Melange Saturday
Too bad it’s not Monday. Melange Monday. I think that’s my new series, and here’s a preview . . . The New York Times editorial board says some of what we’ve all been saying (the wtf? part) this morning regarding…
Posts from the ‘Language’ Category
Oct 11
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Oct 10
On What ‘Eco-Kids’ Appear to be Missing
When I was talking with a journalist from The Christian Science Monitor a couple of days ago, I emphasized the need for humane education and financial literacy in schools. These are not instincts. Any day of the week I can…
Oct 9
Killers Arrested for Preventing Slaughter?
Welcome to The Twilight Zone, otherwise known as The Sunshine State . . . Florida. Just north of me last week, three lovely young gentlemen (Caleb Smith, 21; John Richmond, 18; and Anthony Strickland, 26) were out for a night…
Oct 7
On Being Trained Not to Be Active or Concerned
After the Seligman debacle I was thrilled to read Naomi Wolf’s Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries (still not done with Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine as it was in Florida and I was in NYC), particularly because…
Oct 5
Believe It or Not, I’m Happy
There have been more than a handful of instances when readers felt a desperation in my tone. And I do think it’s there, but I think it pertains more to my feeling that the masses don’t appear to be going…
Oct 4
On Happiness and Altruism
I was so busy trying to get beyond Seligman’s torture of dogs and rats that I neglected to mention something important yesterday. Seligman is a self-proclaimed pessimist, which in a way makes the following easy to understand: “A corollary of…
Oct 3
On Irony and Happiness
I was packing to leave town and had Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine with my luggage. I’ve been reading it for months and I’m finally close to finished. My husband provided me with a dare of sorts: “Read something positive…
Oct 3
Animal Person Has the Best Readers
I’ve been in NYC, with practically every moment scheduled. All went well until I wrote about Obama’s intention to adopt a shelter dog. I received 32 e-mails from readers, telling their personal stories of how they spend their time in…
Oct 1
Animal Person Caught Being Cynical
I know, Mary Martin is cynical isn’t exactly news. But has something like this ever happened to you? You hear that when the Obama’s get to the White House they’re going to adopt a dog from a shelter. Maybe even…
Sep 29
Neal Barnard on Ellen Today
I know that Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi had a vegan wedding and I think that’s great. They’re clearly on their way and sending well-calculated messages to the world. I’ve been watching as Ellen’s talk about animals and their…
Sep 28
On REAL Animal Rights Campaigns in NYC
REAL probably isn’t a good word. But “abolitionist” these days is so loaded that I’m happy to sound a little Valley Girlish (or would that be if I used “Totally”?). Regardless (or, irregardless, which oddly means the same thing), two…
Sep 27
On Human Breast Milk Ice Cream
Human breast milk ice cream. That’s got to need some hyphens. All those nouns in a row can’t be correct. Yesterday morning, on The Today Show, Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford were talking about the PeTA request that Ben…
Sep 26
From Eating No Meat to Advocating FOR Slaughter
Jenny was kind enough to inform me that the day I posted my review of Catherine Friend’s ode to betrayal and slaughter, The Compassionate Carnivore, Jenna Woginrich posted “Is Eating Local Meat Kinder Than Vegetarianism?” Woginrich, a vegetarian, actually bought…
Sep 25
On the Krabloonik Dogs
I was supposed to be in Aspen for nine days, starting today. I’d be staying at the St. Regis and spending lots of money there and in town. The petsitter situation became unworkable, however, and alas, I’m sitting at my…
Sep 24
On THE COMPASSIONATE CARNIVORE
I read The Compassionate Carnivore, by Catherine Friend, thanks to my local public library. As you probably have guessed, the book is an advertisement for small farms. It vilifies factory farming, and oddly fetishizes smaller farmers and their practices. The…
