oie: without a doubt one of the world’s most infamous delicacies. Foie gras was made popular in Alsace, France by Jean-Pierre Clause. It was so widely popular, peasants and King Louis XIV ate it. After doing so well in France, foie gras expanded throughout Europe then to the world (Strang). Foie gras, translated from French, is fatty liver, normally from geese. This debatable delicacy is served either room temperature or chilled, eaten alone or on top of lettuce or spinach. However, the presentation of the dish is not where the controversy is held. The controversy begins with the production of the foie. I believe the production of foie gras through force-feeding geese should be banned in the United States, because it is immorally cruel to the …show more content…
In 1999, Israel’s foie gras industry was the fourth largest in the world. Then, an animal protection organization known as “Noah” petitioned the Supreme Court of Israel to outlaw the force-feeding of geese for foie gras. During the case, Justice Asher Grunis argued that “animals should serve the needs of men” (Sullivan). Grunis explains that geese are not morally equal to humans. Israel should recognize that animals are property, and the owner’s rights to their property should not be limited. He acknowledges the suffering of the geese by arguing that there is no way to assess their pain. Later, Grunis compares the overcrowding and force-feeding of the geese to the industrial farming system in the United States of America. “Traditional agriculture has disappeared. It has been replaced by enormous farms, where animals are raised in harsh conditions. Thousands of chickens are crowded together in cages; calves are kept in extremely narrow stalls” (Sullivan). Grunis argues that these conditions are not a problem in the United States of America, and should not be a problem in Israel either.
On the contrary, Justice Tovah Strasberg-Cohen of Israel stated, “Any use of animals as means of improves man’s welfare is morally dubious” (Sullivan). Strasberg-Cohen emphasizes animal welfare and she deemed foie gras as a luxury food item, not a necessity. Convinced by Strasberg-Cohen,
Alastair Norcross introduces a very controversial case. He compares the actions of Fred as being morally equal to factory farming. Norcross presents the Marginal case and the Analogy argument. There are many objections to his beliefs such as; the suffering of the puppies is intended as a means to Fred’s pleasure, whereas the suffering of factory raised animals is merely foreseen as a side effect of a system that is a means to the gustatory pleasure of millions. Also, the individual consumers lack the power to put an end to factory farming. And lastly, human beings have a greater moral status than nonhumans. (Norcross, 285) I disagree with Norcross’s statement saying that Fred’s behavior and that of people who consume factory-farmed meat is morally equivalent.
In Alastair Norcross’ paper, “Puppies, Pigs, and People: Eating Meat and Marginal Cases” he describes a situation in which a man, Fred, has lost his ability to enjoy the gustatory pleasure of chocolate due to a car accident. However, it is known that puppies under duress produce cocoamone, the hormone Fred needs in order to enjoy chocolate again. Since no one is in the cocoamone business, Fred sets up twenty six puppy cages, and mutilates them resulting in cocoamone production in the puppy’s brains. Each week he slaughters a dog and consumes the cocoamone. When he is caught, he explains to the judge and jury that his actions are no different from factory farming because he is torturing and killing puppies for gustatory pleasure similar to how factory farms torture and kill cows, chickens, etc. for other people’s gustatory pleasure. You, the reader are meant to think that this is unacceptable, and therefore, denounce factory farming. Although there are many valid objections to this argument, I am in agreement with Norcross and shall be supporting him in this paper. I think the two most practical objections are that (1) most consumers don’t know how the animals are treated whereas Fred clearly does, and (2) if Fred stops enjoying chocolate, no puppies will be tortured, but if a person becomes a vegetarian, no animals will be saved due to the small impact of one consumer. I shall explain the reasoning behind these objections and then present sound responses in line with Norcross’ thinking, thereby refuting the objections.
American consumers think of voting as something to be done in a booth when election season comes around. In fact, voting happens with every swipe of a credit card in a supermarket, and with every drive-through window order. Every bite taken in the United States has repercussions that are socially, politically, economically, and morally based. How food is produced and where it comes from is so much more complicated than the picture of the pastured cow on the packaging seen when placing a vote. So what happens when parents are forced to make a vote for their children each and every meal? This is the dilemma that Jonathan Safran Foer is faced with, and what prompted his novel, Eating Animals. Perhaps one of the core issues explored is the American factory farm. Although it is said that factory farms are the best way to produce a large amount of food at an affordable price, I agree with Foer that government subsidized factory farms use taxpayer dollars to exploit animals to feed citizens meat produced in a way that is unsustainable, unhealthy, immoral, and wasteful. Foer also argues for vegetarianism and decreased meat consumption overall, however based on the facts it seems more logical to take baby steps such as encouraging people to buy locally grown or at least family farmed meat, rather than from the big dogs. This will encourage the government to reevaluate the way meat is produced. People eat animals, but they should do so responsibly for their own benefit.
Throughout the last century the concern of animals being treated as just a product has become a growing argument. Some believe that animals are equal to the human and should be treated with the same respect. There are many though that laugh at that thought, and continue to put the perfectly roasted turkey on the table each year. Gary Steiner is the author of the article “Animal, Vegetable, Miserable”, that was published in the New York Times right before Thanksgiving in 2009. He believes the use of animals as a benefit to human beings is inhumane and murderous. Gary Steiner’s argument for these animal’s rights is very compelling and convincing to a great extent.
