As you’ve probably heard by now, Lierre Keith, author of the fabulous book The Vegetarian Myth, was attacked by three vegan nut-jobs on Saturday while giving a speech. They threw a pie laced with cayenne pepper in her face. If that doesn’t sound like much of an attack, keep in mind that it’s nearly the equivalent of being attacked with pepper spray. And frankly, I’d be outraged even if the pie was made of whipped cream. (No wait … that would be a dairy product; the vegans would never stoop to such cruelty just to assault a human being.)
Fortunately, Keith is recovering. Jimmy Moore wrote to inquire about her condition, and she replied:
My eyes are still puffy and blurry, but the pain is definitely better. I think the worst part was hearing people cheer my assailants while I was being assaulted. I don’t want to live in a world where people cheer while someone has cayenne rubbed into their eyes.
Yes, people were cheering — while three men in masks attacked a 45-year-old woman who already has a damaged spine. My, what courage.
I’d like to say I’m surprised, but I’m not. The animal-rights wackos have a long and proud history of attacking soft targets. As my comedian friend Tim Slagle once pointed out, they’ll happily throw blood on women wearing fur — but strangely, they never feel inspired to attempt a similar protest on men wearing leather.
Nearly as disturbing as the attack was the ability of some vegans to justify it in their fatty-acid-depleted brains. Here are few quotes from a “news” site, with my comments:
Some will undoubtedly argue that the pieing was an attack on free speech, but Keith has been afforded more speech than most people on the planet will ever be, courtesy of PM Press.
Well, gosh yes, once someone has been afforded more than his or her share of free speech, it’s perfectly okay to use violence to correct the imbalance. I’m sure that’s what James Earl Ray had in mind, too. Although if you really think about it — and I’d suggest consuming an egg or two before tackling this one — you and Lierre Keith have been afforded exactly the same amount of free speech. The only difference is that more people have elected to listen to her.
In fact, she is profiting from the soap box she has been given to pretend she is a radical environmentalist who just happens to jet around the country to and from her home in rural Massachusetts.
Making a profit and flying on a jet? Truly unforgivable. Since Al Gore has set himself up to make millions in the carbon-credit business while flying all over creation in a private jet and living in a mansion that uses 20 times the national average for electricity, can we expect you to toss a pepper-pie in his face anytime soon? Or will you remain true to form and attack Tipper instead?
In a world where vegans and vegetarians are a definite minority, face constant bombardment with pro-meat messages our American cattle culture, and frequently have to deal with direct attacks from government, law enforcement, and multinational corporations that profit from the sale of factory-farmed meat and dairy, Ramsey Kanaan of PM Press, himself a long-time vegan, strangely chose to pile on with yet another attack on vegans, this time being especially traumatic in that it comes from the inside of the supposed radical environmental movement.
Those direct attacks from the government on the oppressed vegan minority are an outrage, all right. Just last week, storm troopers dragged a dozen vegans out of our local Whole Foods and shot them in the street. It’s a shame you don’t live in a country where you’re free to just ignore those traumatizing pro-meat messages and continue living as a vegan.
Through the Bound Together collective, of which Ramsey Kanaan is a member, Lierre Keith has been asked to speak in the Bay Area repeatedly. The mean-spirited book and these speaking engagements are largely one-way conversations with Keith dominating the dialogue.
Wait … you mean she’s been asked to speak repeatedly?! Wow, that usually only happens to people who have something interesting to say and can therefore draw a crowd. But I see your point about the one-way conversations. It’s got to stop. In fact, nearly every time I attend a speech, the speaker just stands up there speaking and speaking and speaking, without ever asking me what I believe. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought to myself, “Damn! If only I had a pepper-laced pie, I could bring some balance into this dialog.”
But today, anonymous masked peoples stood up and refused to allow PM Press and Bound Together to yet again try to cram Lierre Keith down our throats. They stood up for many who have suffered silently, without a voice, since the publication of her book.
I hear you, bro. I remember the glory days when people were allowed to choose which speeches they’d attend. Now, of course, the meat industry kidnaps vegans at gunpoint and crams Lierre Keith’s speeches down their throats. Those were some true freedom fighters who attacked her. More bravery like this, and perhaps someday vegans will be allowed to publish their own books, give their own speeches in public, or — dare I say it? — express their opinions on their very own blogs, instead of being forced to suffer in silence.
The article was bad enough. Here are a few bits of wisdom from vegans commenting on the article:
Lierre Keith was appropriately treated when she was physically stopped from continuing to advocate for and incite the murder of innocent non-human beings.
Can’t argue with that. Next time I see some vegan farmer tilling the soil and killing thousands of non-humans in the process, I’m going to mace him in the face. (No wait, I keep forgetting about vegan logic: it’s okay to kill creatures in the quest for food as long as you aren’t killing on purpose.)
She was pied, get over it. Big deal, even IF it was a spicy pie. Somebody call the waaaambulance for this loser. This action was both hilarious & totally appropriate.
