Altruism and Optimism

1967:

Out of optimism comes stability, and if our optimism persists, stability increases, and it brings a sense of permanence. The sort of change that is made by people who ‘go-vegan’, as it stabilises and as habits form and as the practical difficulties are ironed out, that change brings about a sense of being ‘vegan-for-life’. There’s a sense that we’ve got past the temptation stage, where we may have slipped back into our old ways, to where we find that even those things we thought we’d definitely miss have already faded in importance.

To achieve this change, to get to the point where we can feel entirely at home with being vegan, it is rather strange when we’re living in such a carnivorous society. Most people have never even given ‘going-vegetarian’ any serious thought let alone given any consideration to veganism. Their meat and dairy foods, and their woollens and leather shoes, are all part of their everyday life. For them, it might seem impossible to contemplate a life without these foods and commodities.

For us though, other interesting bits of life open up. Vegans, once established in their food and clothing regimes, are free to look ahead into other interesting areas, all of which are quite out of the question for anyone still using abattoir products. Those who are still omnivores will find it impossible, for example, to explore the principle of harmlessness, which is central to a vegan’s day-to-day existence. Vegans understand that a lot of the negativity which omnivores feel against us, is coming out of the frustration of being so closely connected with violence. Being customers of the Animal Industries, there’s bound to be a pessimism about the world and its future in general. If too many people pessimism to dominate their reality, they will generate a self-fulfilling prophecy of an inevitable ‘Coming Catastrophe’.

Pessimism is responsible for clumsiness. And nothing clumsier than a belief that change is only possible by the use of force - “change has to be big and fast, otherwise it won’t work”. And even if there were a common fear of catastrophe and a genuine search for ways to avoid it, something like veganism would never seem potent enough to set off the sort of chain reaction needed for major social change.

But here is where slow and strong works wonders. Veganism is slow to catch on but when it does it feels strong enough to change the world. It establishes the basis for reform. Its presence might be hardly noticed by those who want to ignore it, but when it enters your life it establishes a deep sense of rightness. Veganism is so profound that most people refuse to recognise its potential. If it ever does suggest any sort of solution, it will have to be seen as unreachable or unrealistic. It represents the need for change in the way life is viewed, and because it is an unpopular philosophy, it is easily dismissed.

         

However, popular or not, it is precisely in tune with the character of the 21st century. It’s thoroughness and optimism promotes a root-and-branch change, despite the fact that it might not show any signs of ‘flowering’ during our own lifetime.

         

For many this long-term prospect is off-putting. The two reactions Society makes to anything too long-term - “It’s already too late, so why bother?” and “I don’t give a stuff about the future anyway”. These are merely expressions of pessimism and selfishness, neither of which will impress future generations when they come to analyse the history of the early part of the century.