Oh dear, I’m behind already and the day is still young. It’s not my fault, it’s Hal Herzog’s fault, for writing such a thought-provoking and engaging book on human/animal relationships. Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat, is the kind of book that once I start I can’t put down–thus my late start to the day this morning.
Full disclosure: First off, I teach a class at the University of Wisconsin-Madison called “The Biology and Philosophy of Human/Animal Relationships,” so this is clearly a topic near and dear to my heart. In the class, we talk about the same complications and contradictions that Hal addresses: Is it ethical to eat cows but not dogs? If yes or no, why? If you had to choose between saving the life of your own dog or a person you’d never met, what would you do and why? (Argh, I hate that question!) Is it acceptable to do intrusive biomedical research on animals that might relieve human suffering? If so, is it ethical to restrict research on primates more than we do on rats and mice, when we know that both types of rodents are highly intelligent, sentient and social animals?
I should also mention that I know Hal. Not well, but well enough to be fond of him, to admire his work and to cheer him on. So I can’t be completely objective here, but if I hadn’t liked his book I would quietly put it aside and not bring it up here. But I do love the book. It’s beautifully written, it hooks you in immediately and is hard to put down. If you like pondering our complex and quirky relationships with other animals, this book is for you.
He begins the book by relating an incident that first got him thinking deeply about our relationships with other animals. He had a pet snake (Sam, who was a rescue, seriously–snakes need rescuing too sometimes) and someone accused him of feeding kittens to the snake. Sam is a boa, and boas are meat eaters (as are kittens). The charge that Hal was out trolling for kittens to use as snake food was ridiculous, Hal would never do that, but it did start him thinking: WHY it is more palatable to feed baby mice to his snake than a baby kitten who was going to be put down anyway at a shelter? To him, and most of us, the choice of which is acceptable is clear, but why? And why is it ethical to have cats as pets, given that they are predators and eat enough meat to feed entire countries of starving children on other continents . . .?
The book combines stories and science in an accessible way. For example, researchers found that people really DO look like their dogs (at least, people can match which dog goes with which person, a fact I personally would argue is not quite the same thing) and that cat and dog lovers really do have slightly different personalities (dog people are more extroverted than cat people, but ironically, cat people are slightly more likely to be open to new experiences.)
But most of all, the book constantly reminds us that our interactions with animals are in part driven by genetics, in part by culture and experience, and as a result, are often irrational and contradictory. But if you’re like me…. they are always fascinating.
The introduction of the book ends with a quote from anthrozoologist Andrew Rowan, the director of the Center for Animals and Public Policy at Tufts University. He said “The only consistency in the way humans think about animals is inconsistency.” Truer words were never said. As all dog trainers know, consistency is not one of our species’ strengths.
MEANWHILE, back on the farm: Fall is here in full stride. The asters and late sunflowers are blooming, the soy bean fields are turning yellow and poor Redford the Ram is being constantly teased by the heat cycles of the ewes, who flirt and simper at the gate between them.
And here’s Willie with his own animal relationship quandry. My best translation is: “What the . . . ?”
Pamela says
I’ve been looking forward to reading this book. And dreading it a little too. It’s hard to think about all the inconsistencies in the way we treat animals.
This makes me think of someone who described herself as a cute-a-tarian. She only ate animals who were not cute. That meant she would eat chicken but not duck, steak but not veal, fish but not rabbit.
Nicola says
Sounds like a fascinating book – I just ordered mine online. Give it a week & I’ll be able to make a (hopefully) intelligent comment on it!
Love the picture of Will – the ears say it all to me! The big question is, what did he decide – food, toy or untouchable?
Joan says
I ,also, have been eagerly awaiting this book. I find it rather fascinating the way different species of animals are perceived in our society. I had a very hard time coming to terms with the fact that I’m a dyed-in-the wool amimal lover, but then a confirmed meat- eater…So, nine years ago, I reconciled my principles, and stopped eating meat altogether. I’ve never regretted my decision and feel much less hypocritical. I’ve heard people say that eating meat isn’t inhumane because those animals are bred specifically for human consumption–I guess what IS inhumane are the conditions that the animals are kept in prior to appearing on the dinner table. I think that it is the responsibility of any animal-loving carnivore to do research before buying and consuming meat products to ensure that the critters are treated as humanely as possible before and during slaughter.