Yeah, a little spice in the eyes is hilarious. Nothing to fuss about. Any chance we could meet in person so I can share a few laughs with you? I do this bit with Tabasco sauce that’s just side-splitting.
Lierre obviously comes from a privileged perspective if the very first thing she said was “someone call the cops” as only the privileged automatically think of police as their friends and defenders. Lower classes and darker skinned people do not immediately look to police for help. They’ll take the help if it’s there, but they don’t assume police generally exist to serve them.
That’s why I enjoy watching “Cops” on TV: it just cracks me up seeing all those people who come from a privileged perspective calling the police on each other. Last week I saw a repeat of the episode where the guy in the smoking jacket answers the door and says, “Yes, officer, my wife Muffy is such a pill, I’m afraid she let loose with the pepper-spray in the middle of a heated discussion about the relevance of Kantian ethics in modern society. Could you be a dear and slap some cuffs on her? And I won’t object if you make them uncomfortably tight.”
But if you’re suggesting Lierre Keith should deal with being physically attacked in a manner more befitting the “lower classes and darker skinned people,” I’m pretty sure we can round up plenty of volunteers to administer the appropriate justice.
Has anyone considered that it wasn’t Vegans who pied who but an agent provocateur trying to create division?
Damn, you caught us. See, that’s the thing about us meat-eaters: we take ourselves and our identities as meat-eaters so seriously, we sit around and try to think of ways to split up the vegan movement.
Message to Keith and others who promote oppression, repression and murder of the innocent, and destruction of the planet, however misinformedly well-intentioned – “No more free ride!”
By all means, please start physically assaulting anyone who believes eating meat is beneficial. I’d suggest you start with Fred Hahn. That will give you a chance to field-test your theory that avoiding meat actually makes people stronger. (Although I predict the theory will turn out to be misinformedly wrong.)
As a vegan I’m both mad at and ashamed of the people who did this. They are bullies.
You sound eerily sane. How long have you been a vegan? (To be fair, more than a few vegans were disgusted by the attack. Good for them.)
Some commenters suggested the attackers were suffering from the “vegan rage” Keith describes in her book. That was my first thought as well. But since then, I’ve decided we may be confusing a correlation with a cause. Yes, they could be prone to rage because a vegan diet has depleted their brains. But I think it’s just as likely they’re militant vegans because they fit the personality type described so brilliantly by Eric Hoffer in his book The True Believer. I plan to write a post on that topic later in the week. It seems more appropriate for my other blog, so it’ll probably end up there. I’ll let you know.
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I couldn’t have said it better Tom. I’m so infuriated by what they have put Lierre Keith through. As you mentioned, all they have to do is ignore her. Or blog their opinions otherwise. But no, sadly enough that wouldn’t get them the attention this little stunt did.
I got an email from Lierre earlier this evening, after asking how she was, and she said her eyes are better, but it looks like she may have an ear infection from the gunk thrown at her.
I’m so glad the non-violent people chose such a peaceful way to protest her opinions. I’d like to show them a close-up Fred’s fist. (Like you, I know Fred could handle it.)
I wear a leather coat. They’re welcome to attempt throwing blood on me any ol’ time. (But I’d rather see them try it on Fred … ouch.)
This is an outrage! At least it proves that the vegans are getting desperate.
She wouldn’t be a target if her book weren’t so brilliant.
What is it with the crazies and pie throwing? They seem to think hurling a pie is just as valid as well researched and reasoned idea.
“How do we prove Lierre’s ideas are ill-conceived?”
“Well, we could delve into the research and ask her some really tough questions to which she’d have no response.”
“Or, now hear me out, or we could hit her with a pie.”
“Brilliant! Pie it is.”
Makes me wonder if McCain would’ve won a landslide if he ended every debate with a boston cream pie in Obama’s face.
Aside from pepper, do we know if this pie happened to contain any eggs or dairy?
I’m afraid that kind of behavior goes with hand-in-hand with the militant mentality. They don’t want opposing views aired. I doubt the pie contained any animal products; that would be cruel.
I heard about what happened to Lierre a couple of days ago and was completely appalled by the news and sickened by her inhumane (yes, inhumane) treatment by such cowardly, idiotic, self-delusional thugs. I wrote Lierre to see how she was doing and she offered a similar report to me that she gave Jimmy Moore.
Lierre’s book is not angry, callous or cynical. It is thoughtful, heartfelt, intelligent, passionate, courageous, considerate and exhaustively well documented. I guess that makes her a significant a threat. If her arguments were inconsequential they would have ignored her. As it is, she had them cornered in their own denial with nowhere to go…except through her face, apparently.
