Author Archives: There's an Elephant in the Room

In the inferno – thoughts about selective empathy

Posted on January 6, 2020

As Australia burns, the media shows harrowing scenes of indigenous species like koalas and kangaroos, injured, burned and dying. We see so many human interest stories, individual koala mothers with infants clutching at their fur being rescued and cared for; … Continue reading →

Posted in Global disasters, Uncategorized | Tagged climate crisis, climate disaster, climate emergency, farming, inferno, joey, Journey, koala, livestock | 15 Comments

Veganism; ‘strict’ or ‘simple’ – a matter of perspective

Posted on January 4, 2020

I have heard it said that ‘militant’ members of the community ‘scare off’ people from becoming vegan with ‘strict guidelines.’ I have found living vegan to be the easiest, most consistent, most nonviolent way to live that I could possibly … Continue reading →

Posted in Addressing resistance to change, Uncategorized | Tagged animal rights, honesty, justice, militant, nonveganism, strict, strict guidelines, truth, veganism, violence | 3 Comments

December Days

Posted on December 10, 2019

The festive consumer extravaganza is in full swing here in Scotland. Wandering aimlessly in a supermarket, I see a myriad seasonal items depicting animals; curly-coated lambs, fluffy bunnies, pink piglets, yellow chicks and doe-eyed, long-legged deer delightfully adorning pyjamas, duvet … Continue reading →

Posted in Festivals, Uncategorized | Tagged bells, breast feeding, breast milk, cashmere, Christmas, consumer, consumer demand, festive, glisten, glitter, jingle bells, leather, milk, sheepskin, tinsel, wool | 7 Comments

Actions and consequences. A ‘meal deal’ with a side of honesty .

Posted on November 29, 2019

At some time in our lives we have all tried to shrug off personal responsibility for our behaviour, and sadly I speak from experience. It’s very difficult to acknowledge failings as our own, but if we are sincerely trying to … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy | Tagged artificial insemination, bee, bees, bleeding, breast, bull, bulls, chicken, chicken breast, chickens, cow, cows, creme fraiche, dairy, egg laying, eggs, electro ejaculators, honey, how many lives does a vegan save, label, maceration, meal deal, milk, processing, yogurt | 12 Comments

About the words we use: ‘waste’

Posted on November 19, 2019

The concept of ownership of members of nonhuman species and every single one of the uses we make of them, stems from the ugly prejudice known as speciesism, a prejudice with which almost every one of us is indoctrinated from … Continue reading →

Posted in Speciesism, Terminology | Tagged breast milk, consumer demand, corpse, dog, eggs, food, leather, nonvegan items, ownership, respect, respectful, speciesism, waste, wasteful, wool | 6 Comments

Say ‘cheese’ – but there’s nothing to smile about

Posted on October 21, 2019

I’ve just been watching a mainstream TV program in the UK about ‘meat free eating’. As a blogger and an animal rights advocate I’ve written extensively about the difference between veganism and the various dietary permutations that are adopted so … Continue reading →

Posted in consumer demand, dairy, Terminology | Tagged calf, cheese, kid, lamb, newborn, rennet, stomach, vegan cheese, vegetarian cheese | 4 Comments

Victims in the shadows; …And they’re off!

Posted on October 19, 2019

Today I’d like to offer some points to ponder, as outrage rocks social media about the slaughtering of Australian racehorses whose lives have been used, broken and discarded by the horse racing industry. Like all other institutions grounded in our … Continue reading →

Posted in Speciesism, Victims in the shadows | Tagged entertainment, hormone replacement therapy, horse, horse racing, horses, HRT, pregnant mares, premarin, racing, speciesism, urine | Leave a comment

Looking at language: Cull

Posted on September 13, 2019

Cull. We see the word applied increasingly to the mass killing of numerous species; to deer and to foxes and to seals, to pigeons, crows and even swans. The word is in the news at the moment, being applied to … Continue reading →

Posted in Speciesism, Terminology | Tagged animal agriculture, badgers, cull, environmental destruction, habitat destruction, nonveganism, profit, slaughter | 4 Comments

Thoughts on the price of folly

Posted on September 12, 2019

Planet Earth is experiencing an escalation of extreme weather events. This escalation will continue for as long as we fail so utterly to grasp that one of the main causes – if not the main cause – is our own … Continue reading →

Posted in Global disasters, Sentience | Tagged anger, animal agriculture, climate crisis, climate disaster, death, death row, disaster, disease, disgust, ecological disaster, fire, flood, Flooding, folly, images, sentience, slaughter | 1 Comment

Thoughts about diluting the animal rights message

Posted on September 11, 2019

For a moment, please imagine if you will, that this page were to highlight something horrific being done to humans, something such as torture, sexual violation, or forced labour. Imagine an article describing men, women and children, families and friends … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Speciesism | Tagged animal rights, forced labour, Human rights, sexual violation, social media, speciesism, Torture, truth, victimisation, violation | 4 Comments