Alexandra W says
I continue to think there’s a valid reason people in the U.S. and similar countries object to killing and eating, or otherwise harming, dogs and horses. It’s not anything inherent to the animal – dog and horse meat is edible, and pigs are just as intelligent as dogs, perhaps moreso. Rather, it’s that people treat companion animals as having some, if not all, of the same rights and privileges as people. Our dogs live inside our homes. They play with our kids. They assist the disabled. They are our partners on the farm or in the city, with livestock or as sniffers or while hunting. To many of us, they are people, even if they’re not human.
People who would harm creatures given near-human status are therefore more likely to break the taboo against violence among humans. If I see someone kick his dog, I would not be surprised if he hit his child. The woman who sends her horse to slaughter is, to my mind, more likely to treat friends and family as disposable also.
You can see this more clearly, perhaps, in different niche pet communities. Among rabbit and rat owners, their pets are prized for their lovable natures and their intelligence. Yet snake fanciers will feed their own pets rabbits and rats and mice – admittedly not of the “pet” variety sold at Petco and so on – because to someone who owns a snake, a rabbit is food, not friend.
Trisha, I know you raise market lambs but at the same time are fond of many of your ewes – does this cause cognitive dissonance on your part? How do you separate “food” animals from “friend” animals when you’re living on a farm?
Lauren Mack says
Thanks for that great review. I think that is one subject that people tend to stay away from because they have strong feelings towards eating dogs or testing on them and it’s hard to explain why one species is more important than another or less important. I look forward to expanding my narrow thinking and reading the book 🙂
Jessica Hekman says
A quick note — Andrew Rowan is not actually the director of the Center for Animals and Public Policy. I wish I knew for sure if he had been the director in the past, but I don’t know. I do know that at the moment, Dean Kochevar of the veterinary school at Tufts is the acting interim director.
The Animals and Public Policy program is a really good one, particularly for people who are interested in the kind of issues it sounds like this book brings up.
The books sounds great — thanks for reviewing it!
Cassie says
The dog person cat person statement is awesome! So true at our house. I am the dog loving extrovert, but my cat loving husband is way more likely to persue some new crazy experience.
Alexandra says
Ah, I wondered if you were familiar with this book. I am reading it now; I just started so I’m not far along enough to give an opinion on it just yet.
Tina says
any comments on ‘The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption’
By Jim Gorant, just wondering what someone who treats aggression in dogs thinks of it.
kate says
I’ll have to pick up that book.
It’s been such a wild ride bringing my dogs up (coming up on 9yrs now for Daizy, 6 for George n 2 for Keegan) with your, along with Dr. Ian Dunbar and a host of other positive reinforcement methods.
I think research is going to be so interesting in the up coming years because of all you and others of like mind have done to enrich the bond between dogs and humans.
What we’ve achieved will forever change my thoughts about canine cognition. I even get a kick out of trying little experiments of my own to see what their thoughts on what my body language is communicating to them.
Today I did a test to see which yoga pose peaks my dogs interest to join in. It’s interesting how all three chose the same position:)
Jeff Line says
I’m about three-quarters of the way through this book. I have been thinking of all the people I want to recommend it to. I think he presents how consistently inconsistent we humans are with respect to animals and vegetarianism in a delightful way. He is so pragmatic and non-judgmental that the book is truly a refreshing read. I always wonder how many great things we could do for animals if all the various constituencies spoke to each other and listened respectfully in an attempt to improve animal welfare, instead of the more common shutdown judgmental talking at each other (I may have just fallen into the very trap I am attempting to decry).
If you really become interested, you might consider membership in the Anthrozoo Society. Their Journal presents many fairly readable studies on the issues he is discussing. Having said that, some of the studies don’t strike me as being the most rigorously designed I have ever read. That does not mean the studies can’t be interesting and thought provoking.
AnneJ says
See, this is why I loved your class so much. I can’t get enough of this type of topic. Now I deal with the pet vs. food in a concrete way regularly since I raise lambs. Some people come here and see them and say, ” ooh, I’d like to buy one when you butcher”, and other people say “how can you stand to eat them once you’ve seen them alive?”. Not to mention helped them be born, possibly bottle fed them, and worked with them every day. As for the second question it just seems natural to me. Even when I’m caring for them they are not in a “pet” category.
Alexandra says
@ kate – Thanks for sharing, your yoga and dog video is incredibly cute!
Denise says
Kate, the yoga pose video made my day – Thank you!
