Australia is about Optimism

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Here in Australia I notice, comparing it with the England I knew forty years ago, there is an atmosphere of optimism. It’s undirected, but I swear it’s there. People look at you. They make eye-contact. And you don’t do that when you’re pissed off.

            But, in general, all around the world, people seem blasé about animals – they’re not yet conscious of them as sentient beings. They eat them, race them, wear them, vivisect them. But here, there’s a germ of something hopeful and I think it can be traced back to our respect for equality (albeit only amongst humans).

            In regard to the Great Egalitarian Dream (humans living amongst humans as equals) Australia has a lot to teach the rest of the world. Now, if that could broaden to include animals, we’d be in a prime position to be true leaders of a coming age.

            A central value, which is very twenty-first century, is the egalitarian ‘fair-go’ principle. That’s what Australians are famous for. It puts people here in an ideal position to understand the wrongness of speciesism (by becoming more ‘conscious of animals’).

Australians are explorers. We’re curious to try new things – so why shouldn’t we explore a more peaceful lifestyle, and ditch the violent food and all the violence we do to animals? I see most Australians as being, deep-down, the most friendly bunch of people you could ever meet. We could lead a change.

But there’s one small glitch we need to fix up, before any of that can happen. It’s a glitch, deep-set and worldwide. If we are going to change (specifically change the way we see the fauna) then simultaneously we need to see plants differently. Plants provide us with all we need, well, plus a few minerals. We don’t need animals, well, not to eat, certainly. The indignity of depending on them! They of all ‘people’. Our closest sentient cousins.

I think, regarding food, we have a bit of egg (and literally!) to wipe off our faces. We need to admit who they might be, who they are. Who are they? Obviously, vegans like me, see them as angels. And just as obviously, omnivores see them as objects. That’s the difference. That’s the only difference. So, I say, that’s the thing that needs changing first, no, second. There’s something even more immediate.

All the changes we can ever make in life are nothing, when slowed down by pessimistic predictions of doom. In the wider community gloom dominates. And you can see why. We’s still a violent mob.

I doubt if vegans have anything more useful to do these days than insist on the inevitability of a good outcome. And if you’re going to do that, then it’s useful to be creative about it. The more creative we are the more optimistic we’ll be. It’s like when you’re a vegan, and being hampered by shortages (of cruelty-free products) and experiencing a narrowing of choices, and getting annoyed about all that. Be that as it may, by being forced to be more creative with what is available, we start building something new. That’s optimism!

Blog gone on holiday. Be back soon.