Category: Education

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The Prevention Imperative

When any organisation states that its purpose or mission is to prevent cruelty to animals, one would expect that such an organisation would be engaged in activities that focus on prevention.

Let’s consider the meaning of the word, ‘prevent’

Prevent, v.t. 1. to keep from occurring 2. To stop from doing something

To prevent is to stop something effectually by forestalling action and rendering it impossible.

Prevention is something that happens before the fact, not after the event of cruelty has already occurred. It’s something we do, in every case, to stop something happening. We drive safely to prevent accidents; we eat healthily and use vaccines to prevent disease; we behave considerately to prevent conflict.

When one considers an organisation, it’s a little more complex, since an organisation is engaged in many activities, but surely the intent of the organisation must be to fulfil its mandate guided by it’s stated or at least implied purpose embodied in its name? Surely the main focus of its activities should be on those most likely to prevent cruelty?

Continue reading “The Prevention Imperative”

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Man’s Best Friend Betrayed

Dogs have been human companions for a long time. A recent study suggests that the relationship between humans and dogs started about 30 000 years ago, when fur-clad humans were living in caves and hunting woolly mammoths. “Dogs were our companions long before we kept goats, sheep or cattle,” said Professor Johannes Krause, one of the researchers from Tubingen University in Germany.

But even if this is not a proven hypothesis, we have been friends with dogs for at least 15 000 years. It’s a well-established fact that the quid pro quo between humans and dogs has existed longer than modern civilisation.

Human relationships with non-human animals started with survival needs: assistance in acquiring food and safety. There is an instinctive bond between human beings and other living things, and this helps explain why ordinary people care for and sometimes risk their lives to save domestic and wild animals.. The companion animal demonstrates how humans love life and want to support and sustain life. Continue reading “Man’s Best Friend Betrayed”

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Aliens Among Us

When I was a kid, my family used to have movie nights, most often at my Uncle’s house. He had turned his garage into a movie theatre, complete with gold eggshells lining the walls and a curtain in front of the screen. He had replicated the entire movie-going experience and I always looked forward to going there.

Uncle Bill was a classic movie buff so we saw all the old movies like ‘Gone with the Wind’ and ‘How the West was Won’, and all the Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin standards. Before the main movie he always screened ‘shorts’, half-an-hour to forty-five minute serial shows that he always showed before the main movie, and the one I remember best was ‘Star Trek’.

Star Trek was always a little more intelligent fare because the problems faced by the crew were invariably more than could be solved by sheer brute force or superior technology. Additionally, there were the ethical dilemmas demanding that choices were made, not purely to support the Federation, but to bring about elegant solutions that benefited everyone.

The Federation Moral Code, embodied in the Prime Directive, is as follows:

“The Directive states that members of Starfleet are not to interfere in the internal affairs of another species, especially the natural development of pre-warp civilizations, either by direct intervention, or technological revelation.”

Continue reading “Aliens Among Us”

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Mandatory Sterilisation: It’s not Magic

The Companion Animal Population Control Imperative

Many years ago, I read an outstanding book about the nature of cures in medicine, entitled ‘Beyond the Magic Bullet’, in which Bernard Dixon showed that the notion of a single remedy for a single malady was incompatible with the complexity of medical practice. He also showed that single-discipline approaches to any given problem in medicine were inevitably short-sighted, since every disease, particularly chronic disease, was multi-faceted.

Some years later, I was to research and adopt the Goldratt problem-solving methodology, which I developed into a set of strategic tools, the basis of which had three core components: critical thinking, complexity, and value definition. Continue reading “Mandatory Sterilisation: It’s not Magic”

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BLIND INJUSTICE

The events of last week, where a post, including pictures, presented a purportedly damning case against an animal shelter and it’s proprietor, made me reflect on posts of this nature, their legitimacy, and their effects. It was a typical ‘name and shame’ post, which I see as little more than a Kangaroo Court:

Kangaroo Court, n. an unauthorized trial conducted by individuals who have taken the law into their own hands, such as those conducted by vigilantes. Continue reading “BLIND INJUSTICE”

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Why I Don’t Eat Animals

I finally finished the first edition of my booklet, “Why I Don’t Eat Animals”. I started it in 2011, and due to new research, changes in my own thinking, and work demands, it has taken me four years to complete.

I wrote it because I noted that many people either did not know about or did not understand all of the facets of the animal consumption issue, and whenever I came across literature on the subject, it invariably focused on one aspect and not the others. So there were essays and books dealing with the ethical argument that did not engage with the environmental issue or the question of socio-economics.

This is my attempt at presenting a comprehensive explanation for why I believe there is a rational case for reducing or ceasing the consumption of animals. I also wanted to keep it concise because I recognised that many people have an aversion to reading lengthy tomes. At 24 pages, it is an hour’s investment and hopefully it will keep you engaged. One can always follow the many links, should there be a need to read more detail.

This is not a book for academics, who may find the philosophical presence incomplete. It’s a book for laymen and pragmatists, written in language that everyone can understand. It’s a book that can be read by those wishing to understand more about the place of non-human animals in our world, those who have some sense of environmental responsibility or conservation, or even by those who are opposed to consideration for animals.

Download it here: Why_I_Dont_Eat_Animals

My sincere hope is that those who read it will apply their minds to the arguments contained, consider the ramifications of their thinking and action, and, should they see the need, make the necessary changes.

Derek du Toit

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Meat: the Hunger Connection

A common myth about hunger is that it is caused by ‘scarcity’ and this perception very much depends on what you mean by the term. The idea that there is not enough food for everyone is not one supported by the facts:

“Hunger is caused by poverty and inequality, not scarcity. For the past two decades the rate of global food production has increased faster than the rate of global population growth. The world already produces more than 1 ½ times enough food to feed everyone on the planet. That’s enough to feed 10 billion people, the population peak we expect by 2050. But the people making less than $2 a day – most of whom are resource-poor farmers Continue reading “Meat: the Hunger Connection”

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The BS in BSL…

Breed-Specific Legislation is problematic for the simple reason that the notion of ‘breed’ is itself questionable, and if the very essence of the idea has no legitimacy, then any legislation based on it must be hopelessly flawed.

Breed-Specific Legislation has no basis, either in a scientific or social context. It is rooted in preconception  and ignorance concerning the relationship between breed and behaviour, and since ‘breed’ is not a scientific classification, we only have the opinions of a relatively ignorant majority to refer to.

“Politicians, prosecutors, attorneys, newspaper reporters, TV and radio station personalities, breeders, trainers, animal control officers, veterinarians, shelter workers, dog fighters, street thugs, and just about anyone able to speak has an opinion or personal theory about the strength and temperament of the American Pit Bull Terrier. These opinions and theories are based on a dizzying mixture of personal experience, media-induced images, rumours, myths, speculation, fear mongering, and personal or political agendas.” ~ Karen Delise, Pit Bull Placebo

This is partly due to a lack of understanding of ethology (the scientific study of animal behaviour), statistics and their validity, integrity and reliability of media reporting, ability of the public to identify breeds or to recognise signals given by aggressive dogs, and the contribution of human factors to animal attacks on humans.

In combination, these elements all add up to such a significant misinterpretation of the events and the decisions made Continue reading “The BS in BSL…”