The idiots that did this to her simply showed themselves for what they are. In the end it is they who lost credibility, not Lierre. They proved themselves to be less sensitive to cruelty and far more inhumane than the people working the lines at slaughter houses. At least those people aren’t acting with malice. The people that did this to Lierre and/or cheered things on are filled with nothing but vile, blind hatred toward anything that threatens their thin ideological self-justifications…and an obvious self-cultivated mental illness generated by a diet devoid of critical brain nutrition.
I doubt much of anything anyone could say would reach through that, though Lierre showed a certain nobility for trying. The Vegetarian Myth was written by one who knows because she herself has been there. Unlike her masked attackers, however, Lierre entirely lacks their cowardice. It took real guts for her to get up in front of that cult-like abusive crowd and speak the truth. Unfortunately, as Lierre once said to me, “militant vegans seem to hunt in packs”. Unlike their wild, carnivorous counterparts, however, some apparently do so just for cold blood lust and their own bitter, sick self-satisfaction.
I do not cast all vegans and vegetarians in this light, as there are those individuals choosing this lifestyle from a well meaning place who are simply misinformed. Many of us have been there at one time or another. I hope more of these well meaning people step forward and let everyone know that this cruel and vile behavior does not speak for them.
You said it, Nora. Thanks.
Oh Boy…. thanks for the post Tom, I would have missed it. Maybe next time they can stage it on the real culprits – pepper spray those heartless Moms and kids at McDonalds…. no sense them going after someone who might actually kick their a$$es …
They’re vegans. My wife could kick their a$$es.
What!!! Now we have to worry about vegan “terrorists” ? Yikes! Cowards! If they truly believed in THEIR cause then they would not hide their faces!
If they tried something like that on my wife, I’d be happy to make them unrecognizable to the police.
Remember: it’s OK to hurt humans, but it’s not ok to hurt the widdle helpwess (and tasty) animals. Why, hurting animals is just. Not. Right!
Bunch of hypocritical cowards, the lot of them!
Nothing with a face, right? Last time I checked, Lierre Keith had a face.
Slagle’s pretty funny. The halloween and taxes bit was good!
I hope you had a good time on your trip. You sounded a little ticked off in your last post. After reading it, I thought, this guy sounds like he needs some time off.
For another laugh, check out natebloch.com and the Doctor’s Visit. I think a lot of vegan “guys” need his prescription.
The cruise was outstanding, but the Heart Association still ticks me off. Good video. Some years ago, when I was engaged to someone who isn’t now my wife, I had the same diagnosis.
hehehe….just the thought of the reaction if Fred got hit!! Nah, they’re dumb, but not that dumb….or brave!!
I haven’t read Lierre’s book yet, but looking forward to it. I couldn’t be a vegetarian, let alone a vegan! Like the guy in the video, I’d be eyeing the cat!
Followed a link to a “vegan activist” site the other day and almost fell off my chair! This bimbo was ranting about vegans that really aren’t….and one example she used was people that use manure in their gardens! Poop is off limits! LOL Now how is that exploiting animals?
I guess she’s okay with dumping fossil fuels on the ground, then. That’s the alternative. Pick your dead animal.
I haven’t visited here for two or three months and such a lot of reading to catch up on! LOL
My own favorite encounter with vegan was when one excitedly told me he’s bought a leather sofa. I (politely) asked why a leather on and why he was wearing leather shoes and carrying a leather wallet as well. His response was “they were going to kill the animals anyway”.
What can one say!
Sadly, it doesn’t surprise me that anyone following that line of thought would think cayenne in a pie the way to deal with someone.
More brilliant vegan logic. So let’s start eating furry animals; that will put an end to the anti-fur movement.
face constant bombardment with pro-meat messages our American cattle culture, and frequently have to deal with direct attacks from government, law enforcement, and multinational corporations that profit from the sale of factory-farmed meat and dairy
Yes, because soy and corn aren’t in any way corporations, nor involved in lobbying and government. Honestly, if there were even half as many news reports saying soy or wheat are bad for you like there are for meats and saturated fats, the soy/wheat industry would be launching even more “No it’s good for you! Really!” campaigns. I’m shocked the meat industry hasn’t tried to run counter-campaigns based on all the recent research at least the non-harm, if not benefits of, saturated fat. If anything they’re just lying there and taking it.
Also, to repeat what commenter Kate said above: Humans are animals too and I’m pretty sure if I threw a pepper pie in a puppy’s face, even if that puppy was barking hysterically at me or physically threatening me, I’d be outcast. If other animals deserve equal treatment, it means you can’t mistreat any human no matter how much you dislike one human in particular.
How upsetting all around.
I’ve suspected for years that animal-rights nut-jobs are basically anti-human. This only adds to my suspicion.
Well, as I mentioned in Richard´s blog, I think this is really a serious mental problem. A lack of fatty acids and too much sugar makes most people aggressive and mindless. Also anemia affects the brain deeply.
There’s that, but I also think disturbed people are attracted to militant movements in the first place.
I guess the pie attack and its justification in the aftermath really shows us that vegans are more “evolved” human beings than the rest of us.
