Vegan
I've been thinking a lot about wool lately. In knitting circle I've been stuck in a bit of a cotton-yarn with a hint of soy-silk rut, and thinking about the ethics of using wool yarn.
It's not like leather or fur, which is clearly wrong. Wrapping myself in dead animals just feels like bad karma. But sheep aren't always horribly mistreated, and I'm sure I can find wool online from sources that treat their sheep well.
So, my dilemna is, why do I still feel wrong about buying wool, even if the source is advertised as humane?
I don't eat animals, but I probably would eat dairy and eggs if I wasn't lactose-intolerant, and I knew the animals were treated completely humanely, and if they were only fed organic grains, and if they weren't so fattening, and if my race-times hadn't improved so much since I went vegan...
But see, I don't have this long list of negatives for wool, and it's so soft and wonderful. Yet, even thinking about purchasing it makes me feel sad and guilty. What's a knitter to do?
Comments
Got to say it: Even if a cow were treated very humanely otherwise, the only way she'd make enough milk for humans to drink is if someone impregnated her and then took away her babies and turned them into veal. Also, there's an amazing economic break-down of "humane" eggs and dairy in the book Meat Market.
Wool was one of the last things that Shira and I gave up, last yearish. My reasoning is that no matter how nice the sheep's life is, she makes her wool for herself, not for me. To get wool in good condition, it needs to be sheared off the sheep... and sheep's wool is meant to keep her warm in cool weather, and is naturally shed when the weather warms. So I suppose if you could replace the sheep's wool with a sweater (???) to keep her warm, that would maybe be humane. But then one might ask, why do you want to take the sheep's natural sweater, if you can make your own out of something else? Not that acrylic is a great alternative -- it's certainly not environmentally-friendly. But at least it's not someone else's sweater.
Posted by: Ari | June 5, 2006 9:42 AM
I agree that in the current state of the world, it's not ethical to eat or use animal products.
However, people donate blood, kidneys, sperm, hair, eggs, time, money and milk to each other. I would donate blood to my cats.
I wish we lived in a society that valued animals' contributions more equally. Their lives for my food or clothing is not equal. I think maybe, if it was more like sharing and cooperation, it would be okay.
Posted by: Kate | June 5, 2006 9:03 PM
I think I agree... I have heard of vegan people that live with happy chickens, and eat their eggs... and while I wouldn't do it, I do think in a small vacuum, eggs or wool would maybe go unmissed by a well cared-for chicken or sheep. Sure would be handy if they spoke human so we could just ask. :)
Posted by: Ari | June 6, 2006 8:31 AM