Tag Archives: speciesism

A brief thought about words: euthanasia

Posted on May 31, 2019 by There's an Elephant in the Room

A recent comment sought to amend my terminology when I described the killing of Emma the shih tzu as ‘slaughter’. The terms ‘put to sleep’ and euthanasia’ were not only preferred, but my use of the word ‘slaughter’ was condemned. … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Terminology | Tagged burial, death, Emma, euphemism, euthanasia, execution, killing, kindness, language, put to sleep, shih tzu, slaughter, speciesism, Terminology, veganism, words | Leave a comment

Being property – what it means

Posted on May 26, 2019 by There's an Elephant in the Room

There’s a story that’s causing outrage in the media at the moment, about a healthy dog named Emma who was slaughtered and cremated so that her ashes could be buried along with her deceased owner. The comments were predictably scathing, … Continue reading →

Posted in Nonhuman family members, property status | Tagged animal rights, betrayal, burial, consumers, Cruelty, dog, Emma, funeral, healthy, indoctrination, law, laws, legal, legislation, Nonhuman family members, outrage, pets, possession, possessions, property, property status, shih tzu, slaughter, speciesism, vegan, veganism, welfare | 2 Comments

Petitions and single issues – where’s the harm? – FAQ

Posted on March 10, 2019 by There's an Elephant in the Room

I was recently asked the following very well articulated question by a friend who is a committed activist and vegan advocate; I understand why we don’t want to put effort into single-issue causes, especially those that are so blatantly speciesist … Continue reading →

Posted in FAQ, Single Issue Campaigns, Speciesism | Tagged advocacy, animal rights, antispeciesism, betrayal, campaigner, campaigns, counter productive, death penalty, euthanasia, execution, harm, Harm reduction, innocent, otherisation, petitions, promoting harm, regulation, regulatory reform, rights, Single Issue Campaigns, speciesism, speciesist, veganism, welfare, xenophobia, xenophobic | 9 Comments

Speciesism and the welfare of property

Posted on February 15, 2019 by There's an Elephant in the Room

Sometimes we are told that someone ‘loves’ ‘their’ animals, or that they ‘treat them well’, but the claim that is always shouted from the rooftops is the one about ‘high welfare standards’. These claims may come from people in a … Continue reading →

Posted in property status, welfare | Tagged autonomy, business asset, commerce, commercial assets, companions, consent, feelings, guidelines, individual, property, regulations, rescue, respect, sanctuary, sentience, sentient, speciesism, welfare, welfare standards, well-being, wellbeing | 16 Comments

Feet of Clay – no need for heroes

Posted on September 17, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

Feet of clay: a weakness or hidden flaw in the character of a greatly admired or respected person Without any effort at all, I can think of a number of high-profile persons who are hero worshipped for their claims to … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Celebrity culture, Speciesism | Tagged animal rights, apologist, breast milk, campaigner, can't all be perfect, celebrities, celebrity, harm, heroes, high-profile, Human rights, individual, non-vegan, pedestal, speciesism, vegan, veganism, zealot | 3 Comments

Staying true – more thoughts on ‘reducing suffering’

Posted on August 31, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

More and more often I see comments from those who for some reason identify themselves as vegans, comments in which they are approving the most astonishing levels of violence and brutality to the defenceless individuals that veganism is sworn to … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Harm reduction | Tagged death, extremism, extremist, foetal bovine serum, harm, honest, less use, pragmatism, realistic, reducing, reduction, slaughter, slaughterhouse, speciesism, suffering, true, truth, unequivocal, unpopular | 2 Comments

Nothing less than veganism

Posted on August 16, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

Last night was a landmark for There’s an Elephant in the Room on Facebook. Becoming vegan August 2012, when I first became vegan, began a time of discovery; a new age in an unfamiliar landscape. Most new vegans will have … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Awakening to veganism, Festivals | Tagged advocacy, awakening, ethics, harm, justice, nonviolence, petitions, rights, speciesism, truth, vegan, veganism, victims, violence | 9 Comments

Thinking about things other people do

Posted on July 13, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

When confronted with information about what is done to members of other species at the hands of our own species, have you ever caught yourself saying, ‘at least things like that don’t happen here’? I know that in the past … Continue reading →

Posted in Addressing resistance to change, consumer demand, welfare | Tagged breast milk, Chickens and eggs, consumer demand, Cruelty, dairy, milk, myths, not here, other people, others, sentience, slaughter, speciesism, truth, vegan, veganism, victims, violence, welfare | 14 Comments

Hens and puppy mills – an analogy

Posted on May 8, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

Not a day goes by that I fail to see someone contradicting a post that explains – often at some length – that there is no such thing as a humane egg. As soon as there’s a post about eggs, … Continue reading →

Posted in 'Happy' exploitation, Chickens and eggs | Tagged abolition, advocacy, backyard, chickens, Chickens and eggs, commodification, commodities, consumer demand, dogs, egg-laying hens, ethics, harm, health, hens, humane, motherhood, puppy farms, puppy mills, reproduction, resources, rights, selective breeding, speciesism, truth, vegan, veganism, victims | 25 Comments

We’re so vain – thoughts on intelligence

Posted on April 17, 2018 by There's an Elephant in the Room

Another comment that often appears amongst the arsenal of tired old excuses that humans cling to in their attempts to justify the use of members of other species, centres around presumptions of superior intelligence when compared with every other species … Continue reading →

Posted in Addressing resistance to change, FAQ, Speciesism | Tagged advocacy, awakening, Chickens and eggs, commodification, consumer demand, dairy, death, Earth day, harm, human superiority, intelligence, moral choices, resources, rights, sentience, speciesism, truth, vegan, veganism, victims, violence | 7 Comments