Perhaps if they consumed a nice, juicy cheeseburger, they’d begin to realize there’s zero logic in their self-serving justifications. No, probably not …
By all means, please start physically assaulting anyone who believes eating meat is beneficial.
I’d like to see them try this to Ted Nugent ( evil grin) Just remember he’s usually packing !
Vegetarians are cool. All I eat are vegetarians – except for the occasional mountain lion steak. – Ted Nugent
And like Lierre, Ted respects nature and nature’s creatures.
Oh, for crying out loud – they could at least be honest about WHY they did it. They didn’t do it because of her “one-way dialogue” or because she is being “crammed down” their throats or any of their other self-righteous boolsheet rationalizations.
They did it because they consider her a traitor.
Exactly. They want to shut her up because her arguments are so persuasive and she used to believe what they believe.
I’m sorry Lierre had to take the fall for the anti-vegan team, but come on! This is awesome! It’s the best publicity of all-time. I hope a vegan pies me in the face in public someday because I eat foie gras.
Hilarious post Tom. I must’ve missed that episode of cops.
I don’t think it’s quite the P.R. she had in mind, but the nut-jobs did harm their own cause.
Tom, Richard at Free the Animal has done a post on the incident aswell. In the comments is a link to the video showing the pieing and a link to a rebuttal to the Vegetarian Myth. It was a disgraceful act.
http://freetheanimal.com/2010/03/lierre-keith-gets-a-cayenne-laced-pie-in-the-face-during-san-francisco-book-fair-speech.html
truth seeker: “you want a factual rebuttal of the myths in the veg myth?
welp, here you go: http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/03/15/18641159.php
Lierre doesn’t want her attack to be public entertainment, so I’m editing out the video link. Sorry, but I’m respecting her wishes on this one.
You can read the first 14 pages of “The Vegetarian Myth” online on her site: http://www.lierrekeith.com/vegmyth.htm
My favorite part of the first chapter was this observation about something she read on a vegan blog/forum:
“A vegan flushed out his idea to keep animals from being killed—not by humans, but by other animals. Someone should build a fence down the middle of the Serengeti, and divide the predators from the prey. Killing is wrong and no animals should ever have to die, so the big cats and wild canines would go on one side, while the wildebeests and zebras would live on the other. He knew the carnivores would be okay because they didn’t need to be carnivores. That was a lie the meat industry told. He’d seen his dog eat grass: therefore, dogs could live on grass.
No one objected. In fact, others chimed in. My cat eats grass, too, one woman added, all enthusiasm. So does mine! someone else posted. Everyone agreed that fencing was the solution to animal death.”
We’re not dealing with rational people.
No, we’re dealing with True Believers. I’ll be writing about that later this week.
I’ve been waiting for Lierre’s book to appear in my public library – but no such luck as yet. However after this outrage I think I might just go out and buy a copy anyway as a show of support.
Definitely buy a copy. It’s worth reading at least twice, and you’ll probably want to refer to it like a reference book. And of course, you’ll be supporting a courageous woman who knew she’d be angering the very people who most need to hear what she has to say.
I haven’t read her book yet. I will now. When cowards behave in a such a cowardly and terrorizing fashion, it compels me to listen to the message they are so against. What don’t they want me or anyone else to hear? The truth maybe?
I’ve been drawn reluctantly into an issues how meat and animal products “acidizes the blood and causes bones to degenerate and causes calcium loss” by a couple of vegans. They are telling me that the reason everyone has diabetes and kidney failures is because we eat animals. But they stammer when I ask for published studies on this information.
I guess that explains why diabetes and kidney failure have gone up while our consumption of animal products has gone down. Of course they stammer. We have diabetes and kidney failure because chronically elevated blood sugar damages the body, including the kidneys.
Lierre will speak out about this attack on her on my podcast show this Thursday. FYI!
That’s great news, Jimmy. I’m glad we’ll hear from her so soon. You and Kevin must’ve ramped it up in record time.
I couldn’t believe this at first when I read it.
Vegans strong enough to throw a pie? Never.
They sneaked up from behind and pushed the pies into her face.
I am going to get the book also. Glad you had fun on the cruise, I am jealous. I had to cancel our trip.
Hope to see you there next year.
Vile. Not surprised, but disgusted no less. If someone should have been successfully pied in the face, it should have been Ann Coulter.
Have these tree huggers actually listened to her interviews or read her book? She has so much respect for nature, plants, and especially the Earth. And because she deeply wants to save the Earth and also has the correct information to do so, she gets a pie in the face? I hope every right thinking person with an open mind continues to fight the good fight in saving the Earth and making humans realize they dont rule the world.
I hope for the attackers sake that they pied her for her man-hating rants. At least they would have done it for a better reason other than because they cant face the truth. Bunch of puerile twats.
