veganarky

The front page of the local press today was covered with a large photographic depiction of Saddam Hussein and emblazoned with Saddam executed. For me, the question is are they are others out there who are, whilst not ‘surprised’ – for lack of a better word – at the somewhat common fetishising of murder in the name of justice, basing their opposition to this state sanctioned murder on a considered reasoning? I feel, perhaps panoptically, a need to contextualise. I am not a denier or conspiracy theorist. He was a horrible person who committed many many atrocities. The charge of ‘crimes against h…

Whilst it may be a clichéd title, it accurately reflects my experiences of the last 9 months. Early this year I traveled to a city on the other side of the planet, somewhere I have never visited, to research how the local community took a stand for social justice and environmental protection. I came to this city knowing not a single person, and with most references to the area (from people not from here) being largely negative. As I leave this place, I have formed my own view: it is one that differs from these negative references and reflective…

I remember first coming across Propagandhi’s How to Clean Everything around mid-late 1994. I was becoming more aware of how fucked up many things were in the world – yet not fully able to grasp or comprehend what was actually going on and why. Recently prior to this, I had an epiphany – one that I could not fully explain: it was wrong to hurt animals which led to my becaming a vegetarian. Hearing nailing Descartes to the wall / (liquid) meat is still murder really helped me clarify some things and began the process, for me, of opening my eyes to deeper issues. It was the line ‘I have recogni…

I have recently read Lee Hall’s (2006) Capers in the churchyard: animal rights advocacy in the age of terror and revisited the edited volume Terrorist’s or freedom fighters? Reflections on the liberation of animals (2004). I found Lee Hall’s book to be one published at a very necessary time and it was quite scathing of welfarist and ‘militant’ approaches (albeit not un-problematically), the latter being promoted and supported in Terrorist’s or Freedom Fighters. I am working my way through producing a review of Capers in the churchyard, yet felt the need to comment following a recent interview …