Some over-the-top passionate talk

1131: 

If vegan activists are in the business of talking about animals, it all adds up to one great big personal challenge.  And, eventually, for some of us, that can become a main reason-to-be.  I can only speak for myself, but for me it is almost obsessional.  It’s that interesting.

         

The whole Animal Rights thing has to be one of the greatest challenges any of us face. Whether struggling to change eating habits/ wardrobes, or as vegans, struggling to change others’ views of what veganism is. I suppose it boils down to NOT letting the challenge incapacitate us. Let it be inspiring or energy-making but not depleting.

Because we live by such an obviously meaningful code of behaviour, all vegans know what a life-with-‘meaning’ feels like; it’s almost impossible to imagine what life-without-meaning must be like. But the suddenness of this realisation, for us, is double edged. Unfortunately, this bolt-from-the-blue has the effect of moving us even farther away from our (omnivorous) friends, and that makes things difficult all round. It makes us more separate, and with that come particular problems. It makes what is incredibly important to us too far away from those who find that very matter uninteresting and ignorable.

I think that’s where the main glitch is. Our gremlin. As soon as we vegans realise we’re UNABLE to discuss this subject with others, we then have to go around with gaffer-tape stuck across our mouths. And them to be especially well taped with those others, who remain deliberately ignorant of this subject.

Not only is ‘Animal Rights’, as a subject, multifaceted, but it can’t help itself, for it will keep inferring or pointing the finger directly, at almost everyone. And that makes this subject both complex and indigestible for most people. The subject is nothing if not broad - implications (behind ‘animal-rights-vegan-nonviolence-etc.’) touch everywhere. Almost nothing in our modern day lifestyle remains untouched or unexamined (at least by us).

What I think is happening today, is that a growing number of people are no longer necessarily able to trust as much as they used to. For example, we can’t trust those who were once considered trustworthy-sources-of-food-and-clothing’.

For us to feel safe, we all need to be sure of the safety of the stuff we bring into our lives. It’s trust we’re used to, because we’ve grown up with it. We want to believe what we’re told. We want to believe products aren’t darkened by violence. And yet we’re all between a rock and a hard place over this.

We are but ordinary, if brain-enlarged, human-animals. Survival is our top game. (Same for all animals and beings). One might say that it’s one hell of a powerful instinct, survival. But, when a problem is encountered and we start to feel any discomfort, we use force to solve the problem.

We say: there’s almost nothing we do (especially involving others) that wouldn’t benefit from a little violence. Even in mild cases, we all find ourselves using some force to get what we want. Methinks - what outcomes for my benefit?

         

If we try to make this subject of Animal Rights/Veganism just an ethics or health issue, we’d be selling it cheaply. It’s all of that, but so much more. It opens up a piece of our mind that focuses on peace-of-mind. It opens up a zone where intelligence mixes with compassion, helping us to resonate with each other and, if you like, get closer to our very soul.