Man-hating rants, conservative rants, liberal rants, vegan rants, religious rants … nobody deserves to be attacked for expressing an opinion. Those are the actions of people who can’t generate a convincing reply. I’m a libertarian, but I would never try to silence the big-government socialists. I’d much prefer to kick their @$$es in a debate.
I once met a Jewish man whose father, a lawyer, defended the rights of a Nazi group to hold a peaceful rally in their town. Now there’s a man who understands the concept that is supposed to underlie our system: “I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend with my life your right to say it.” (Most commonly attributed to Voltaire.)
Keith doesn’t strike me as someone who hates men, by the way.
I totally agree with Jan, because if they had read the book they wouldn’t have assaulted Lierre. Lierre did not deserve this treatment. Shame on those that did this and shame on those that cheered on her assailants. If all of us in the lowcarb community ordered even just one Vegetarian Myth book it would go a long way in showing Lierre how much we appreciate her.
I encourage everyone to buy her book, both to show support and for the pure enjoyment of it. It’s full of information and beautifully written.
I don’t support pie-ing anybody for expressing opinions, and as a vegan, I’m frustrated that anybody would do something so counterproductive. I was among a small group of vegans that was planning on asking her some difficult questions at her appearance at Green Arcade Saturday evening. The pie-ing ended up working as an excuse not to take tough questions, and honestly I can’t blame her for wanting to take it easy for the rest of the day after what she’d been through. We’ve since decided to shift our focus to building a website about the ways in which her book is misleading. It will take some time to flesh out the site, but our press release is here: http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/03/15/18641159.php
I’ve already read the release. But since the same site where you’ve posted it is also displaying a video of the assault with the Benny Hill theme (wow, woman being attacked from behind by three men — hilarious!), you’ll pardon me if I find your frustration over the affair a bit insincere. Perhaps if you distanced yourselves from these vegan-Hezbollah morons, people will actually take you seriously.
In response, I just went and bought her book.
I think that’s the best response of all.
Unfortunately the world is full of small, scared, insignificant, stupid people who want so very badly to BE somebody. These stupid poeple like to be vegans and PETA-morons because it makes them feel as if they matter. As if they are actually making a difference (without any effort on their part – just whinge-filled hand-wringing angst interspersed with pointless rage).
I think absolutely that this is a “self inflicted mental illness” as a PP said. Their brains are not functioning correctly. They should be institutionalised … for their own protection, of course.
As The Thrifty Mom I encourage recycling and using of seemingly useless crap, so I also wholeheartedly encourage an open hunting season on Vegans. Though, frankly, every one I have ever seen looks stingy and wan. Probably tough and gamey, even the young ones. Hmmm … perhaps jerky? Or pemmecin? (sp?)
I already own a hard copy of The Vegetarian Myth. I just bought the Kindle edition as well to read on the go, or perhps to wave in the face of any undernourished Borg … crap I mean VEGAN ‘persons’ that I encounter.
-Blue (aka The Thrifty Mom)
Your opening paragraph is exactly what Eric Hoffer described in The True Believer. I’ll be writing a post on the topic this week, probably on my other blog.
Tom, you’re a religious kook. First, prove that the attackers were really vegans, second, the woman attacked is another kook who is likely a liar about her past diet, and third even if the attackers are people that actually eat vegan they certainly don’t represent an entire group of people who are compelled by personal ethics and morality to the cruel treatment of any creatures. That’s like saying because you eat meat, and a psycho murderous child molester eats meat you’re somehow equal.
You and the lady are both just trying to make money off of stirring up controversy and causing more division and problems. Why? Because you’re self-centered and materialistic. Fanatics. Verily.
If you’ve actually figured out a way for me to make money from this, please share. I don’t believe all vegans are kooks, but those who attacked Lierre Keith and those who are justifying it certainly are. As for proving they’re actually vegans … well, the cowards haven’t been caught, so that’ll be tough, won’t it? But I can’t think of any other group that would attack Lierre Keith — the hatred being spewed at this woman is all coming from vegan wackos — and of course the people who were cheering and praising the attack in print are self-proclaimed vegans, so the vegan nut-job label is appropriate for them.
Your analogy to a meat-eating murderer doesn’t hold up, not even a little bit, unless you can point to a meat-eater who decided to physically attack someone strictly because the victim advocated a vegetarian diet. That wouldn’t happen because those of us who advocate primal diets don’t consider veganism evil.
I love San Francisco but it has more than its fair share of nut-jobs. They keep electing Nancy Pelosi. Need I say more?
Tomorrow I’m going to buy Mark Sisson’s book The Primal Blue Print, Lierre’s book, and the Fat Head DVD from Amazon.com.
All three of us appreciate the support.
Jimmy Moore had a recent blog post about this attack and shared her email address in case anyone wanted to offer her a word of encouragement. I emailed Lierre and she said her eyes have recovered but she has an ear infection that she attributes to the attack. She requested that we email IndyBay and ask them to remove the assault video from their site. Here is the email address in case anyone is interested: sfbay-web@lists.indymedia.org
I emailed them, but these nut-jobs think the attack is hilarious. Nothing like watching a woman with a damaged spine trying to jerk her head away from an attacker to generate a few chuckles, huh?
