Author Topic: one sperm cell  (Read 6630 times)

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one sperm cell
« on: August 31, 2009, 07:56:11 AM »
hi,
I discovered this website two months ago and i am pleased to see that there is a forum now.
 
There are plenty of brilliant ideas in this website, but the one that gave me the strongest intellectual quiver is the slideshow one sperm cell. Such a powerful indictment against life, everyone must see.

Declaration of the end

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we are all made of stars
« Reply #1 on: August 31, 2009, 03:08:01 PM »
I thought so too, they should place it on the top of the slideshows list.
Did you get to watch We Are All Made of Stars? It’s another one that had a major affect on me. I think it had the most effect so far. It’s not such a complex concept, but once you’ve really got it, you view things differently. Our first tendency as we enter activism is turning to public education, working to convince people their acts are immoral, this tendency is profoundly speciesist and leans on the acceptation of their superiority itself. In all the years of my activism it hasn’t occurred to me I still accepted the tyranny of humans basically by turning to advocacy.
The use of means that are mistakenly labeled violent, as threats, property damage or other disturbances is as far as the struggle for animals goes while on the other hand conflicts of interests among humans involve violence all the time. Violence is a none option when it comes to protecting the most fundamental interests of nonhumans while stopping violence from one human being to another human being is legitimate, justified and applaudable no matter the amount of force used in order to stop it. Not interfering using violence can be even considered a crime in certain cases I think. Speciesism is rooted so deeply that even animal rights activists who are most certain that they view nonhumans as equal in their rights to humans are actually still basically speciesist - accepting the superiority of the human race.

It’s more than the welfare reforms promoted by (supposedly) AR organizations, it’s not just the fact that in the anti-vivisection posters animals are traditionally beagles, kitties and monkeys or the constant terminology warning those false experiments harm humans. It’s the posters that are by definition speciesist, doesn’t matter if the call is for total liberation now.

strategy
« Reply #2 on: August 31, 2009, 08:02:11 PM »
I didn’t want to get involved but I must interfere since this is getting silly, I’ll make it short.
First of all it’s easy to pass judgment but what were you prepared to do?
Second - Do you think it’s the first time this issue is talked about? It’s called strategy. Even if violence is the justified path it’s certainly not the clever one and people know that, especially following the wrath that was brought down upon us all for the late house calls and letters tactics used by few. Think what it would be like if bombs start going off.

Declaration of the end

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Re: strategy
« Reply #3 on: September 01, 2009, 05:47:27 AM »
No need to get annoyed, it wasn’t my intention to point any fingers just to share a realization I had that really left me shaken.
I wrote already what I had or hadn’t done and that’s the thing, I thought I was living up to the radicals beliefs in equality I kept talking about but the fact I  t a l k e d  about it shows I didn’t. It’s very simple and you know it also.
I didn’t want to get involved but I must interfere since this is getting silly, I’ll make it short.
First of all it’s easy to pass judgment but what were you prepared to do?
Second - Do you think it’s the first time this issue is talked about? It’s called strategy. Even if violence is the justified path it’s certainly not the clever one and people know that, especially following the wrath that was brought down upon us all for the late house calls and letters tactics used by few. Think what it would be like if bombs start going off.
Of course I heard this claim. I also relied on rationalization of this sort up until now but I don’t anymore. I can’t believe you still do and if so the amount of your self persuasion is what’s getting ridicules. It’s not bad press or alienated public that weakens the struggle for nonhumans but a speciesist movement. I’ve been a part of it for years and I know many other activists, so try as you might, you won’t convince me this movement is not deeply speciesist and moreover that this abstention from violence only perpetuates speciesism. You think nonhumans have the best chances with a speciesist movement?

SATS

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Re: one sperm cell
« Reply #4 on: September 01, 2009, 11:41:58 AM »
Declaration of the end is right in everything he (or she?) says. We become aware of this holocaust* and our first instinctual move is to pass out leaflets and hold signs?
It‘s such a depressing thought but it’s important to face it. We are all extremely speciesist, and so is the movement, many would agree with the latter but only few are willing to admit such a thing about themselves. It’s evidential in all aspects of our lives not just in how we choose to promote the struggle (not that it’s possible to separate).
And it’s not surprising we are speciesist, when the odds are significantly against us. We were brought in a speciesist world, where speciesism is such a norm that the term didn’t exist until 1973! And more importantly, we are genetically programmed to care less for those we share less resemblance with.
I haven’t thought of trying to educate the public as an expression of speciesism but it makes perfect sense. I’ve noticed other aspects, like close ties with carnivores. But turning to advocacy as a mean makes a stronger evidence, and it paints such a despairing picture. What chance is there for a revolution if the activists leading it are so inherently infected with speciesism themselves?   

It took me some time to understand this basic ethical and strategic approach that you don’t start with a compromise. Since my first day of activism I started with accepting the fact that it’s humans’ decision and my role is trying to convince them to pass the meat and pick tofu instead. I’ve never paused to think it through. I have thought that all is fair and that the aim justify the means in the long way to animal liberation and so took part in various activities including some it’s best not to mention, but I’ve never thought outside this framework. I’ve never thought that my activism in itself was speciesist. It’s a little hard for me with years of experience within animal rights activism to accept such harsh criticism from an anonymous figure like the only one solution (although even a brief browsing indicates that they are experienced activists that know their way around), but knowing that I shouldn’t kill the messengers, I couldn’t avoid asking myself the hard questions.

* calling the global system of intense animal exploitation by the name holocaust is indeed demeaning as many in the public and even inside the movement claim, but it’s not the human victims that are being undignified.
There is no frame of reference in the human history, not even the holocaust, which in any way comes close to resemble the relations between man and the rest of the species, not in size, not in variety, not in the complete financial dependence on animal exploitation and definitely not in the trivialization of the exploitation.   

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Re: one sperm cell
« Reply #5 on: September 01, 2009, 06:12:26 PM »
Wow. Your honesty and willingness are so impressive, this is what we were hoping to hear. Rationality, truthfulness and tones of care. Good luck.   

Re: one sperm cell
« Reply #6 on: September 02, 2009, 06:55:02 AM »
Getting back to the slideshow one sperm cell, most people really examine the world according to their personal experiences only, some will add the immediate vicinity and some will even "go far” to the state of the country they live in, emphasizing the economic situation. A much smaller group consider humanity as whole and the smallest group by far will take under consideration all the sentient creatures in the world with no difference what so ever. And when you think all of them over there are much less doubts about the idea. This is what this slideshow is about. The first time I watched it I didn’t understand why it is all about humans until I understood it was just a spring board to say that if this is how horrible the world is for humans, how horrible it is for animals. It demonstrates the simplest equation that accurately summarizes the only one solution idea, statistically the world is a place that most of the creatures suffer most of the time and hence there should be no question or hesitations about the annihilation idea.

 

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