I once watched a cat torture and kill a "family" of mice - mother and
several babies. Was the cat oppressing the mice? Should I have intervened
to stop the slaughter?
Doug
Doug Henwood [[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Left Business Observer
212-874-4020 (voice)
212-874-3137 (fax)
On Sat, 29 Oct 1994, Brian A. Luke wrote:
>
>
> >
> > > The real battle is in making sure that in both places appropriate agricultural
> > > techniques are being used, so that the environment is not damaged. There is
> > > nothing intrinsically wrong with "agribusiness." Agriculture is a business.
>
> To me "agribusiness" means using the land to make money rather than
> to feed people, and it does strike me that there is something
> intrinsically wrong with this.
>
>
> > I do
> > not think that bioregionalism means *only* buying local produce. But, I
> > do think that it means being conscious of how all of our purchases impact
> > *people* as well as environments.
>
> Somehow animals have dropped out of that list. Or is ecofeminism
> just about people and environmental systems? Let me try a concrete
> example: suppose a farming system passed the bioregional test,
> that is, the food from it was locally produced in an ecologically
> sound manner by people who are not being oppressed or economically
> exploited. But, this food production system also involves taking
> calves away from their mothers at three days old, keeping them
> tethered and confined in stalls 24 hours a day, and slaughtering them
> at four months of age. Isn't there still a problem here?
>
> This is a serious, not a rhetorical question--do the members of this
> list take ecofeminism to be about the interrelations between
> patriarchy and environmental destruction, or is it about the
> relations between patriarchy, animal oppression and environmental
> destruction?
>
> Brian
>
>
>
>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sat Oct 29 11:03:46 MDT 1994
>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sat Oct 29 11:03:45 1994
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Date: Sat, 29 Oct 1994 12:04:57 -0500 (CDT)
From: Jonathan M Poppele <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: Regional consumption
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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On Sat, 29 Oct 1994, Doug Henwood wrote:
> I once watched a cat torture and kill a "family" of mice - mother and
> several babies. Was the cat oppressing the mice? Should I have intervened
> to stop the slaughter?
First of all, Doug, I don't think you can easily say what you were
observing. The cat has natural hunting instincts, if it was a house cat,
they likely were not very well developed and the cat was "playing" with
its prey to sharpen its skills. I would much rather see this than feed a
cat gound up pig which was raised on a factory farm. Our keeping of house
pets is another messy situation. If the upshot of it is you see workings
of natur you would prefer not to, don't keep pets. If the upshot is that
your pet needlessly "torchers" mice (forages even though it does not need
the food), don't keep pets. The cat, I suspect, was not doing anything
unatural. It only may have seemed that way because of the unnatural
surroundings you saw it in.
Hope that all made sense,
Jon.
>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sat Oct 29 11:16:52 MDT 1994
>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sat Oct 29 11:16:51 1994
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Date: Sat, 29 Oct 1994 10:19:29 -700 (PDT)
From: Pam Stricker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: Jayne S Docherty <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
cc: Multiple recipients of list <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: seeds, organic agriculture
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I have been reading this list from behind the scenes but when the topic
turned to heirloom seeds and organic agriculture (one of my fav topics) I
had to respond. A good source of seeds is the Seed Savers Exchange in
Decorah Iowa. For info send SASE to Rt. 3, Box 239, Decorah Iowa 52101.
They are trying to preserve plant varieties that could be lost forever if
the large hybrid seed corps continue on the present course. I think there
is also an exchange between subscribers and Organic Gardening Magazine
also facilitates a seed exchange between its readers. Agricultural
technology can be a point of contention for some. I think it is important
to look at the work of Hecht, Warren , Brokensha and others attempting to
document the agricultural methods of some indigenous peoples that we can
all learn from. Growing your own food (when possible) even in small pots
on a patio, sharing space in an urban-garden setting, or even sharing
your backyard space with someone who does not have such a space is
revolutionary. Years ago people grew food in their yards instead of
grass and it was only the development of the idea that not having to grow
food as a sign of wealth that the traditional home gardens went by the
wayside. (Sorry about the runon).Anyway if we were all able to at least
grow some of the food we eat, we'd all be healthier. This rings
especially true to me in light of the reports on estrogenic properties
of certain pesticides and the reduced nutrient
content of food grow in soil that has only been fertilized artificially
(not to mention the destruction of the soil structure itself which leaves
it vulnerable to water and wind).Excuse my soapboxing, I am very
passionate about that (and try to deal with it by working on the issues
in my academic/activist life ). Plus gardening is very relaxing and a
good physical workout that really gets you back int touch with the earth
and all the beautiful creatures that inhabit it. A last point on
indigenous peoples and their world views. I agree with Jayne (I think it
was her) who said she as Im sure many of us do, that indigenous people
are often taken advantage of by those who seek to commercialize their
beliefs. I agree. But I think we need to hear their messages as they have
a great deal to teach the many of us who are spiritually lacking a
connection to the earth and humans' proper place in it. There's a lot of
work being done on intellectual property rights over this but not as much
as for beliefs regarding spirtuality. sorry such a long post. pamela.