I was reading this article with interest until I noticed the phrases “animal-rights wackos” and “fatty acid-depleted brains.” Those terms are offensive to me, and I’m sure they are to other vegans who aren’t crazy like these people who assaulted Lierre. It is like lumping all racial minorities into categories like “gangster” or all homeless people into “lazy.” It’s unnecessary, and it just makes you seem more ignorant (than you already are).
Anyone who attacks a woman simply because she no longer advocates a vegan diet and/or justifies the attack with terms like “animal murderer” is 1) an animal-rights wacko and 2) probably has a fatty-acid depleted brain — or they could be simply be self-righteous @$$holes whose brains aren’t depleted. Either way, they deserve all the scorn I can heap on them, as well as a good punch in the face.
I was vegan for almost 8 years and, at the time, would have found Lierre’s book very troubling and would not have agreed with her on most points. I would NOT have found it mean-spirited, however, so I strongly suspect the apologists haven’t read it honestly. Anyhow, even in my most strident periods as a vegan I never condoned violence towards individuals whom I believed were doing harm. I knew those who did, and I distanced myself. Not only do I not believe in that sort of thing in principle, it does NOT help the vegan cause. I never met anyone who wasn’t already vegetarian or vegan who was encouraged to become so by witnessing things like this–omnivores are almost universally turned-off. Even my most veg-friendly acquaintances always thought PETA was at best a joke, at worst offensive and cruel.
Anyone condoning this sort of behavior, and the anonymous cowards who took the action, should be ashamed. And even if you think Lierre is pure evil, you might consider what good “tit for tat” has ever done for anyone. What ever happened to ahimsa, vegans?
Well said. I was pleased to read comments by vegans who are appalled at what happened. As for those trying to justify it, they’re moral hypocrites and in serious need of therapy.
Tom, yes, the video needs to be taken off. I only posted the link to show how the audience didn’t even twitch when she was pied three times. Unbelievable.
That’s what I mentioned in an email to her. I couldn’t believe all those self-proclaimed anarchists (most of whom probably have little idea what the word actually means) sat and watched three men attack a woman. By contrast, I was at the Liberty Film Festival some years ago when three thugs tried to attack David Horowitz during a speech. They were flattened and tossed out on their little left-wing @$$es within seconds.
OMG, is she going to have to hand out B12 at her talks now.
You know what this means, that becoming a vegan or vegetarian is a choice for life as it doesn’t seem to matter to the vegan militants that she was of sound mind for however many years it was she was vege. And once you’re in this exclusive club — haah — you are not allowed to express any doubt and must follow the herd… all the way to slaughter! Bunch of grazers.
Btw, is Lierre following a particular diet right now? Does she eat Paleo?
And my condolences to Lierre.
From what I understand, she eats a mostly paleo diet with all pasture-raised meats and grows much of her food herself.
I’m outraged.
However, I did buy “The Vegetarian Myth” a few minutes after hearing about the incident. Hadn’t heard of the book. It’s fascinating. Well worth reading.
That’s the best response possible.
Tom,
Thank you for your staunchly written post.
It is heartbreaking to hear about unfair treatment to those who abandon their prior ’causes’ as Lierre Keith has courageously, intelligently and desparate for her life has done so.
Hands-down ‘The Vegetarian Myth’ is probably the BEST ‘evo paleo’ book I will ever read because it is a voice from the other side. I’m slowly savoring each and every chapter… the lyrical autobiography, the SCIENCE, the history of man… and crying about every 20th page…!!
It is amazing the ‘light’ that Lierre shines.
Lierre, stay strong GRRRRL!!! You are so recovered and beautiful. WE are behind YOU all the way.
Warm hugs to you guys,
Grace
It’s an amazing book.
Thanks for writing this, Tom. It’s a great assessment of the situation. I find it appalling that the so-called kindest and most caring (allegedly) are the ones that perpetrate these incidents. Lierre Keith, has done a service to the nutrition community with her book.
I am not at all surprised that this happened in the Bay area, although it could have easily happened on a college campus. This is what happens, though, when the extreme leftists among us (let’s call them what they are) get agitated. Look at the treatment of conservatives on college campuses: Ann Coulter (love her or hate her) travels with body guards and has nearly been pied is just one more example. There is an element of our society that is all in favor of free speech until they don’t agree with it; then they try to shut it down.
The documentary “Indoctrinate U” does a fine job of covering that topic. The irony is that ’60s college protests didn’t begin with Vietnam; they began with the campus free-speech movement. Turns out the ’60s radicals weren’t actually interested in free speech once they got themselves into positions of power.
