Tits and Activism, One Night Only Folks
Now I think some pretty numerous things about PETA as an organization. Say, as a protest point group; as shit disturbers; as propaganda-by-deed artists; as animal rights artsy bourgeois whores; as beneficiaries of too many decent, hard-working people's money; as representatives of the stupidest "influence campains"; as loud mouthed masochists who like to start fights for the hell of it; as necessary; as useless; as just as "crafty" as capitalism for picking up on existing relationships and exploiting them for their own best use; as makers of great stickers and leaflets. As a priceless thorn in the side of the general public, or as an embarassment to the very idea that things beyond human flesh deserve respect and the right not to suffer, goodness forbid we forget ourselves. [I would have tried for the "and/or" style up there, but it's already been turned into some very neat poetry by Darren Wershler-Henry, The Tapeworm Foundry (which you can read in its entirety here!) Um, yeah, I just remembered I need to give E back her copy. It's been like 8 months. Damn.]
Believe it or not, there are some people whose morality already demands that no lesser or greater being be exploited for our selfish purposes (I thought it was also called "not being a narcissistic child with no capacities for reason or consideration that requires more than symbolic representation"). If you make compassion open to the lesser intelligent in our species, even if they cannot understand what the hell you're saying or doing, why is it some bleeding heart cause to extend that respect and consideration to other intelligent forms of life?
Now, let's stop for a moment and include gratuitous nudity into our intelligent discussion (thin, white, female nudity of course) and see where that gets us.
See the not safe for work, un-starred, nipples-blazin' version here.
Do I begin with issues of the exploitation of the sexualized, gaunt female body? Or with my issues as an advocate for animal rights? Or with my concern that this is disgusting crap that would only appeal to 16 to 28 (maturity permitting) year-old heterosexual males who like looking at titties and pussy? (Or even the ones who grew up on nudie mags, were too introverted and uncomfortable to ever know a female beyond their sexual object status [and unknown peer], and now like rape porn.) Or do I file all my concerns under the fact that this PETA State of the Union Nude! Tonight! XXX! moral and corporeally masturbatory 6 minute video is a drooling bit of absurdity?
I'm torn: I feel nauseous, heartbroken (by the emotional song and graphic farming/factory farming footage that starts at 3:33), outraged, and immobilized. Whatever this is doing for you, it's just kind of defeatist absurdity from my perspective.
Absurdity is my joy and my hell; I adore it to pieces, but curse it in clear headed times. Absurdity is my dialectical idol, my theory statue, my bittersweet. I just don't like it being portrayed in the name of sophism and ethical imperialism.
The "what the fucking christonastick was that?!"-ness of the in-between, the neutral and middle ground is insanity that makes you giggle; I'm glad I can identify (and giggle accordingly to) overt cases of it already.
Believe it or not, there are some people whose morality already demands that no lesser or greater being be exploited for our selfish purposes (I thought it was also called "not being a narcissistic child with no capacities for reason or consideration that requires more than symbolic representation"). If you make compassion open to the lesser intelligent in our species, even if they cannot understand what the hell you're saying or doing, why is it some bleeding heart cause to extend that respect and consideration to other intelligent forms of life?
Now, let's stop for a moment and include gratuitous nudity into our intelligent discussion (thin, white, female nudity of course) and see where that gets us.
See the not safe for work, un-starred, nipples-blazin' version here.
Do I begin with issues of the exploitation of the sexualized, gaunt female body? Or with my issues as an advocate for animal rights? Or with my concern that this is disgusting crap that would only appeal to 16 to 28 (maturity permitting) year-old heterosexual males who like looking at titties and pussy? (Or even the ones who grew up on nudie mags, were too introverted and uncomfortable to ever know a female beyond their sexual object status [and unknown peer], and now like rape porn.) Or do I file all my concerns under the fact that this PETA State of the Union Nude! Tonight! XXX! moral and corporeally masturbatory 6 minute video is a drooling bit of absurdity?
I'm torn: I feel nauseous, heartbroken (by the emotional song and graphic farming/factory farming footage that starts at 3:33), outraged, and immobilized. Whatever this is doing for you, it's just kind of defeatist absurdity from my perspective.
Absurdity is my joy and my hell; I adore it to pieces, but curse it in clear headed times. Absurdity is my dialectical idol, my theory statue, my bittersweet. I just don't like it being portrayed in the name of sophism and ethical imperialism.
The "what the fucking christonastick was that?!"-ness of the in-between, the neutral and middle ground is insanity that makes you giggle; I'm glad I can identify (and giggle accordingly to) overt cases of it already.