Article By Stephen Kaufman, OpEdNews. “I want to focus on some more insidious and pernicious ways that harming animals in turn harms humans. The spirit of truth is among the first casualties. Those who mistreat nonhumans do their best to hide the facts. For example, seven states have passed “ag-gag” laws that make it a crime for people to photograph or videotape animal treatment in factory farms. That’s because, in addition to documenting widespread criminal cruelty to animals, undercover investigations have shown that “standard animal husbandry practices” (which are exempt from animal cruelty laws throughout the United States) involve systematic, institutionalized abuse of billions of farmed animals each year.
“Factory farmed animals experience unrelenting pain and misery from birth to death. (See, for example, www.mercyforanimals.org or “Meet Your Meat“. Even the small fraction of animals raised “humanely” still routinely suffer mutilations without pain relief, deprivation of many natural needs and desires, and violence and terror associated with transportation to and death in slaughterhouses.” Read more.