People will fight rabidly to maintain a personal belief system. Their whole identities are wrapped up in the belief systems they are trying to maintain, and like most fanatics, they will go to the ultimate extremes to maintain those belief systems in the face of conflicting information.
It doesn’t matter to them if someone gets hurt, as long as whatever lies they believe can stay alive in their own minds. Admitting they are wrong is not an option, so therefore the speaker with the opposite viewpoint MUST be wrong, and MUST be stopped, no matter the cost.
Lierre Keith shows tremendous courage in opening her own eyes, writing her book, and speaking at these types of forums.
Scott Peck wrote a good book on this type of behavior. It’s called “People of the Lie”.
I’ll look for it. Eric Hoffer called them True Believers, the subject of tomorrow’s post on my other blog.
If reason is not available, they have to use the only means they have left: violence.
In other news: PETA saved 8 animals and killed 2,301 animals in 3009 while receiving 34 Million Dollars.
http://www.care2.com/causes/animal-welfare/blog/-34-million-later-peta-saves-eight-animals/
Hypocrisy is a wonderful thing, it seems.
Geez, even the V.A. hospitals have a better record than that.
Tom, your post made me laugh, and that’s a very good thing right now. And I want to thank all of you for your support and outrage on my behalf. It helps to counterbalance the people who are celebrating that I was assaulted.
The people who assaulted me were definitely vegans–they shouted “Go vegan!” and “Don’t eat meat!” as they hit me. The irony for me was that the attack came at the exact moment in my speech when I was saying, “You shouldn’t eat factory-farmed meat. Anyone with a pulse, let alone a conscience, should agree.”
But they aren’t going to stop me from speaking. I will just be doing it with security from now on. I’ve also been flooded with literally hundreds of emails of support from people all around the world, more than I can answer. That really helps. And the silver lining in the cayenne cloud is that my book went from 4500 on amazon to 1503 yesterday. As one of my friends said, “You know those stupid little f*cks have just sold the entire 4th printing for you?” If they wanted to shut me up, they’ve had the opposite effect on every level.
Heal up soon, Lierre. Since not everyone reads comments, I’m also going to post this. You’ve got a lot a fans among our readers.
I bought the book. emailed Lierre to say “I hope you’re feeling better”. She replied, saying that her amazon ranking has gone from 4000 to 2000 as a result of this incident.
I’m glad she’s receiving so much support. (Now, of course, the nut-jobs will start saying she set up the whole thing to sell books.)
Great posting.
I don’t mind vegans, whackos, radical environmentalists, or other extremists. They can call our attention to aspects of existence we’d overlook otherwise. They can be provocative and entertaining — these are all good things.
I don’t even mind people who are flat-out anti-human. Humans do a lot of crappy things, y’know? Hard not to be appalled by them sometimes. I’m cool too with out-there, theatrical displays of extremism — dumping a bin of dollar bills on the floor of the NY Stock Exchange was a pretty funny Yippie gag, for example. And some of the stunts the radical environmentalists have pulled have been inventive, as well as effective ways to draw attention to some issues that needed the attention.
What bugs me is what you’re emphasizing here — the behavior. Physical assault: no good.
People can say and think what they please, as far as I’m concerned. They can even act in crazy and provocative ways. It’s all part of that grand spectacle blah blah. And it’s part of enjoying our freedom, so why would I question that? Lordy, I’d hate to live in a country where everyone acted “reasonably” 24/7/365, let alone one where “reasonableness” was heavily policed and enforced.
Assaulting other people physically, though (outside of times of defensive wars), really cheeses me off.
Exactly. Loud, inventive, theatrical protests — all part of our proud tradition of free speech. But as soon as you attempt to damage someone else’s person or property as a protest, you’re a criminal.
Looking forward to your posting on Hoffer, by the way. Polly and I just read the book, and god knows he really nails the True Believer type.
I should get notes from you. It’s been years since I read it, but I remember the thesis pretty well.
We definitely have to ration free speech, especially for those you don’t agree with. This goes double when you can’t refute them with logic and science. Gotta’ shut ‘em up somehow.
More and more, on the nutrition front, I see stuff about the “benefits” of cutting back on meat, meatless Mondays, yada, yada, yada…. My heart bleeds for those poor downtrodden, persecuted vegans. NOT!!!
I’ve put off buying a copy of The Vegetarian Myth, but I think I’ll get one soon.
We’d be better off with wheatless Mondays.
Huh. Weird. 3 men, attacking a woman. At an anarchist conference. I know some hard core feminist anarchists (both men, and women) who would definitely NOT be down with that kind of shxdxt. Like bone fracturingly “not down”.
Contrary to the silly cartoonish discriptions of folks on the left that I am reading in some of the comments here, not every one on the left is a half baked ineffectual hippy.
I’d love to view the carnage kicked up, and rained down upon these 3 vegan “activists” and their internet posse by some serious hard core gender activists. Nothing bloodier, or more vicious than leftist infighting. If you’ve never seen it first hand, you’re truly missing out on one of the great spectacles of human cruelty.
