyfully continuing its onslaught against life. 33.. AArround aniimal ririghghttss, tthousands of f peoplle hahavve changed ttheheirir ddiieettss,, lif lif esestyltyles and politilitics eettcc.. because of f an awarreness of tthe abuse tthahatt ananiimallss susuff ff eer iir n sociieety. Inn ititseself, these arre nott bad tthhiings. IIn some senses peoplle havvee to be respected for trying to live differently. But, at the same time, they are not, onon ttheheirir own,, gogoiingng tto change tthe conditiitions f f oorr ananiimallss. ee rreaeality seems tto be that as a substitute for change, they offer us the farce of consumer dissent and we in turn, pay up the ridiculous prices for the ‘alternatives’, give ourselves initials, oorrganiisasatitions and herroes tto cco liling on ttoo iin orrdeder ttr o escape a tteerrifyingng rreaealilisasatitionon;; tthahat ttt hese tthhiings arree irrirreelleevvanantt because ttheheyy hahavve been so easilyily absorrbed iinnttoo tthehe very economicic systemm that oppressess animals. eyy havebecome institutionalised ways of life to suit those who are upset or angry about the exploitation of animals.
55 4. 4. IInn virtuauallylly aallll oof tthehe litliteerraattuurre puputt ououtt under tthe umbrreelllla oof tthe aniimall ririghghtts movvementt nonotthhiing oottheher tthan tthe suff ff eeriring oof f ananiimalls seems tto maeer.r. e sub j jecect,t, whililsstt aa vveery rreaeall one, iis poportrrtraayyed as if it eexixisstteded iin an ottheherrwwiisese perfect environment. 5. 5. LLabourr MP MMiichaell Foott once saiidd tthahatt hehe’’dd vvoottee f f oorr a pprroo--bomb LLabourr paparty raattheher ttr han an anti-ti-bomb TTooryry paparty (oof f courrsese tthehey’ry’re aae llll pprroo--bomb ttodayy which makes life much easier for Michael). In much the same way some people’s ananiimal ririghghttss f f anatiticciism getts so siingnglle mmiinded tthahatt mostt woulld pprrobably vvoottee f f oorr a prroo--ananiimal riril ghghtts HHiieer ((r some evividentlytly secrreetlytly wwiishsh f f oorr one ttoooo).). On aa more practical level I have heard hunt saboteurs celebrate the news of major road developments as these will inevitably affect the availability of hunting land and meets. Is this what wildlife needs — more roads? As long as ‘solutions’ are within the confines of capitalist society then no one is really going to be much beer off and some are going to be a lot worse off. We are offered choice a or b, le or right, channellss 1 tt1 oo 44 bubut ttt hehey’ry’re aae llll bad as llong as ttheheyy contrtrool ttl he choiices we perrceceivivee as as aavvaaililababllee tto usus. eerree iis nono rreason tto choose bettween tthem as ttheheyy aallll ooff ff eerr tthe same shitit wwitith ddiff iff eerrenentt cocollouourred sugarr coatitings.. BBy rreef f ususiingng tto seseririouslyly consiidederr ccrreaeatiting ourr own optitions,, we rrepeprress our iinntteellilligence,, sstrtrengtth and a history of courageous people who have fought back. 66.. Duriringng tthe Gulf lf War,r, ananiimal ririghghtts magaziines such as TTuurrnniing Poiinntt eex-x- pressed their distaste for what had gone on by merely pointing to the ‘deliberate’ ooilil spspillillages whiich caused massivive destrtrucuctitionon ttoo tthehe llocall enenvirvironmentt and wwililddlif lif ee. is oos f f courrse was a rreaeal trtrl agedy,y, bubutt whatt was asttononiishshiing was tthahatt was all that was said in these publications. Such a huge event — that surely involved, directlyly andindireirectlctlyy, most of the workingg populatiotionn ofof the entireireworld;ld;11 which entailed the pointless deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, demonstrated the clinical devastation of modern weaponry and the minds of the terrorists who wwiieelldd it;it; bbrroughtt aboutt near iir nsurrrrecectitions iin Souttheherrnn IrIraq and Kurrddiissttanan;; saw people in Paris and various American cities taking to the streets to riot in protest —— was triviaalilised iinntto a smallll ssttooryry aboutt BBritishsh rrescue worrkekerrs hellppiing outt wwitithh distressed birds. 7. And more pertinently, such a story played a key part in the propaganda pre- sented to us. Not because the pictures showed something that was not occurring, bubut ttt hahat ttt hehe f f oooottage of f ooilyily bbirirds was pllaced outt oof f contteext. It mayy wellll hahavve been
