By Elona Baron as told to Laurie Baron
SAN DIEGO−I have much to be thankful this year. Not all the nose licks, head tilts, and tail wags in the world can adequately compensate my new owners for adopting and loving me. I must confess that I love eating turkey chunks sprinkled on my kibble. If Thanksgiving dinner were held in my house this year, I probably would circle the table begging for scraps, but I would feel guilty.
Yet I know that there are places in the world where humans eat dogs. Like turkeys, they raise them in cages and butcher them for meat. When I was in the rescue shelter, I met some survivors of these dog factories. They were indelibly traumatized by their ordeal. I should show solidarity with the turkeys of the world (the poultry not the defenders of the Golden Deceiver.) Although I can’t read, I have heard the quote from Isaac Bashevis Singer’s Enemies: A Love Story: “As often as Herman had witnessed the slaughter of animals and fish, he always had the same thought: in their behavior toward creatures, all men were Nazis. The smugness with which man could do with other species as he pleased exemplified the most extreme racist theories, the principle that might is right.”
Am I complicit if I enjoy snacking on cooked giblets? Am I a racist if I prefer white meat? Do I have misgivings about consuming animal meat any other time of the year? I’m ashamed to say that the answer is no. After all, I’m a carnivore. In a perfect world, I’d atone by eating stuffing instead of turkey this Thanksgiving. If that satisfied my appetite, I’d limit myself to green bean casserole (but only with onion rings on top) next year and gradually become a vegan. On the other paw, maybe I could just stop eating turkey as a symbolic protest and continue to eat beef, chicken, and fish. Such is the conscientious canine’s dilemma.
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Elona resides with Bonnie and Laurie Baron. The latter is professor emeritus of history at San Diego State University. He may be contacted via lawrence.baron@sdjewishworld.com. No animals were harmed in the writing of this column.