Murdering animals

I was pleased to see Hanna Rachel Raskin’s story about Casey McKissick’s mobile chicken-killing machine [“Going Out for the Kill,” Aug. 27], which included more about what’s really involved in bringing food to the table. McKissick acknowledged that many supporters of the local-food movement still “shudder at frank discussions of animal slaughter,” and that the unpleasant task of killing chickens has led people to rethink their livelihoods. This article helped to take the warm and fuzzy out of locally raised and killed animal products. The more people learn about where their food comes from, the more they will make kinder and gentler choices. I thank Ms. Raskin for her article, which no doubt opened minds while turning stomachs.

Leonardo Da Vinci said: “The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look upon the murder of men.” But you don’t have to be a vegan, genius, visionary artist to recognize speciesist behavior. CBS’ 60 Minutes commentator Andy Rooney recently said, “I wouldn’t be surprised if we came to a time in 50 or 100 years when civilized people everywhere refused to eat animals.”

Regarding the ensuing letters, Dana Nagle thinks the medieval torture device is “fantastic,” and criticized J. McCormack’s comments to the contrary as dogmatic and self-defeating. I disagree. McCormack is to be commended for speaking out against the senseless violence and the almost incomprehensible denial that allow it to continue. Might does not make right, and killing animals to satisfy an acquired taste—and because we have the power to do so—is simply not right.

— Stewart David
Asheville