11 FoForr eexxampllee iin aan jjeet fifit ghghtteerr aallone ttheherree iiss tthehe LLabourr oof ttf he shop flfloooorr woworrkekerrss iinn tthe manyy assemblyly factories, then there are electricians, computer programmers, designers, the miners who extract the iron ore, the steel smelters, the oil rig workers and those in the refinery and plastics plant. e transporters, by sea, air and road and the clerks, typists and communications workers who coco--oorrddiinanatteded tthe manuf f acacttuurree.. NoNot f f t oorrgegeiing all ttll hose who sllaavveded tto ppo rroduce all ttll hehe tthhiings needed to keep the others alive.
66 footage taken before the war and the ‘deliberate’ omissions started. In the end it might as well have been because tanker spillage, dumping and all that accompa- nies the extraction of black gold at the fastest rate and lowest cost means that, war oorr nonot, ttt, hehe GGuulf lf shorreelilinene iis aas llwayyss lilikeke tthahat.t. Consciience tteasiing piiccttuurres of f ooilil strstrickenen birbirdsds directeded our gazee solely onon IraIraqi atrocitiesies anand convevenientlntlyy coverereded up UU..NN. iinnvvoolvlvement iin bombiing ooff ff shorre ooil rigs and llaatteerr UU..NN.. napallmmiing oof f mutinous Iraqi troops (whose arms were well needed in the insurrections taking place in Southern Iraq). e U.N. deliberately didn’t overthrow Saddam precisely because they needed him to quell the rise of worker’s councils (autonomous from Kurrddiish natitionalilism and Shi’iti’itee f f undamenttaalilism)) and vivioollenentt aaacks upon hiiss state (eg. destruction of secret police headquarters). AAt a time when the class war was hoiing up iinn tthahatt aarreaea,, as a rreevvoolluutitionary rresponse ttoo tthe powerr mongerrss and war,r, we herre had ourr gglloball powerlrlessness rreeiinnf f oorrced by tthe mediiaa — tthehe animal rights media, as guilty as the rest. 8. It is not that the massive environmental destruction should be ignored but rreaealilised tthahat itit eexixisstts wwitithhiin a contteext. ee f f acact tthahatt each and evveeryry aspectt oof f animal persecution can be shown to be intricately linked to a web of hierarchical domination stretching right across every aspect of society, is ignored by animal rights groups. ere are a million good reasons to be violently angry with those who make the decisions and wield the power in this world. Certainly the abuse of animals is one, but it’s not necessarily the most important, or worst symptom of this sick society. 9. In all their opposition to animal abuse, however sincere, the animal rights movvementt has done lilee tto aavvooiidd tthe deadly trap oof frfragmenttaatitionon.. Whililsstt fifighghtitingng ‘t‘theheir’ir’ papartirticucullaarr opprressiionon itit seems tthahat,t, generraally, indndiviividuallss iinn tthehe movvementt hahavvee llosostt ssiighghtt oof ttf hehe f f acact ttt hahat it is partrt oof ttf hehe ttoottaall opprressiionon.. When-- eevveerr one prrobobllem iis separraatteded frfrom aall tthe oottheherr pprrobobllems a solluutitionon rreaeally iss impossible since they are all linked and because, once isolated and specialised, a movement is weakened. 10.10. Whililsstt aallll aarround us tthehe trtradaditiitional f f l oorrms of f sociiaall contrtrooll and orrganiisasatitionon lilikeke tthehe f f amily, cocorrpoporraatition and evvenen tthe ssttaatte begiinn ttoo llose ttheheir ttoottaall powerr oovveer tthehe iindndiviividual,l, moderrnn,, morree vvoollununttaary f f oorrms appear ttoo fill the gap. ItIts aa distressing concept to some people, that the cooperative, the collective, welfare oorr community thehey’ree iinnvvoolvlveded iinn, f f unctitions perf rf ecectlytly as a pacifying pprressurree rreellease frfrom tthehe tteerrrroorr oof livingng iinn tthe moderrn worlrldd ((whiichch iis why tty hehey rry epeprress the faintest thought that what they’re doing is changing nothing). In the past the popolitiliticacal llee was rresponsiibbllee f f oor tthhiiss,, bubutt now witithh lilibeberraalilism f f aarr morree trtrendyy than the rigidity of traditional politics, all of the single issue groups and right-on organisers, do the job for them. It’s the same process, just dressed up in different clothes. AACT UP, a campaigning group on the issue of AAIIDDS and HIV, protested
