Animal Rights: The Final Frontier

The fight for animal rights is a voyage in and of itself. as one of many captains in the fleet, i have found it is not an easy task. especially when your ship is alone in a very harsh territory. taking inspiration from Star Trek: Voyager, a show about a ship alone in a far away quadrant full of a multitude of unknown dangers and struggling to survive, i can relate well. as a lone activist in Owensboro, KY, i have found that activism is seriously lacking. i am the proverbial Captain Janeway. Owensboro the Delta Quadrant. struggling not to just get home, but survive and help the animals to as well. unfortunately, i am up against enemies of my own. hunters, meat lover alike share many common grounds. the least of which is religion, feelings of superiority over non-humanoid life, and a desire to fear and destroy that which they fail to understand...

I know it is not just a coincidence in Star Trek: Voyager that they decided to show hunters in the episodes known as 'The Killing Game' 'Flesh and Blood parts 1-2' and 'Prey'. they really made them look true-to-life despite efforts here in the 21st Century to whitewash the majority to believe hunters are doing some public service. in Voyager, however, they showed the true mentality. that of killing purely for sport. you see, hunting has not been a survival method for centuries. today, it is as obsolete as, shall we say, a Class 1 Shuttle. or a rotary telephone. no one uses those, so why hold to hunting? how many times have we been told 'hunting has been around since the dawn of time?' 'humans would not have survived without it!' well i cannot change history. it would also be a violation of the Temporal Prime Directive to attempt it. however, i can change the future. hunting is obsolete. archaic. if we love to hold to one form of obsolescence, why not go all the way? why not use horses and buggies? oil lamps? why not use telegraphs instead of Facebook? certainly hunters are not too stubborn to upgrade to the newest version of Microsoft Windows when they inevitably issue a new version, so why is it so hard for them to even consider 'upgrading' to vegan?

The Borg. another inspiration and relation to reality courtesy of Gene Roddenberry. the reason we hold to such archaic past acts is due to the very nature of assimilation--otherwise known as indoctrinization. brainwashing. fearing being an individual, we are driven to assimilate into a collective mentality. that of one mind, one force, no independent thought. our government is akin to the Borg. where the only law is 'resistance is futile' and i am not kidding. if anyone does try to break the iron grip of our Borg Queen, we are put away. the AETA, Hunter Harrassment Law, and many other limits to our freedom to speak for the rights to life of animals is not uncommon. and we have not begun to see the last of it. the battle is going on as we speak. and we shall never give in to the whims of the Borg. we must never allow them to assimilate us into their culture. for if we do, we will be destroyed

But it is not as fun and easy to watch as Star Trek. in real life, we have real criminals. and this is no show. this is life. hunting is no fantasy on some holodeck we can simply say 'Computer! End Program!' and have it whisk away. this is a real war. fought by real people. and sadly, if it is anything akin to the Battle of Wolf 359, it is us who are outnumbered. we must never give into the whims of welfare, 'humane hunting' or 'humane slaughter' the problem is this thing called religion, indoctrinization, and lies. we do not need to kill. and there is simply no LOGIC in being threatened by a life that does not bring death to others. i am surprised no one is jealous of us, as there is nothing to be shameful of in a lifestyle that does not kill others to live. one day i will find the reason people feel threatened. one day i will find the real reason humans hate deer and feel superior to animals. as they say, find the cause, cure the disease. we must stop chasing symptoms of a much larger problem. we have to find the cause if we are to cure it. and pardon my cliche'd exit, but Helmsman, Set a course......for home!

"What you are doing is not in self-defense! it is the exploitation of another species for your  own benefit. my people decided long ago that was unacceptable, even in the name of scientific progress!"

--Captain Katryn Janeway. Star Trek: Voyager 'Scientific Method'

Common excuses for hunters and meat lovers supporting their acts

Many excuses exist for those defending a lifestyle both archaic and obsolete, whether it is generally meat eating or otherwise. hunters, i claim are more dangerous than a general blind meat eater in that they can harm animals and witness what would make many go vegan at the sight of it. but regardless, i find many who, even on our side, support their arguments. some claim again that humans who are 'wild' have a right to kill animals for food, completely ignoring that we are not omnivores and share much of our anatomy with herbivores.