I’ll pick up Mr. Herzog’s book as soon as possible. This is an issue that has fascinated, confused and vexed me for years. I’ve been vegetarian the better part of my life, sometimes vegan, mostly not. But I’ve always fed my cats and dogs meat based foods – raw for the last four years. My relatives blanch when I describe a slab of beef or chicken as dog food but it is, at least to me. And yet, what about the suffering of the animal whose flesh and bone I am cutting up for my dog? No matter how humanely handled, I have no illusions that any animal volunteers to become dinner or footwear or an experiment. I don’t have tons of experience with cattle or poultry although I did work on hog farms for a few years in the 80s and they are wonderful animals – smart as heck, curious, personable and fun loving – when they get the chance to be. Factory farms never give them that chance. They’re production units, nothing more. It’s incredibly sad.
One of the arguments of the eat local movement is that it’s better to eat locally, humanely reaised meat than to eat tofu made with soybeans grown across the country. I get that argument but just can’t bring myself to do it. I don’t know what the answer is but maybe that’s because there isn’t one answer. It’s good to be thinking and talking about it though – non-human animals, whatever their status, can only benefit from the discussion.
rheather says
Joan and Alexandra W-
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I raise goats for milk and meat and can both enjoy interacting with them(they’re all people friendly) and eating them. When I was telling a co-worker that I’d rather kill them myself (so they wouldn’t have to go to a strange place and be scared) he looked at me a like I’d grown another head, but to me it makes perfect sense. ‘Pet livestock’ is a phrase I’ve stolen from Gina Spadafori at Pet Connection, but it fits.
Karen says
I find it interesting how much my views on animals has changed since I became a pet owner. Never gave much thought to animal testing or thought about the cats that are eaten in certain countries, etc. Boy, has all that changed! I now live with 3 dogs and 3 cats and now view animals in a whole new way. I can’t even watch westerns on TV where they make horses fall down at a full gallop!
This brings up an interesting question…why do some people bond so strongly with their pets and other people don’t? I now volunteer in animal rescue and I will never understand people who give up dogs and cats they have had for years for no good reason.
em says
This sounds like a fantastic read! Weirdly, my husband brought up this issue last night, though from the other side of the coin. I cannot for the life of me remember what inspired the thought, but he turned to me after a speculative look at Otis and said, “If we were dead, do you think he’d eat us? I mean, I imagine he would if it were a Donner party situation, if he were starving, but would he understand that it was us and feel sad?”
I don’t know. I hope never to find out. Good question, though…do animals do something similar when it comes to categorizing food vs. friend? I know that I read somewhere that cats raised with mice will refrain from hunting that particular species of mouse when adult. Livestock guardian dogs bond with sheep and other prey animals all the time. Will they eat one of their own sheep if it happens to die? If so, or if not, why? Now I’m more curious than ever!
I’m also curious to know if people would match me with Otis…I wouldn’t think so. I’m short, roundish, and sort of motherly-looking. Otis the dane looks like the dog version of a heavyweight prize fighter-long legs and rippling muscles. If we were speaking purely about LOOKING like one’s dog, then I think I’d be safe. But without knowing what clues people picked up on to match dog and owner-clothes? shoes? fitness level? personality? it’s hard to predict. I’d love to know more about that study, too, so it looks like I’m headed to Amazon 🙂 .
Kat says
As if my pile of books to read wasn’t already sky high…and now it’s one book taller. Currently I’m reading Dogs Can Sign, Too. More of a howto manual than I was expecting but very thought provoking.
I grew up on a small farm and we raised animals for meat. It would sometimes freak out our friends when we’d discuss which pig the ham had come from “Is this Snort or Mort,” my sister asked completely blowing her friend’s mind. “You name your dinner?” asked the friend. “No we raised the pigs we’re eating, one was named Snort and the other Mort.” It never seemed strange to us in the least. While they were animals in our care they received good care and pleasant lives. When it was time the butcher would come out and it would be over quickly then awhile later we’d take all the coolers to the butcher’s shop and bring home a bunch of meat and fill up the freezers. The only creature I ever felt badly about was the 4-H lamb that was sold at auction and went to the slaughterhouse. I never showed another meat lamb, after that I only showed breeding stock; meat lambs we sold privately to family friends. (easy to do if the flock doesn’t number more than a dozen and a half.) There were two big crabapple trees in the yard and we’d feed the windfall crabapples to the sheep. Everyone claimed that it made for really tasty lamb. I, personally, never cared for lamb it always has a sort of lanolin undertone that puts me off. Now I’m just rambling but I think the way I grew up, close to the food on our table, has done a lot to shape my view of animals.
JJ says
I just got back from a two day conference called VegFest – a conference about vegetarianism and veganism. I learned a lot at this conference, including some interesting statistics about the meat industry.
