From: ac@riemann.math.mun.ca (Alka Chandna)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.animals
Subject: Re: PeTA ACTION LINE
Date: 27 Sep 92 21:06:23 GMT
Organization: CS Dept., Memorial University of Newfoundland

kdw@icd.ab.com (Kenneth D. Whitehead) writes:

>	No more than your trendy radicalism bores me.  (But don't worry, alka, 
>	I bet those college kids you teach think you're REAL cool, even though
>	you're a member of the establishment, and in spite of the fact you're
>	so much older than they are.  Why...  You talk just like one of the
>	kids!)

By referring to my compassion for animals as "trendy radicalism", Mr. White-
head, I feel that you're conscienciously belittling opinions which are very
central to my being, and indeed, the beings of a growing number of individuals.
My students *do* think I'm an excellent teacher, and they appreciate my com-
passion towards them in that I would never refer to them as "kids", and I try
hard to present concepts to them in an accessible manner.  Those who know 
about my animal rights views may think it's cool or cooky or crazy, but that's
not part of our relationship. 

>ac>  Plus, you're totally off the mark when you 
>ac>  think that I want guerilla theatre.  What I want is change, and do take 
>ac>  this as a threat to your neandrathal way of life and neandrathal way of
>			      ^^^^^^^^^^^                 ^^^^^^^^^^^

>	(Aside to anybody else reading this:)  Don't you just love it when some
>	pseudo-intellectual, esp. a college professor, tries to "call you a 
>	name" on the net, and then misspells it?  Not once, but twice, so it 
>	(Sorry;  I know it's tacky to flame somebody for their spelling, but 
>	under the circumstances, I just couldn't resist.) >:-)

You're right, Mr. Whitehead, my spelling leaves much to be desired.  I don't 
want to make excuses for myself, but really it's a matter of atrophy.  I used
to write for trendy radical university student papers when I was an undergrad,
and to a certain extent, this kept my spelling and grammar in check.  Since
that time, however, as a grad student/teacher of applied mathematics (at a 
university, not a college), the extent to which I was required to spell cor-
rectly only went as far as "x", "y" and sometimes, "z".  I do appreciate your
correction.  Thanks.

>ac>  thinking, that having been an activist for many, many different causes for
>ac>  the last 10+ years of my life, I *know* how to go about getting it.


>	Well, alka, I suggest then that you wave your magic wand and eliminate 
>	everything you disagree with,  

The point is, Mr. Whitehead, that the revolution that I envision, and that I
work for, is a revolution of the human spirit.  There's no magic wand that can
accomplish such a thing.  What's more, I'm not interested in simply "eliminat-
ing" what I perceive as the wrongs of the world.  I would like to see a world
where no animals are ill-treated at the hands of humans, not because there are
some laws which prevent such ill-treatment, but because human beings have come
to the understanding that animals are individuals with intrinsic value, and as
such deserve to be left unharrassed.  This being the case, the only thing that
one can do is offer information to people (and please don't say "misinformation
- I'm talking about people learning that fish feel pain, that cows will some-
times try to scale walls twice their height to escape when they are on their 
way to the killing floor, that fur-bearing animals sometimes gnaw off their
own limbs to escape from a leghold trap), and hope that they will be stirred
by a feeling of empathy and a sense that the cruelty that we inflict on animals,
regardless of how other animals may behave in nature, is senseless and simply
not necessary.  

I have dark moments where I wonder if such a transformation in
the way that we (collectively) view animals can ever be achieved, but usually
I have faith in my fellow human beings.  Why?  Because when I was in grade 13,
dissecting cats, the biggest issue for me was that I hated the smell of
formaldehyde.  As an undergrad, I was very aware of slaughterhouse conditions,
and yet I continued to eat meat.  There seems to be a tendency on this net
to label the hunters & the vegans.  The dialogues are antagonistic enough that
one can understand why this occurs.  On the other hand, it wasn't that long
ago that I ate meat or wore leather.  It was only in the last five years that
I began to recycle & become more conscious of my consumptiveness.  There are
still times when I struggle with certain of my behaviours that I think are not
in line with my beliefs, but I'm willing to have faith in my own potential to
change, and I certainly have faith in yours. 	 

	alka