77 about condoms and clean syringes not being allowed in prisons. Some demand, making the living death of prison slightly more tolerable. By whose morality is it okay to endure the living death of prisons and all the threats to life that involves but not okay if there’s a chance of dying of AAIIDDS? Looking at the cosy careers of ACT-T-UP, it’s certrtaaiinnlyly nonott based on tthe morraality oof ttf hose who havvee tto suff ff eer iir nn them. On the rooops of Strangeways and through the dense smoke of a burning HMP Wyymo, ttheherre werre no cririeses f f oorr ccllean worrks oorr some rrubberrss frfrom tthehe rioting prisoners. 11. Today, in the striving for a more tolerable society, the individual is misled into giving themselves up for the glorification of an abstraction. Be that animal liberation, socialism, anti-sexism or whatever. People seem to have unconsciously assumed that their life’s desires are unaainable so instead of fighting for them- seselvlveses, theyey enendd upupfigfighthtiningg foforr ananidideaeall oror aa cacaususe, whihichch gigivevess ththem ththee ilillulusisionon of of self-activity. So many individuals remain oblivious to the fact that their aempts tto change sociieetyty aarre peperrmmiied and evven encourraged,, asas llong as ttheheyy aaltlteerr oorr change nothing fundamental to the maintenance of class society, or worse, realise this, but cynically go along with it for the ride anyway. 12. In the same way that the le (in particular the unions) used to ease tensions iinn tthe worrk ppllace (t(to a superfirficciiaall eextxtenent)t) bbyy enabliling management tto manage dissent easier, with so-called equal opportunities (to be exploited), anti-racist, anti- sexist, anti-homophobic legislation, electoral reform (to be more democratically opprressed)) eettcc. tthe aniimal ririghghtts movvement iis bebeiing used tto bubuilild a cclleanerr image for capitalism. Free range eggs, cruelty free products etc. are just as much illillususiions as arre equall opportrtununitiitieses. ee illillususiionon tthahatt some tthhiings am geiingng beer is nothing more than a way of catering for all tastes and making a killing in the process. If you can more easily tolerate this society by using non-animal tested bleach, then the middle class people who make the decisions about product production are happy.. AAnd you who accept this, at the expense of working out a theory and practice for destruction of this shiy class and their society, are losing. 1133.. OOf f courrse when I fifiI rrsstt gogot iit nnvvoolvlveded iin aniimal ririghghttss II ddiidndn’t’t see tthhiings so clearly at the start. It was just a way of expressing the fact that I didn’t want to have to use living beings, kill them and eat them to survive. I wanted to see things differently and not have an exploitative relationship with animals. Animal rights iiss,, aat ititt s best,t, an exxpprressiionon tthahatt peoplle do genuiinenelyly want ttt oo livlivee iin beeerr worlrldd,, a a worlrldd frfreeee frfrom tthhiis one’’s eexxppllooititaatitionon. ose tthahatt geget iinnvvoolvlved aarree iinnitiitiaallylly peoplle who siincerreelyly wantt change,, bubutt asas titime goes on . . .. Whatt dd’y’ya know,, nonotthhiingng’’s happened,, nonotthhiingng’’s changed.. Peoplle dde rrop out,t, ddrropop iinnttoo tthe martyr role or see some other career niche (socially or economically) and remain quite content, professionally campaigning their guts out.
