BEYOND CAGES CAPITALISM AND ART: Beyond Speciesism, Anthropocentrism, Human Chauvinism, Corporatism, Imperialism, Exploitation, Alienation, Oppression, Destruction of Life and Nature, Wars, Human Overpopulation and Overconsumption, Greed, Power, Stupidity, Good and Evil, Binary Dualism and Patriarchal Hierarchy onto Libertarian Socialism, Green Anarchist Communism, Animal Personhood, Peaceful and Respectful Coexistence, Egalitarianism, Pluralism, Freedom, Generosity and Cooperation via Direct Action, Freeganism, Anti-consumerism, Anti-capitalism, Human and Animal Liberation ...
Slaves and Masters
King had a dream. He longed for a world where the races of Man could live together in a spirit of brotherhood. I too have a dream. I dream of a world where Man is at peace, not only with himself, but also with all the other creatures of Earth. I long for a day when Man rejects the exploitation of other species for food, clothing, health, entertainment or even companionship - for such a day will mean that cruelty no longer exists and it is cruelty which dominates my every conscious moment. - John Bryant, Fettered Kingdoms
It is taxing to sit at a table full of critical theorists, feminists, postcolonialists, and other social justice advocates, all excoriating capitalist exploitation while they devour bloody steaks and smear pig ribs and chicken grease across their overfed faces.... In short, the modern "radical" tradition stands in continuity with the entire Western heritage of anthropocentrism, and in no way can be seen as a liberating philosophy from the standpoint of the environment and other species on this planet. A truly revolutionary social theory and movement must incorporate a new ethics of nature, as it maintains a commitment to Enlightenment norms, human justice, and anti-capitalism. - Steve Best (source)
King’s world house is still a damn slaughterhouse, because humanism doesn’t challenge the needless confinement, torture, and killing of billions of animals. The humanist non-violent utopia will always remain a hypocritical lie until so-called "enlightened" and "progressive" human beings extend nonviolence, equality, and rights to the animals with whom we share this planet. - Steve Best (source)
NOTE: For some strange reason I can't post comments on this blog so I am going to reply to a comment within the entry here:
Quote:
Originally Posted by schadenfreude
I mentioned this topic to my friend, who is a woman of color married to a white man with bi-racial children. In fact, I don't think she's dated more than a handful of african american men in her entire life. She is highly educated, well traveled and is a world-class athlete (for whatever it is worth). She was appalled at the comparison!! While I think the comparison to be VERY valid, the topic seems to be extremely taboo...even for well assimilated people of color. How I wish the African American community would unite, they could be so powerful, especially if they used their past grievances to remedy current social issues.
The word speciesism came to me while I was lying in a bath in Oxford some 35 years ago. It was like racism or sexism - a prejudice based upon morally irrelevant physical differences. Since Darwin we have known we are human animals related to all the other animals through evolution; how, then, can we justify our almost total oppression of all the other species? All animal species can suffer pain and distress. Animals scream and writhe like us; their nervous systems are similar and contain the same biochemicals that we know are associated with the experience of pain in ourselves. - Richard Ryder (source)
Total Comments 2
Comments
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Ahimsa will indeed come. It is inevitable.Posted 09-19-2009 at 08:40 AM by Ahimsa 
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I mentioned this topic to my friend, who is a woman of color married to a white man with bi-racial children. In fact, I don't think she's dated more than a handful of african american men in her entire life. She is highly educated, well traveled and is a world-class athlete (for whatever it is worth). She was appalled at the comparison!! While I think the comparison to be VERY valid, the topic seems to be extremely taboo...even for well assimilated people of color. How I wish the African American community would unite, they could be so powerful, especially if they used their past grievances to remedy current social issues.
Posted 01-20-2010 at 03:13 AM by schadenfreude