Chickens have to endure suffering that no living thing should have to go through. The egg laying chickens have to be forced into tiny cages without enough room to stretch their wings. Up to 8 hens are crammed in to a cage that is the size of a folded newspaper, about 11"-14". Stress from the confinement leads to severe feather loss so the chicken will be almost completely bald in the cold cages. When the chickens are of egg-laying age, there beaks are cut off without any pain killers to ease the pain, they do this so the chickens don’t break their own eggs and eat them because the chickens are hungry.
... eggs in the United States. As evidence indicates, the greatest impact of Proposition Two will be felt by the California egg industry6. Proposition Two is also risk to the safety of farm animal, the products they produce, and decreases sanitation practices in comparison to modern housing. Under the conditions of Proposition Two, livestock would be at a higher risk of contracting communicable diseases in comparison to the disease/infection risks posed by current caging methods. Proposition Voting no on Proposition Two will keep the animal agriculture business and its animals safe and healthy while keeping the California egg industry secure. Proposition Two appears to be a measure with great potential for both the animal welfare and animal agriculture, but in reality, studies and research have concluded that Proposition Two is a detriment to both animals and humans.
Michael Pollan presents many convincing arguments that strengthen his position on whether slaughtering animals is ethical or not. He believes that every living being on this planet deserves an equal amount of respect regardless of it being an animal or human, after all humans are also animals. “An Animal’s place” by Michael Pollan is an opinionated piece that states his beliefs on whether animals should be slaughtered and killed to be someone’s meal or not. In his article, Pollan does not just state his opinions as a writer but also analyzes them from a reader’s point of view, thus answering any questions that the reader might raise. Although Pollan does consider killing and slaughtering of animals unethical, using environmental and ethical
The Comte de Virieu, a member of the National Assembly, subsequently suggested the right to control pigeon houses be terminated (Herbert). Because pigeons destroyed cr...
As for birds, over 95percent of U.S. land animals killed for food are birds, yet there are no Federal law requiring they be handled humanely.[Poultry slaughter is done with neck-cutting machines that routinely miss, slicing open the chicken’s wing, face, and other body parts. Numerous birds enter the scalding tanks for feather removal while fully conscious]. There should be some kind of Federal regulations that mandate m...
The strongest argument against the dog meat industry centers on the treatment of the dogs that are often killed by ?beating, strangling, [and] boiling? instead of more humane methods such as electrocution. Unnecessary cruelty against animals is universally considered wrong, and is in many cases illegal, and that is what makes this argument effective. Saletan addresses this argument logically, with the simple fact that in the interest of humane treatment of dogs ?South Korean lawmakers are proposing to legalize, license, and regulate the industry.? This simple fact exposes a fundamental hypocrisy within the opposing viewpoint. Saletan argues that it is the same activists who base their arguments on ending cruelty against dogs who are trying to keep new, more humane methods from being adopted. The activists condemn and deplore cruel ...
The meat packing industry in the U.S is one of the top industries that make an example of bringing corruption to new heights. According to the article “Corrupt American Food Industry is too powerful”, the meat packing industry obtains far more power than what should be acquired. The people of America have the right to know what process the meat they are consuming goes through in order for it to sit in their refrigerators. The American people should have the right to know what kind of cruel difficulties come into play when it comes down to the meat industry. The largest meat packing industries make their money by slaughtering animals, and harming living beings behind closed doors. “Welcome to the land of the free, where we consider prioritizing money over clean resources and human and animal welfare” (Ray1) is used to demonstrate the way the meat packing industry within the Unites States operates (1).
In this paper I will look at the argument made by James Rachels in his paper, The Moral Argument for Vegetarianism supporting the view that humans should be vegetarians on moral grounds. I will first outline the basis of Rachels’ argument supporting vegetarianism and his moral objection to using animals as a food source and critique whether it is a good argument. Secondly, I will look at some critiques of this kind of moral argument presented by R. G. Frey in his article, Moral Vegetarianism and the Argument from Pain and Suffering. Finally, I will show why I support the argument made by Frey and why I feel it is the stronger of the two arguments and why I support it.
Moral capacity is a common interest shared by humans, it is the basis for intrinsic value and therefore holds more value over sentient.” The ideology of moral capacity was introduced by the philosopher Immanuel Kant. The purpose of this essay is to address the question “Does the ethical status of sentient beings compel us to veganism?” by supporting Kant’s position against Francione’s view of animal rights. The arguments generated in this essay will respond and agree to Kant’s reasoning that humans have no direct duty to animals and therefore can be used as commodities to serve human needs.
Tom Regan, “The Case for Animal Rights,” in In Defense of Animals, ed. Peter Singer (Oxford: Blackwell, 1985), 21. U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistical Services, Livestock Slaughter. 2005 Summary, March 2006: USDA, NASS, Poultry Slaughter: 2005
" University Of Windsor Review 16.1 (1981): 92-101. Print. The. Laurence, Margaret. A.S.A. & M.S.A. A Bird in the House. Toronto, ON: McCelland & Stewart, 2010.