"...[by] 2015 all shell (whole) eggs sold in California must come from hens who were able to stand up, lie down, turn around, and fully extend their limbs without touching one another or the sides of an enclosure.
In other words: California will become a cage-free state."
I'm sorry to say this but it's all bull crap.
Sure, we'll be cage free BUT then we'll do what is done in lots of Europe and Australia and just stock them into metal barns with JUST enough room to move around.
It's just as bad.
He needs to ban all forms of farming these hens EXCEPT for certified free-range practices which are endorsed the ASPCA and The Human Society.
i.e access to the outdoors, fresh food and water, clean living environment and NO beak trimming (to become certified free range in Australia it is a requirement to "trim" the beaks).
I'm sorry to say this but it's all bull crap.
Sure, we'll be cage free BUT then we'll do what is done in lots of Europe and Australia and just stock them into metal barns with JUST enough room to move around.
It's just as bad.
He needs to ban all forms of farming these hens EXCEPT for certified free-range practices which are endorsed the ASPCA and The Human Society.
i.e access to the outdoors, fresh food and water, clean living environment and NO beak trimming (to become certified free range in Australia it is a requirement to "trim" the beaks).
Of course this is in no way ideal, but when there are so many places refusing to even consider making any changes at all, i'll celebrate any change we can get.
Of course we should always continue our advocacy for animals, & insist on increased levels of freedom & liberty for them, but it's naive to think we will achieve the best possible outcome first go (not implying that you are naive btw! I totally get your point!), & personally i like to recognise & celebrate positive change when i see it, while remaining committed to an idea of animal liberation, & doing everything i can to help fight the good fight.
Some will think this is not enough, I disagree. This is a fantastic step forward. He has bought in a timeline of 2015 - Tassie still has till 2017 for the sow stalls - so this is also a great move to have this deal done quicker than the average change.
We all know we will probably never see the day where every animal that is bound for the dinner plate (or their by-products) will be 100% free-range. This is a fight we need to continue to fight. But any step towards this is a good one.
In my opinion, whatever your views/hopes are on what animal agriculture will look like one day (or rather wont look like, for some), is irrelevant.
This is a win for the animals. Look at the big picture - don't concern yourself with how the farms will look themselves, or even the ultimate treatment of the the birds. That fact is - no matter how you look at this - animal interests ARE being recognized in legislation. Animals in California are no longer on par with an inanimate piece of machinery- they are better than that. It is recognized by the government of California that these chickens have interests of their own, and should be recognized.
Society is changing, that paradigm shift in ethics we all desire is beginning to reveal itself - pretty exciting stuff.
This is just the start. As we progress as a movement, the ultimate interests of animals will continue to be critically analyzed, until it is finally recorgnized that non-human animals are just as deserving of their liberty as we humans-animals are.
In my opinion, whatever your views/hopes are on what animal agriculture will look like one day (or rather wont look like, for some), is irrelevant.
This is a win for the animals. Look at the big picture - don't concern yourself with how the farms will look themselves, or even the ultimate treatment of the the birds. That fact is - no matter how you look at this - animal interests ARE being recognized in legislation. Animals in California are no longer on par with an inanimate piece of machinery- they are better than that. It is recognized by the government of California that these chickens have interests of their own, and should be recognized.
Society is changing, that paradigm shift in ethics we all desire is beginning to reveal itself - pretty exciting stuff.
This is just the start. As we progress as a movement, the ultimate interests of animals will continue to be critically analyzed, until it is finally recorgnized that non-human animals are just as deserving of their liberty as we humans-animals are.
