Why I Have Pet Chickens

The most frequent question asked about my raising three chickens is, “Well, what are you going to do with them?” People are confused—what is the purpose of having chickens? Understandably, it does seem odd in the 21^st century to have three chickens roaming the backyard for no other reason than for the pleasure of their company. When a chicken is nothing but a commodity, to be used for flesh, for eggs, could there possibly be any other purpose?

Chickens are curious, adorable, social creatures. They are inquisitive, unique, and full of life. They have unique personalities. They enjoy open space, sunshine, dust baths, good food, and lazy afternoons. They are also creatures who can experience suffering, just like the family dog or cat. And my chickens are my pet chickens, just like your dog or cat. They exist to exist, and for nothing else. I do not plan on raising them for their meat, and being a vegan, I do not even plan to use their eggs. They are my pets, and they bring me joy every day.

9 billion chickens are slaughtered every year in the United States. From hatchery to slaughterhouse, chickens are most likely one of the most abused animals on the planet. From birth, they are pumped full of antibiotics to grow fat and full of meat by the target slaughter age of 45 days old. They grow heavy so fast that they become unable to support their own weight, and are unable to walk. Chickens are crammed into tiny cages, their beaks are cut off to prevent cannibalism which is brought about by their confinement and their inability to establish a pecking order. They live a short life full of suffering–they don’t even get to see the light of day.

My three chickens have no idea how lucky they are. They are the very rare and lucky few of their species that will get to live out their lives to the fullest and die a natural death. Factory farming causes myriad damage to our environment, our health, and unneeded suffering in millions of creatures. By raising pet chickens, I am making a statement against the hegemonic culture that accepts chickens for nothing more than consumer products. By raising pet chickens, I am putting into action my belief that sentient beings like chickens have the right to live without excessive turmoil by the cruel and brutal suffering we impose on them for our selfish appetite.

So to answer your question, what am I going to do with my chickens? I am going to let them live a long and happy life.

Gender Roles in America

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The Branding of a Candidate

Really interesting interview with one of the guys who helped create Obama’s identity and logo. Naomi Klein would call this “branding,” and it sure is. It’s politics of a new generation…

Prop 8: The Musical

This is freaking amazing. And has two of my favorite actors in it.

One Step Forward, One Step Back

America, I think you are pretty cool right about now.

California, you have disappointed me. You call yourself a progressive Blue State? You might as well go hang out in the Bible Belt for all I care.

::sigh::

A Good Day for PETA

Have we lost our sense of irony?

So PETA, being the shock-seeking radicals they are, released a proposal to Ben & Jerry’s asking they switch from cow’s milk to human breast milk for their ice cream products. This isn’t the first time PETA has challenged milk production by equating it to women’s breast milk: remember the “Milk Gone Wild” commericals? This request of theirs is obviously so ridiculous, that you would think the media would catch on. But they didn’t, and they fell right into PETA’s clever publicity stunt.

PETA is ideologically positioned in believing that animals are at equal status to humans. They believe animals should not be eaten, used for products, experimented on, or used for entertainment (this includes zoos and pet-owning). They are pretty radical, and have been associated with the Animal Liberation Front, a vigilante group who has been known to use violence and property destruction to spread their pro-animal message.

In protests and demonstrations PETA often uses shock-value and macabre images; this use of the tasteless and obscene may do more damage than good (are they simply trying to shock people into becoming vegans, or do they really wish for the peaceful liberation of animals?). Past campaigns have included protestors raiding high-fashion store fronts while wearing furs spattered with “blood”, and billboards juxtaposing images of prisoners in Holocaust camps to cows in slaughter houses.

Anyone who knows anything about the way PETA functions as an activist group would be able to figure out that their “request” to Ben & Jerry’s is a simple satirical ploy to fool the typical American. Their absurd idea is so strange that it of course made the headlines, spurring bloggers to talk about how they “respect PETA, but this is just going too far!” Well, my dear blogger–that is exactly the point!

PETA wants you to equate milk-giving-cows to milk-giving-mothers, because in their mind these two species are equal and both deserve happiness. Their hope is that this reasoning will lead to the question: if cows suffer intensely due to the overproduction of milk, what would happen if we did this to human mothers?

Good one PETA. I can’t say, like many of the bloggers out there, that I respect PETA. I believe many of their tactics to be too extreme, and not founded on education or tolerance (not to mention that they exploit and degrade women in their campaigns). I believe they give animal rights activism a bad name. And unfortunetly because they are the most well known animal rights activist group (and the most extreme), any who fight for animal rights is immediately shunned by association. However, I must say that their marketing is smart, and in this case, witty, sardonic and clever beyond belief. So kudos to PETA today for showcasing the shallowness of our media: joke’s on you!

Palin, Eve and Polar Bears

The Buddhist in me wants to accept the fact that no matter who wins in November, suffering will continue. We must remember that grand change does not occur in four years, or eight years, or one-hundred. Real long-standing change is called evolution, and that only occurs throughout thousands of years. We are humans, and we have been making the exact same mistakes over and over again since the dawn of civilization. Can one elected president really stir up that much change?

The optimist in me wants to believe in hope and change, and that the American public is smart enough to vote for the best candidate. And that good will overcome evil, that things can and will get better.  But the cynic realist in me is beginning to accept more and more that McCain has a very good chance of winning, and if he does things could continue to get worse: my rights as a woman and a human being will be stripped away, the Judeo-Christian god will rule the land, national ID cards will be established, and unnecessary death, war, and destruction will continue.

All I know is that the stakes have never been higher. And never before has a presidential nominee used such a backhanded, conniving, and calculated choice for their VP. Choosing Palin was a strategic choice to rally the feminists, the Hillary enthusiasts, and the right-wing religious fundamentalists. This choice has lit McCain’s campaign on fire; he has effectively upstaged Obama.

Eve Ensler re-awoke me to the atrocities of this political theatre, with this essay which hits the crux of the issue:

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Cats and Dogs

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Chock-full of pathos, this video made me want to pull a Molly Shannon and go adopt 20 dogs.