If a piece of meat is grown in a lab (and was never part of an animal) is it actually still ‘meat’?
As a constantly-lapsing vegetarian, I am interested in both the science and philosophy of meat. I know many others are too.
Asked by:Why is there more public and private violence in Australia than other wealthy countries (Canada, European nations?)
If we can transplant organs can we transplant foetuses? Instead of abortions a foetus could be transplanted to another woman to give birth
Why do we not value darkness anymore?
Will there be havens created for those who can’t stand spam drones?
New technologies bring banal, transforming side-effects worth visualising.
If both major political parties won’t close Manus Island and Nauru detention centres what do you think could be circuit breakers to this intractable problem?
I feel strongly that we should and must treat asylum seekers with compassion and humanity.
I am involved as a volunteer with the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre for last 13 years and have seen the damage inhumane processes have on people including families and children.
I came with my family as refugees in 1939. We were deemed enemy aliens at the time despite escaping the Nazis because of Jewish ancestry. It seems to me that “we” still don’t know who the enemy is!
I would want and keep hoping that more people when realizing the inhumanity being done in our name as well as the millions of dollars being spent from our taxes, that they would want to change the system. there are better ways.
How can democracies remain democratic but become (a) less adversarial (b) more efficient?
Democracies have little value unless the populace participates. I (probably like many others) am put off from active participation and my cynicism is fed, by the cumbersome nature of government and the lack of cooperation between parties. Does a ‘party system’ have to translate into the circus that we witness in our parliaments?
Asked by:Why do our laws permit routine cruelty to animals where society deems it expedient despite their acknowledged sentience?
Our society professes to be concerned about animal welfare but sanctions very different treatment of animals according to their perceived utility and the vested interests that benefit from their use. The law as it stands reflects this contradiction. As a result millions of animals suffer routinely, whether it be for live export, domestic agricultural use, feral animal control, research or entertainment purposes. Not even companion animals are immune from suffering; treated as disposable property and with little or no restriction on their breeding and sale, hundreds of thousands are euthanased every year in Australia. All of this is both inhumane and dishonest. Either we believe in the humane treatment of animals or we don’t. If the latter, let’s be honest about it; if the former, we need significant legal change. A good start would be the creation of independent statutory bodies to administer and enforce animal welfare laws instead of the current primary industries departments with their conflicts of interest.
Why do humans have such an affinity with and love of dogs?
Dogs have been
important members of human communities for centuries. Some communities eat them and others are repulsed by this. I wonder how they are differ from other domestic animals.
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