88 14. Simply by concentrating on one of class society’s repugnant features (the abuse of f ananiimallss)) and iignoriringng tthehe rreellaatitionshiip oof tthahat ttoo tthe wholle oof f sociieetyty and all of the relationships within society, is exactly what those in power demand oof ttf heheirir oppositiitionon. iss iignorrance becomes acutteelyly apparrenentt when tthe evveeryrydadayy acactivities oof f peopllee iinn tthe aniimal ririghghtts movvementt aarre eexxamiined. eerree iis anan iincessantt chaeeriring about tthhiis oor tthahatt aspectt oof f ananiimall abuse, ririghghtt down ttoo tthehe llaattesestt nniickck--name f f oor titins oor tthahat tteerrirrieerr man,, bubuyiying Meat TrTrades J J ouourrnanall oorr Horrse and Hound tto check up on tthe specifiified oppositiitionon. TTo an extxtenent it’ss understandable, but it becomes really tedious aer a while. It’s the same kind of trivia you encounter within drugs circles, football fanatics, workaholics, etc. Here one abstrtracactt sub j jecectt becomes all-ill-importrtanant,t, ddrrowniing outt aallll oof tthe subtltleetitieses and other interesting things that makes talking to people worthwhile. Soon you geget ttoo rreaealilisese tthahatt aall yyou havvee iin common witithh tthese peopllee iiss tthahat yyou aallsoso disagree with animal suffering, and if you took at that kind of relationship based on negativity, it doesn’t amount to much.
On being the Greatest allies of our own gravediggers
15. In moderrn sociieetyty we don’t’t hahavvee tto agrree witith eeh vveeryry dedettaail, inn f f acactt we arree positiveelyly encourraged tto aarrgue and ttake siides ovveerr a wholle hostt oof f speciiaalilised iissues,, asas llong as we accept ttt hhiiss viview of ttf he worlrld and viview lif lif ee frfrom tthe perrspec-- tive of power as presented to us by teachers, sociologists, documentary makers, etc. 16. e animal rights movement does this perfectly, from seing up campaigns, soso triviaall asas ononeses ababououtt specifiificc ananiimallss ((egeg. tthedollphphiinn iinn FFllamiingolland)) ttoo cocollllabab-- orating with newspaper articles about the horrors of specific cosmetic companies, laboratories or factory farm practices. All treated in isolation, implying that there is a fault in the system and that if this was sorted out then everything would be all ririghght.t. Generraally thhiiss iinnvvoolvlves askiingng tthose iin power,r, bebe ttheheyy companyy ddirirececttoorrss ununiviveerrssity researrch prroof f essorrs oos rr memberrs oos f f paparlirliament, ttt, o do sometthhiing aboutt it, just as the media are asked to be so kind as to talk about it. 17. AAllll oof tthehe rreef f eerrence poiinnttss f f oor ‘‘change’ ((pepetitions,, demonstrtraatitions,, non-- violent direct action etc.) have been given to us by those in power (or those who’d lilikeke tto be). e way tty hahat ttt hehe iissues arre ppe rresentteded,, as uniique horrrroorrss, ii, ss tthe wayy that this kind of information is put forward by the media, schools etc. e animal ririghghtts movvementt sees only the paiin and tthe miiseseryry bubutt nenevveer ttr he cause,, nenevveer ititr ss connection to something far wider, something that infests everything right down to the simplest dealings in our daily lives.
