Establishing the Rights of Animals in Law and Human Consciousness
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Establishing the Rights of Animals in Law and Human Consciousness

Comments by Frank and Mary Hoffman - 16 Jun 2006

Dear David:

For the most part, we may be looking at two sides of the same coin, but in some areas we still seem to disagree.

We agree that animal welfare organizations have played into the hands of the exploitation industry, but they have also helped to make the general public more aware of the plight of animals, which is the springboard we need to utilize to bring about rights where these organizations have failed. In our opinion, we don�t want to �throw the baby out with the bath water.� We don�t need to start from scratch. We need to build upon each welfare item and change its intent to rights.

As an example, chickens have the God given RIGHT not for be subjected to human inflicted pain and suffering. They have a God given RIGHT to scratch the ground, dust bathe, walk on the earth, and stretch and flap their wings. And they have a God given right to raise their own families. (For secular purposes �God given� could be eliminated). Even if this doesn�t solve the entire problem, it gets people to think of rights rather then welfare. The more the public hears about the rights of animals, rather than about animal rights organizations, the more it will become a part of their conversation and lifestyle.

Without the exploitation of animals, neither animal right nor animal welfare would have come into existence; so, in our opinion we need to recognize this fact, and work on restructuring as much as we can towards the rights side. We�re probably not going to change the big animal welfare organizations in the immediate future, as their fund raising efforts are directed toward the doggie and kitty people, but there are many grass roots organizations in which we have an excellent chance of moving toward the rights side. We need to concentrate our efforts where we can be most effective. These organizations already exist, and we believe it�s easier to utilize their existing structure for the animal rights movement.

As we agreed previously, it won�t be easy to get any animal rights legislations passed, with the possible exception of the apes. But welfare laws have come on the books, and even though many of them are not being properly enforced, that may actually play into our hands, by showing that welfare doesn�t work, and needs to be changed to rights. Even if the welfare laws are working as intended, we can still use them to build upon by showing their shortfalls, and explaining why these animals actually need to have their rights also established in law and in the hearts and souls of the people.

Ever since we started our joint effort in Albany, we have begun to use, and work in, the RIGHT word in to all of our animal related writings.

In the Love of the Lord,

Frank and Mary

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