The Future of Meat Without Animals by Donaldson Brianne & Christopher Carter

Author:Donaldson, Brianne & Christopher Carter [Неизв.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: National Book Network International

Chapter 11

Exploiting Fantasy

Overconformity in Animal Agriculture, Meatless Meat and Animal Ethics

Brianne Donaldson

In late November 2014, New Jersey governor Chris Christie vetoed a proposed bill that would ban narrow gestation crates that prevent mother pigs from even turning around. The measure had immense bipartisan support among state legislators, passing by a vote of 53–13 in the New Jersey Assembly and 32–1 in the Senate a month earlier. The bill had 93 percent popular support according to polls. In fact, the governor had vetoed a similar bill a year earlier in spite of comparable statewide support, citing the need for more involvement by the Department of Agriculture, prompting the bill’s sponsors to modify the 2014 bill to reflect those stated concerns. In spite of the changes, Christie vetoed the bill in what many believed was an attempt to court Iowa-caucus voters in his eventual 2016 run for president.

Christie’s decision infuriated citizens in and outside of New Jersey. The bill’s sponsor, Democrat Ray Lesniak, who had hoped Christie would prioritize principles over political ambitions, said dispiritedly, ‘I don’t see that he has any moral compass within him’ (Nuzzi 2014). The pop icon Cher launched a Twitter storm against the governor, echoing earlier support of celebrities such as Bill Maher, John Stewart, Danny DeVito, Martha Stewart and Edie Falco (Noble 2014). Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society of the United States, commented that ‘this veto shows cynical political calculation from the governor and an obvious capitulation to special interests, rather than leadership or humanity’ (Killough 2014).

But what if Christie has actually done a service for animal advocates and their creaturely constituents? The flagrant absurdity of the governor’s decision elicited more attention for pig confinement than his agreement might have, specifically because of how excessively Christie conformed to the narrative of Iowa pork producers. As reported by Olivia Nuzzi at The Daily Beast, the opening line of Christie’s veto statement, ‘This bill is a solution in search of a problem’, copies the exact wording used by the Des Moines-based National Pork Producers Council in a lobbying letter sent to the governor earlier in the year (2014). Further, according to the National Pork Board, New Jersey is 37th out of 43 pork-producing states with approximately 9,000 pigs in the entire state as of December 2013, only a handful of which are sows, and even fewer who are actually kept in crates (Pork Quick Facts 2014, 11). ‘His explanation makes no logical sense whatsoever’, remarked sponsoring senator Lesniak, ‘because if [the practice isn’t thought to be used] here, then why wouldn’t he sign the bill? What’s the harm? The governor is sending a message to the pork industry: You’re welcome to use cruel practices here in New Jersey. Come on board!’ (Nuzzi 2014). Iowa leads the nation in pork production by a landslide, with over 20 million pigs in the state, where the practice of gestation crates is widespread. Upon hearing of the veto, Iowa governor Terry Branstad praised Christie’s choice as ‘a good decision’ that

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