99 18. In some of its critiques of modern medicine and its use of animals as exper- imental models, the animal rightists accuse researchers of treating the symptoms ((egeg.. cancer ttr umourrs ees ttcc.).) and not ttt he causes (i(inn tthhiis case possiibblyly sstrtress orr ddiieett eettcc.)..). BuBut ttt he same critique iis easilyily applilieded ttoo tthe movvement’t’ss illillss. e sse yympttoms oof f wwiide scalle abuse of f ananiimalls aas rre easilyily apparrenent,t, bubut ttt he underlying cause of f the disease itself? A social order based upon exploitation and hierarchical power through every level of its existence is rarely treated with a mention. 1199.. BByy seeiingng tthhiings frfrom tthe perrspectivtive oof f powerr, iin suggestitingng tthahat tthehe ccrrueueltylty oof f capititaalilism iiss tto be opposed allong tthehe lilines of iissues,, ddiviveertrt peopllee from applying a generalised critique of society and puing that into practice to eelilimmiinanatte ourr enemiies and tthe sociiaall ccirircumsttances tthehey’ve cce rreaeatted whiich allllow aallll oof ttf hese siingngllee iissues tto eeo xixisst.t. PPllaayiying witith a cause lilike a TV pprrogogrramme tthahatt we can fit into a busy schedule prevents us from making a cause out of our own lives. 220. I’ve seen so manyy peoplle writrite ooe ff ttff o companiieses,, memberrs oos f f paparlirliament,t, make and sign petitions to the same or other heads of state. In doing so they’ve signed away any potential control they could have instigated in their lives and ul- timately legitimate middle class civil servants as the decision makers and wielders of power in society. In reply to my criticisms of this I’ve always been confronted by the argument that petitions are “great ways” to aract people to stalls — but f f oorr how llong do we want tto peperrpepettuauatte such a passivivee rresponse and contitinue conning ourselves into thinking that the bureaucrats the petitions are sent to will listen, or are even bothered at all? 221.1. AAt titimes yyouou’r’ree lleded tto wonder if if aall tthose peopllee iinn tthe movvementt who go about tthhiis kkiind oof f bubullllshshit rreaeallylly do carree tthahatt much?? A guguyy aatt a paparty once sasaiidd tto me tthahatt ananiimal ririghghtts was tthe only iimportrtanant iissue, yyeett he was doiingng tthe mostt papatthehetitic sstrtreeeett ssttaallllss f f uullll oof f pepetitions and lilibeberraall boboyycoco-thhiiss--oor-tr-thahatt leaflets. It seemed as if he’d never really thought about the practicalities of what he was saying. If he thought it was the most important issue then, what I couldn’t underrssttand was,, whyy he was doiing notthhiingng tto challllenge tthe autthohority oof ttf he sttaattee,, oof f capititaalilisst rreellaatitions,, moneyy, llaw eettcc. ((whose exixissttence iis whatt keeps aniimall abuse going) but everything to reinforce these with petitions and boycos? 22. With a lot of peoples’ activity it seems that what they think they’re doing f f oorr ananiimallss iis pps rreevvenentitingng tthem frfrom seeiing how llududiiccrrous and f f uutiltile sse iingngllee iissue politics are. If they really believe animal liberation can be achieved, then what is it that’s preventing them from believing that we can also rid the world of the police, poverty, multinational corporations, priests, teachers, judges, politicians, bosses, ririchch llandownerrss, iinequality eettcc.? e pprrospectt oof lilibeberraatition oof f bobotth ananiimallss and ourrseselvlveses frfrom tthe mmiiseserrabablle conditiitions we’r’ree iin does exixisstt bubutt demands revolutionary activity and nothing less.
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