Comments on Secondhand Smoke: Your 24/7 Seminar on Bioethics and the Importance of Being Human: "The War on Scientists"

For me the bottom line is , majority of humanity s...

2008-08-06T11:38:00.000-07:00

For me the bottom line is , majority of humanity supports animal research on a factual intellectual basis because they put their family ahead of the lives of lab rats or dogs. That search for cures is as amoral as having omnivores eat meat or Vegans eating corn flakes that are protected by animal rat deaths caused by coumarin poisoning. At leat the lab rats have animal welfare law protection but that rat at the Grain Elevator died a tough death without any concern by Vegan ARA.

Joshua, that is a better analogy but it's been use...

2008-08-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

Joshua, that is a better analogy but it's been used to the point that I suspect that she was looking for a new one for the sake of contrast.

The list of causes that have been used to justify violence is huge, and many of the causes themselves (including Christianity and other religions) are themselves positive and worthwhile. The problem is when zealots and extremists use the cause as their excuse for the use of force. I see these efforts more as power-grabbing than as attempts at social change.

The analogy given here is not very good. Creationi...

2008-08-05T23:26:00.000-07:00

The analogy given here is not very good. Creationists don't think the teaching of evolution is killing anyone (well...most don't).

A better analogy would considered those who blow up abortion clinics and threaten abortion doctors.

padraig: I agree and disagree. I think the ideolog...

2008-08-05T12:24:00.000-07:00

padraig: I agree and disagree. I think the ideology leads to the methodology because the value of the lab rats is seen as important as those of the cancer patients.

But clearly, one need not necessarily lead to those methods, as Gary Francione has opposed, as has Tom Regan (a little wobbly in my view) and this symbolic gesture (at most) from HSUS.

But the real problem is utopianism, where the ends are seen as justifying any means.

$2500 from HSUS? That's not gumption. That's a c...

2008-08-05T09:31:00.000-07:00

$2500 from HSUS? That's not gumption. That's a cheap attempt to cover their buns with a PR sop.

Kudos to the Smokette. People need to realize that the issue is not AR ideology, but their methodology. They can have any views or opinions they like, but if their message is rejected that does not entitle them to commit civil disobedience at any level.