Technological advances force us to reconsider our relationship to animals
Re: “Like all utopias, veganism is destructive”, Have Your Say, yesterday.
Robin Grant managed to get two statements right in his letter berating mine. He said animal rights activists “want to save the planet” – we definitely do, for our future generations. He also mentioned the need to think first before repeating out-of-date quotes about animals – for example, “bringing home the bacon” – which children find hard to understand.
Everything else he accused me of, such as seeking to destroy livelihoods, is false. In reality, the industries and jobs mentioned can be replaced by clever manufacturers who are already producing superb manmade fabrics from hemp, bamboo and recyclable materials, rather than silk, wool and animal skins.
Today culinary delights abound for us without destroying our planet by breeding and slaughtering billions of chickens, turkeys, pigs, lambs, calves and more.
Our oceans are depleted of fish stocks due to overfishing and our native animals are losing their habitat due to burgeoning human populations.
Of course we can all agree with Eric Bahrt, who said, “I believe the most deplorable and cowardly people on earth are those who do harm to the weak and defenceless, whether human or animal.”
Diane Cornelius