3 men assault a woman, with red hot pepper in the face, and these vegans cheer? Man, oh (wo)man if I had more free time I’d stir this pot fo’ sho’. (Not being a vegan, or feminist activist myself I encourage anyone else bringing this to the attention of folks who do have the energy to educate these vegans as to their enthusiastic support for violence against women.) (And I’m only being mildly ironic here.)
Moving right along, let us not confuse the Noble Art of Pieing with the disgusting and vile misogyny of these thugs. (Or does “thug” elevate them to an unwarranted status.)
As an activist for Clownish Rights, I have to say that I am appalled that these jerks would debase one of our most sacred gags by the addition of cayanne pepper to the pie.
Aside from being an genuinely illegal act of assault (and I DO hope that this matter is being treated as such) it now casts a suspicious shadow over any and all future pie throwing exercises. As we have it down from ancient times, the great St.Soupy Sales codified the proper pie for throwing as consisting of a pie plate, and shaving cream.
The act of pieing a public figure is meant as an outrageous attack, not on their physical person, but on their supposed ‘authority’, and often as not their pompous dignity. It is meant to highlight the absurdity of the person beign pied, and is usually used only after reasonable forms of protest have failed to gain a satisfactory response. It’s an exclaimation point! A buffoonish ritual act, stripping away the emperor’s new clothes, and exposing the fool for all to see.
It is NOT a method of actually causing any real, or lasting harm to the pie-ee. Usually the most a victim of a pieing can demand from a pie thrower is a dry cleaning bill, or they run the risk of seeming like petty jack offs, and humorless self important bullies, in the cases where they are determined to press charges. But this is ONLY because shaving cream, and bananna cream do no actual harm.
Now these vegan ar$3holes have set a precendent for actual assault, and have thus put the entire Clownish Commmunity at risk for persecution. Shame on them. (Well, that and the whole violence against women thing.) Only the Joker would assassinate someone allergic to peanuts with a peanut butter pie, and he’s just a comic book.
No, seriously. What a bunch of jerks.
I will have to buy Keith’s book now, I probably would have agreed with much of it already, as a former vegan for whom things “didn’t work out” (rage? you must be kidding me. “rage” was a pale shadow of the things I felt.) Sucks that someone did that to her.
If it had been a good clean honest pieing, delivered from say the ritually sanctioned 5′ away, flung with unerring accuracy, just as Keith openned her mouth to make some statement, with a non-toxic pie, I laugh heartily myself. A few napkins, and if she wasn’t too put out she could finish her speech with good humor. (Better yet, a mutual pie fight.)
But burning some one’s eyes, and mucous membranes with cayanne pepper? That’s criminal assault. And it sucks.
I only support pie-throwing if someone is saying “Nyuk-nyuk-nyuk” at the time. But to your first point, I don’t think anyone is suggesting all leftists are kooks. But the kooks who assault public speakers always seems to be lefists.
I could understand these people throwing a pie in her face. When you are incapable of intelligent discourse and debating a point using logic and persuasion, then you resort to physical attacks. But to purposefully put cayenne in the pie to hurt her–and then gleefully gather with your clan to celebrate–this speaks of a serious mental disturbance. This is absolutely disgusting.
Agreed. If she’s as wrong as they say she is, they should be able to prove it.
My first point actually was that violence against women is wrong, and that there are folks on the left (some who you’d find very kooky, I beleive “feminazi” is a sometime used term) who might be willing to do something about it. Many of the anarchists that I know wouldn’t be willing to turn the folks who did this over to the police, they’d prefer to take care of it themselves.
My second point was that pie throwing is only an assault on a person’s self importantence.
I missed this post and read your other one on the personality type first!
Poor Lierre I feel so bad that this happened to her however, this doesn’t surprise me at all because I know vegans who are absolutely aggressive in their stance.
Attacking someone to prove your point that killing animals is wrong really takes the strength away from your original purpose. It makes your entire ethical reasoning look rather insane. Not only that, these vegans aren’t really “taking a stand”, they’re actually proving Lierre’s point in the book 100%
They are giving her credibility by reacting in ways she has described in her book.
Way to go!
I wasn’t surprised either. I was more surprised it didn’t happen sooner.
I’m about as far to the left as you can get, eat meat, not white, would’ve called the cops immediately (well, after calling 911), and think the prospect of three men attacking a woman is beyond pathetic. So much for stereotypes. I had never heard of Lierre or her book before but will now read it with great interest. I don’t mind if people want to be vegan, I just don’t want to argue about it. Nobody has ever in my life changed my mind by trying to bully me. And truthfully, I don’t think even the most coherent arguments work. People are emotional creatures; I think we generally pick a side first and decide on the credibility of its arguments after.
I doubt most of the “anarchists” who are upset that Lierre called the cops even understand what “anarchist” means.