Most meat animals are not raised in the nice farms talked about in previous posts. Most of the creatures are tortured their entire existence and then given gruesome deaths. For example, after only an average of 6-8 months of life (where a dog’s span of 13-15? years is normal), the pigs will be taken in trucks where some die frozen to the sides of the trucks. The rest are suppose to be stunned before being killed, but it is estimated that at least at third are skinned and boiled alive. It bears repeating, skinned and boiled alive. And I haven’t gone into the pain they go through before that ending process.
My question is: Is it really a case of people thinking that this is acceptable treatment for pigs but not dogs? Or are people just willfully ignorant? In other words, people do know in an intellectual way that the animals they eat have had lives of horrible pain and horrible deaths. But as far as I can tell, the vast majority of people hide from the details. My question is, if they knew, would they still think it is OK? Would they still participate?
JJ says
In response to a previous post on local meat vs non-local soybeans:
I do not remember the exact statistic, but another thing I learned at the VegFest conference was that there is less impact on the environment from eating one day of plant-based meals than from eating 7 days of local meat-based meals. Again, I do not remember the exact statistic, but that is the gist of it.
trisha says
Someone commented awhile ago (sorry, don’t remember who) that it seemed that I answered comments selectively… and I always wanted to respond to that. I wish I could give you rhyme or reason as to why I answer some comments rather than others, but I can’t. No, that’s not true: the reason is just not related to the content of the comment. It’s related, rather, to how busy I am at that particular moment. Some days I set aside time to answer comments, some times I just jump in in spite of needing to do other things. Would that I had a life in which I could sit and answer all the questions and comments that I would like to . . . But I can’t, and so I’ve given myself permission not to feel guilty that I can’t answer all the comments. That said, accept my apologies for not being able to respond to so many great comments and questions, I just simply can’t.
That said, I’m jumping in here in response to JJ and Alexandra too: First, and please understand that I say this respectfully and after teaching the topic of agricultural animal welfare for over 18 years now (or close anyway), do keep in mind that information about how animals are treated are filtered through the perspective of the speaker. Agricultural interests will show photos of clean, happy calves being petted by bright-eyed young children, and those opposed to animal in agriculture tend to present the pictures and statistics that show the darkest of all possible side of the industry. This blog is truly not the forum for it, but I did need to say that the truth of the matter is usually somewhere between those viewpoints, with both ‘sides’ often being a tad biased in their claims.
I am greatly respectful of vegetarians and vegans who make their choices from knowledge and factual information, whether it is rights-based or welfare-based. I have made my own very carefully considered choice to include some meat in my diet, but there are many kinds of meat I do not eat (based on the welfare of the animals in question and the welfare of the planet). I have chosen to primarily eat meat that is raised in ways that are humane for them, for their parents and for the environment. But yes, that means that although their parents will live on year after year in good health, the young will be killed for meat.
I am not only concerned about mammals, but very much about marine life, which is being profoundly threatened on a world-wide basis. All I can say further is that the choices we make are often extremely complicated: the choice to use a ‘natural’ pesticide like Pyrethrin in your garden for example is one of the reasons that Mtn Gorillas in Rwanda are so endangered (people chop down the forest to grow the crop.) The minerals used in cell phones have a horrific effect on the environment and the animals who live within it. . . That’s what I love about the UW class I teach–it helps us all think about the big picture, and understand the web of forces that affects the animals (and ecosystems) around us.
So, I have to sign off to go feed my sheep, (the ewes get names, the lambs do not) and house pets. All of us will eat something tonight that has an effect on something else…. we all just have to make our own personal, educated decision about what effect we are comfortable with.
Alexandra says
For anyone who is interested in further reading about farming and where our food comes from, I recommend “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan. I also learned a lot from the documentary, “Food, Inc.” There are certainly a lot of things to consider regarding food. The more I have learned, the stronger my desire to have nothing to do with “factory” style farming and support local, sustainable farms instead. It’s a been an ongoing process to learn to feed my animals that way as well.
trisha says
I agree completely with Alexandra: Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma is excellent. I also think highly of his “In Defense of Food” and earlier books, “Second Nature” & “The Botany of Desire” (you’ll never think of an apple again in the way you did when you were growing up. And Johnnie Appleseed? Oh my.) He also wrote a great article about picking out a steer on a ranch and following it’s life, and death, to the end. I think it was called something like “Power Steering”. I also love Barbara Kingsolver’s book, “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle,” about her family’s commitment to eating locally and growing most of their own food for a year. It’s full of stories and information about the American food industry.
