Goines On: Sanctification

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A pang of longing shot through Goines at Walmart, at his impulse to buy eye wash – a repetitive act of old, but no longer called for, since Ziggy had gone on and his and Mrs. Goines’ own need for eye wash was a small fraction of what Ziggy had needed because of his allergies. The thought now, in the pharmacy at Walmart, of buying eye wash somehow elevated the act – or just the thought of the act – to the status of a sacrament, a holy, hallowed, blessed act: in remembrance of Ziggy.

Eating other animals: Is it humane?1

One of my "new ten commandments" (#5 in the post linked to) is to treat all living creatures humanely. An old friend and I have been comparing our philosophies with respect to other animals. We agree on humane treatment. Gorillas shouldn't be killed in order to cut off their hands to use as ashtrays, for example. Hunters shouldn't kill animals for sport. But I go further than my friend in being sympathetic with vegans whose abstinence from eating flesh rests on their moral position that animals (including fish) should not be killed in order to be eaten (or raised in ghastly industrial circumstances for that purpose).

Not all vegans base their abstinence on that moral position. My friend himself is a vegan, but for the reason that it is healthier not to eat meat. And I am not a practicing vegan at all. My position is "purely philosophical" and, I suppose, in some way hypocritical (even though I freely admit it).

One thing that plays into my "philosophical veganism" is the concept of compassion as presented in the popular book How to Want What You Have, by Timothy Miller, which I read some years ago. Miller doesn't talk about compassion (so far as I remember) with respect to animals other than humans, but I found it impossible, from a broadly philosophical and moral viewpoint, not to apply it to all living creatures. Miller's concept relative to humans is that one person isn't any more derserving than the next person. He recommends that the principle of compassion guide our moral choices, the way we treat other people.

Obviously, that's a profoundly Gandhian or Jesus Christian point of view. Meekness. One doesn't have to "believe in God" to find the concept powerfully attractive, as I do. My political philosophy is grounded in the belief. This explains why I so loathe the George Bushes of the world (overprivileged, underdeserving), why I am a "liberal," why I vote "for the common good" rather than to benefit my own pocketbook, why I am so critical of "popular [materialistic] culture"—perhaps even why I am critical of sports fanaticism.

I just wanted to put this out there, while I'm contemplating it anew. Thank you, my old friend.
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1. I toyed with titling this post more simply just "Eating animals: Is it humane?," but I realized that would include cannibalism, which I trust we need not get into.