1. Hunting is more ethical/sustainable/healthy than beef/factory farms/slaughter
This argument is used mainly by both Animal Activists (mainly welfare who pose as 'rights') and hunters alike. they usually seem to agree that hunting is not full of the hormones, the level of industrialization that is factory farming. and in that essence, they are correct. however, what they are incorrect in is that hunting involves far more suffering (bowhunting has a wounding rate of over 65%, while animals on factory farms are lucky to live for 15 minutes after being slit in the throat; a deer embedded with arrrows can suffer for weeks and starve) and hunting requires a mentality of the consumer that is relative to a serial killer. one who buys meat from the store (and of course from factory farms mainly) would not be shown the amount of harsh cruelty done to the animals. hunters, in contrast, can kill animals directly and see everything. hunting then, is like a wall-less slaughterhouse. what would make any average meat eater consider going vegan over would not likely phase a hunter, who can see all the gore and still eat his/her kill.

2. Hunting helps control populations where predators are no longer in sufficient numbers or are extinct.
I know the argument of who killed all the predators off seems to mean nothing to those on both sides now the fact is that it is exactly why there are 'too many deer' as hunters claim. and no, hunting does not help control populations at all. in fact it does more harm, in that humans lack the instincts of a true predator who only hunts animals by hand and is only able to 'cull' the weak and sick animals (healthy ones are too fast/experienced), thus ensuring a naturally strong gene pool. since humans need weapons and other tools to even remotely hunt animals. their being sick or strong has no merit, and the most favored animals are the strong ones. hunters claim that sick animals can make humans sick or cause food poisoning. this is true. however, NO true predator gets sick even if consuming a deer with CWD. like Bovine BSE, CWD IS possible in humans, but it takes a decade to show symptoms. and sadly, by then, it is too late. no cure exists for either disease once symptoms show up.

3. Humans hunting deer is more 'humane' than a wolf doing the same
Leaving the lack of logic in this argument aside, i will argue it. what IS 'humane' to anyone? is it naturally eating meat due to a physiological need and having an anatomy that ensures a quick kill and fast consumption or is it the feelings of which is savage and which is civil? do we claim that wolves, animals with a need for meat, who are able to rip animals to shreds is more cruel than a human who claims to end lives with one shot more humane? or is the definition of humane to mean that those who do not need to kill should not? humans, do not need meat. there is plenty of evidence and many who live as vegetarian or vegan who can prove that point, so is the killing of meat really about how it is killed or that it has to be killed at all? if we do not need meat, then the  deaths for it is certainly unnecessary, wasteful, and in that respect, cruel and inhumane.

4. Humans have the right to choose/it is my choice of a diet/don't force your opinion on me
One of two last resort tactics used by humans who hunt and eat meat both. that we have the right to choose and that meat is legal and available makes it wrong to 'force a change on them'. but do murderers have a right to choose? are we forcing our opinions on those who buy guns legally and then shoot humans? pets? no! do we have a right to choose to rape a woman or child even if sexual enhancement drugs are legal to buy? no! are we forcing our opinion on those who destroy buildings and human lives in terrorism by imprisonment? NO! there is no 'right to choose' if it involves a wasteful destruction of an innocent life for something one does not need. while i will not argue against lethal force used in self-defense, the point is hunting is NOT legally self defense nor necessary. it is simply wasteful.

5. God gave us animals to eat/use/for us to benefit from
I really despise arguing religion as it is so illogical. the Bible of many religions contradicts one another. the Koran says it is ok to kill 'infidels'. our Bible claims that homosexuals should be 'put to death' (read the Leviticus chapters). but it also makes many errors. for a supposedly superior being who 'knows all' would it seem rather dumb of Him to claim that Earth itself is a 'disk' or that rabbits 'chew the cud' or that bats 'are birds?' i find that a bit funny really...

...but getting to the argument itself. it always cites 'animals' are here for us to [yada yada yada]. if so, then why are dogs, cats, pets, exempt and even protected by law? aren't they animals too? i do not recall the phrase which is cited (which does not exist in any Bible of any kind from any religion by the way) being in favor of 'wild' animals or 'farm' animals. so in essense, since humans, pets and  wildlife are ALL ANIMALS by that standard they use they should not have any compunctions against killing anyone for food or trophy, including us.

                                          "Hunting a species to extinction, is not logical"

                                         --Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home