Debra says
The picture of Will reminded me of something weird that my dog did. My friend made me a goofy dog shaped animal out of pipe cleaners and tiny clay flower pots (okay – it’s very weird). My dog nosed it, and actually sniffed under the pipe cleaner tail, like he was sniffing a dog! I put it away and brought it out again yesterday and he did it again. It really made me wish I could ask him what he was thinking.
I was raised in farm county and we we regulary had to slaughter our own meat. I support FFA and buy lambs the kids raise each year. I think being raised in the country helps you better understand the cycle of life and makes it easier to accept. My “city” friends don’t understand but I think if you’re going to eat meat, you should know where it comes from and how it’s “harvested”. Having said that, I have greatly reduced my meat consumption over the years because I think it’s the right thing to do environmentally.
Also – I don’t look like my dogs, but it recently hit me that I definitely have an Australian Shepherd temperment (the good parts and the bad parts!) When I mentioned that to my husband (who is really a cat person) he said “it took you 20 years of having Australian Shepherds to figure that out?” Embarrassing sort of…
Laura O says
I am extroverted AND love to try new things. I also love dogs AND cats.
I lean more towards dogs but I can’t stand routine. I can use the same words and signals to tell my dog what to do, but I keep coming up with new activities for us. Maybe that’s my way of being his catlike owner with success?
Or maybe I’m confusing as hell. Hmmm.
LOVE you Patricia! I want to take time off from work just to take your class in Wisconsin!
JJ says
I know it’s just generalities, but I have to report that I’m quite the introvert (from the scientific definition) and love dogs way more than cats. Go figure.
Trudy Bentley Rech says
I will get this book. I was hooked when previewing it on Amazon. I have met Snooty the Manatee mentioned on page 3 when I lived in Bradenton. He holds a special place in my heart, too. I am among those who are former vegetarians. Frankly, I don
AnneJ says
It’s not dogs but this summer I had the chance to observe a litter of foxes just about every day as they were growing up in the pasture. When they were about 3 months old their mom died- near the den so I saw her. She lay untouched for about a week, then they did eat her, which was pretty darn revolting watching them tussle over the carcass. The father fox continued to bring them food afterward , including a neighbor’s guinea hens, and I believe the pups survived and dispersed.
JJ says
Trisha: I respect anyone’s thoughtful and educated eating decisions. Despite the way it may have sounded, I’m not actually against all meat eating. I’m against meat eating when it supports suffering and unnecessarily destroying the planet. I do not think that you and I are all that far apart in our outlook.
I was going to leave it at that, but there’s one thing that you wrote that truly stunned me. I haven’t been able to get it out of my head. You wrote: “…the truth of the matter is usually somewhere between those viewpoints …”
I couldn’t stand it any more, so last night I dug out one of my favorite dog books. It’s the one you wrote, The Other End of the Leash. I re-read the pages titled “The Tragedy of Puppy Mills”. (Thanks for having such a good index so I could find exactly what I needed right away.)
You didn’t mince words when talking about puppy mills. Here are some examples: “Puppy mills are dog factories, assembly lines … that would turn your stomach.” “… they cause tremendous suffering to untold numbers of animals.” “The mother dogs were trapped…” “abusive” “downright vicious” “…cages were stacked three high, the higher dogs urinating and defecating onto the ones below. Each dog lived on a one or two foot high mash of compressed urine and feces, her flesh covered in angry red sores.” “concentration camps for dogs” “By buying that cute little puppy, you are supporting puppy mills, allowing them to continue raising unsound animals from miserable, enslaved parents.” (To me, this is parallel to my meat eating point: that most of the meat people eat involves supporting suffering, arguably on an even worse level than the puppy mills.)
The above paragraph on puppy mills sounds EXACTLY like the descriptions of the meat factories, which are also I understand from personal, educated observation. Just as the meat factories present themselves in a happy light, the puppy mills put on a happy face too (as you pointed out in the book). Someone who has not seen the puppy mills with their own educated eyes might look at your description and say something like, “the truth must lie somewhere in the middle.”
Would you say you were biased when you wrote about the puppy mills? Did you exaggerate? I don’t believe that the truth of the puppy mills lies somewhere in the middle. You have seen the situation at the puppy mills with your own educated eyes. I don’t think you are biased. Sometimes situations really are evil (or downright vicious as you put it).
