View Single Post
  #94 (permalink)   Report Post  
Posted to alt.animals.ethics.vegetarian,misc.rural,alt.food.vegan,talk.politics.animals
Florida Florida is offline
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 8
Default "collateral included deaths in organic rice production [faq]"


dh@. wrote:
> On 7 Sep 2006 13:42:44 -0700, wrote:
> > Ok, there it is. That's my third try at a comment on this subject.
> >If this one doesn't work, I give up. The frogs are on their own.
> > Well, except for the frogs on our property, where they are treated
> >as worthy fellow critters who have as much right to be there as we do.

>
> So far I don't really know where you're coming from or what
> your position is on this.


In all seriousness, I think that frogs are likely to be essential to
some complex system involving bugs, pond & stream life, vegetation,
etc. Without getting googly-eyed sentimental about it, I meant what I
said - they have as much right to be there as we do, so we are careful
not to do things that would kill them wholesale, like spraying, mowing
brush close to the stream, and so forth.

> If you farm rice, I'd be interested in what
> you have to say regarding details about the whole thing.


No, we past the age where we could choose to farm. We
feed-the-extended-family gardeners with a lot of different
infinitesimal ecosystems on our 10 acres, brushland, meadow, forest,
stream, and pond. The property is all natural, but it's so varied that
it almost looks as if someone was deliberately putting together a
science project.

> Also if you're a farmer, would you agree that some livestock have lives
> of positive value and some don't, and that their lives should be
> given as much consideration as their deaths?


Not sure I understand the question, but since we have chosen to live
in the country among real farmers whenever we could for some decades,
let me just say what my opinion is: I *don't* believe that all life
equals all other life, or that city dwellers should be allowed to
decide how many deer countrymen have to deal with. Or for that matter,
how many mice, rats, shrews, racoons, skunks, squirrels, wild dogs,
rabbits or bears.
Livestock, tho, well... now and then over the years, we have seen a
few dairy farmers treat their cows with the same abuse and contempt
that some congressmen use with their constituency. Dairy farmers who
do that stuff usually don't do well; with congressmen it doesn't seem
to matter.