Rex Jory's article begins in a promising way: “Today I speak in support of the humble turkey. Oh, what an underestimated bird. Handsome and proud, turkeys strut around the farmyard, yet as I write the killing fields are being stained with their blood, sacrificed to satisfy the Christmas need and greed of humans. It's a sort of turkey genocide.”

Rex Jory describes the turkeys living in cramped sheds, being herded into trucks, and hung up by the feet at the slaughterhouse before their throat is cut. He notes the contradiction: “It is a ritualistic slaughter, an unholy war fought to celebrate one of the holiest days of the Christian calendar.”

Unfortunately he can't bear to follow his insight to its logical conclusion. He says: “I'm not suggesting even for a moment tht we should abandon a 500-year-old tradition and ban turkey from the Christmas dinner table. And I'm not saying turkey production is cruel.”

Hard to see how that follows from his earlier comments. He intends to eat chicken and ham for Christmas, even though he realises his choice “doesn't make the Christmas season much fun for chickens and pigs either.”

He also realises that just forgoing turkey isn't a solution: “Nor am I suggesting that it would be less cruel to eat beef, lamb, chicken, lobster, prawns and other seafood.”

According to Rex, it's just the way things are, and there's nothing we can do about it. “This is our culture. This is the way we are. We are the captives of our traditions, tastebuds, appetites and beliefs.”

Strange that people who behave in ways our culture disapproves of say exactly the same thing. The Spaniards defend bull-fighting as a tradition that is part of their culture, the Japanese defend the whale and dolphin slaughter, and the Koreans defend eating dogs. Do we really want traditions set in stone rather than progressing towards a kinder future?

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/ipad/jory-millions-die-but-one-is-saved/story-fn6br25t-1226213680328