Everyone has a right to an opinion on topics they have not personally viewed. We sometimes have to rely on information gathered by others and then check our inner compass for our own opinion. My question is, when you wrote that the truth of meat factories lies somewhere between the two viewpoints, I wonder if it is an opinion based on your research and teachings or if it really comes from personal experience of viewing meat factories (educating yourself about the animals in the meat factories and then personally inspecting them) like your description of the puppy mills does.
I fully understand you do not have time to respond to every post. Also, perhaps this post is not fair, putting you on the spot. I don’t expect a reply. I just couldn’t let the comment go without response, for the same reason I haven’t been able to let go of the puppy mills description since I read it.
trisha says
To JJ: Thanks for your thoughtful question. It deserves an answer (and one longer than I have time to write). But here’s a brief, but heart felt answer: When I wrote that the “truth lies somewhere in the middle” I didn’t mean that the life of every animal in agriculture “lies somewhere in the middle” and that each animal lives (and dies) a ‘sort of okay’ life. What I meant was that the views expressed by people who have strongly held, and strongly expressed beliefs, are often not exact descriptions of the industry as a whole. Yes, oh yes, there examples out of there of horrible (and completely unnecessary) suffering–and that knowledge has had a profound effect on my own practices. There are also examples of agricultural animals being treated wonderfully while they are alive, but the advocates of different viewpoints tend to focus on the extremes. That’s all I meant by “the middle.”
I also appreciate your not wanting to put me on the spot. I am happy to talk about my own beliefs and practices in person and in my UW class, but I am cautious in this venue for obvious reasons. As a public figure, the only time I had death threats was when I talked on the radio about the difference between animal welfare and animal rights. I made no judgments, just explained the difference. That night I got calls at my home threatening my life. I have had a mob of angry people shriek “murderer” at me when I was returning a video tape to the Primate Center. Ironically I was returning a tape I had shown my UW class about the similarities between humans and other primates. Once I explained that, the crowd quieted, but then someone said “But she raises market lambs and eats them” and the shrieking, faces filled with hate and rage, began again.
So here’s what I’ll say: I choose to eat some forms of meat after many many years of learning about all the aspects of welfare and environmental health that it entails. I know a tremendous amount about the lives and deaths of animals in American and European agriculture, both from direct experience in farms and slaughterhouses, from reading hundreds of research reports and discussing the issue in class for over 18 years. That knowledge has had a profound effect on what I eat. I am extremely lucky in that I live in an area in which a large number of people who care deeply for animals and the environment provide humanely and healthily raised chicken and pork. I eat my own lamb, and that pretty much wraps up my meat consumption at home. After learning about the welfare and environmental implications, I eat lobster but not shrimp or scallops or most farmed fish. I consider it a great irony that many people say they “don’t eat meat” except for chicken and fish… two of the groups who suffer the most and are the causes of the most serious environmental problems.
I could go on for hours, but I will leave it at that. I very much appreciate JJ’s thoughtful question and believe me, I understand how personal and sometimes emotional this issue can become. It is one of the beauties of our species that we are able to have such empathy with other animals, and thus to feel their pain; and it is one of the tragedies that we are so often able to ignore it. I wish people could discuss this issue with more knowledge and less reactivity–that’s why I love teaching my UW class so much, because I am able to create a space for us to do that.
JJ says
Trisha: Wow. Thank you for your nice response. I can’t believe you actually got a death threat. That’s just shocking. Hearing that, I’m doubly impressed with your braveness in talking about this issue.
Thank you for clarifying your reply as well as sharing your personal views.
Nancy says
I was lucky enough to snag Herzog’s book at a small local library (imagine that bit of luck) near me. I’d read about in People magazine, of all places.
And so far–I’m enjoying his book and I’m not sure that the Amazon reviewers have given it a fair shake (or a fair read).
All of these shades of gray can be so . . . mentally and morally challenging. I really struggled with the whole “what if a train was going to hit either your dog or a strange man.” I know what I SHOULD do but it’s hard to reconcile the guilt and sense of betrayl I’d feel afterward.
The first time I got a flavor for these moral, well, messes, was in college college classes, but I’ve also learned a lot from you, Tricia. Sometimes I wonder how one can stay in this field of study and not walk away with a daily headache (let alone heartache).
Love how Herzog is stetching my brain (and my heart).
Shaya says
Trisha, thanks for the recommendation. I got it from my library right away and loved it. His compassion for people who make various choices and how thoroughly he covers each issues is applaudable. I really appreciated that he doesn’t attack the reader on any of the inconsistencies most of us live with but gently brings up the problems.