Props

Animal Right activists are concerned about attitude, our own first. If we are users of animals we can hardly advise others not to be. But if we’ve walked away from using them, if we’ve made a stand, we’ve done something we can be proud of. It seems obvious to say this but vegans have to stop using animals before they can help them. The ordinary individual can’t change the situation for anyone else unless they’ve changed themselves, by boycotting what shouldn’t be available anyway.
Our advice is that by reducing our dependency on the material items we think we need (most of which we don’t) we start a reduction in demand. If that is copied by others who then go on to promote the boycott idea, how can we possibly fail? Step by step it must work, until there are enough of us boycotting to affect the market place (simultaneously creating a new market for ‘cruelty-free’ products). Slow it might be but it represents a major shift in the planet’s destiny. This is one transformation of the species we are referring to, no less.
If we’re going to get out of the mess we’re in then humans have to make a few sacrifices. Some foods, some acceptance by others, some pioneer-type loneliness and quite a few comforts. Does that sound a lot? Maybe it does but we’ve been spoiled. To the extent that life is spoilt. For many it’s barely worth living. For most of us each day is filled with screaming nonsense. And all the time we know what to do about it, for the future, not straight away results bringing us peace, this is something we must be happily doing for the future, past when we will ourselves reap benefit from it.
Life is possible with just a little food and not very much more. Even bare survival would surely be better than all the luxuries if we could rid ourselves of the shame we feel. We do have a bit of atoning to do, you must admit.
Life can be full of lovely stuff nonetheless, but most stuff is material props, comforts, little luxuries and particularly the fancy foods and clothes we spend all our money on. They’re only props most of which we just don’t need.