Reader Responses to Whole Hog

I was encouraged by your recent issue on food and the many articles that spoke of the impact our food choices and means of production have on the environment and the concomitant need for more sustainable alternatives. However, the Beyond the Gates article entitled “Whole Hog” stood in stark contrast to the positive vibes emanating to that point. In the final sentence Ping Ho [’00] states, “Know that we honor the animal by also not wasting as much as possible.” This type of sad rationalization, espoused by hunters in particular, is just one of the many that humans have concocted since time immemorial to justify our horrendous treatment of other species. Let’s extend our circle of compassion to include not only humans, cute animals, and exotic animals but also those billions of unfortunate animals living the nightmares that are factory farming and vivisection, just to mention a few of the many ways we exploit those without a voice.