Bashing the butcher

I write to you today regarding the Best of Montreal issue [May 11]. I was, first of all, nauseous to see a dead pig on the cover of your paper. Meat is the flesh of tortured animals. The butcher looked sadistic when carving away at piglet. I feel that in this day and age, there is no place for supporting animal cruelty. You not only encouraged the butchering of animals by including a Best Butcher category, you put the spotlight on it by placing it on the cover.

Billions of animals are silenced and killed every year for their flesh. They go to the slaughterhouse kicking and screaming. I choose to speak up for them and tell their story! I believe that your readers must be made aware that in Canada, from the farm to the freezer, life is hell for farm animals. By honouring those who make profit from killing, you encourage animal suffering, human disease and environmental devastation!

The consumption of meat and dairy products has been conclusively linked with heart disease, obesity, diabetes, arthritis, osteoporosis, Alzheimer's, asthma and impotence. Scientists have also found that vegetarians have stronger immune systems than their meat-eating friends. This means that they are less susceptible to everyday illnesses like the flu. Vegetarians and vegans live, on average, six to 10 years longer than meat-eaters.

Now let’s think about industrial hog farming in Quebec and its impact on the environment! In Quebec, the typical industrial pig farm creates more waste (shit) than a town of 12,000 people. This waste often runs into our waterways!

Lastly, I would like to tell you more about pigs before they are sliced up and served. Pigs are curious and insightful animals thought to have intelligence beyond that of an average three-year-old human child. They are smarter than dogs and every bit as friendly, loyal and affectionate. Scientists and scholars who have studied pigs say that pigs are the smartest animals outside of primates. Says Dr. Donald Broom, a scientific advisor to the British government, “[Pigs] have the cognitive ability to be quite sophisticated. Even more so than dogs and certainly three-year-olds.”

It’s never too late to turn over a new leaf. You can take control of your health today by going vegetarian—www.goveg.com.

» Lucas Solowey

I’m writing to express my disgust at your May 11 cover photo. I found it to be both insensitive as well as in bad taste. Anyone who is aware of factory farming practises and animal slaughter knows that by its very nature, the industry is cruel and inhumane. The brutality that livestock (such as pigs) endure both before and during the slaughtering process is no laughing matter.

The butchering of pigs is not something to make light of, but rather a brutal matter to be taken deadly seriously. There is so much information available right now regarding the cruelty inherent in the meat industry that no reasonable person can plead ignorance regarding the issues of inhumane treatment suffered by farm animals.

I ask the editors of the Mirror to pull your heads out of the sand and get educated. Animal abuse and mistreatment isn’t now, nor ever will be, a laughing matter.

» Cindy Illsley

Not all that jazz

Congratulations on your BOM 2006 edition. Some comments on your Best Jazz Musician category—I know many people have various opinions about what jazz is, but here are a few things that stuck out:

Franco Proietti (Kobayashi), Microtone Kitchen and Chris Tauchner (Kobayashi) play acid jazz, which is different from jazz. The other musicians are jazz, but the best local jazz talent just isn’t there. And for Best Jazz Bar there are a few places missing worth mentioning that have more constant jazz scheduling than, say, Jello Bar or Barfly. La Kemia, for example.

» Claude Thibault, Sortiesjazznights.com

Pick-up lines not so sexy

J’espère que vous savez lire en français parce que ce que j’ai à vous dire n’a rien d’élogieux et vous rabaisse au même niveau que votre merdier de chroniqueur qui a rédigé les Sexiest French Pick-up Lines dans votre dernière édition.

C’est écoeurant qu’on laisse passer des obscénités du genre dans un journal qui se dit ‘‘culturel’’ et qui, de plus, laisse sous-entendre que ce sont des phrases couramment utilisées chez les francophones. Il y a une méchante différence entre dire “bonjour” en introduction à quelqu’un et “suce moi’’ ou “sois ma pute,” “mange du poil,” “ouvre tes jambes,” “y’à du blé d’inde dans mon caca.”

Sacrament, Sutherland, ce gars-là fait passer les québécoises pour des putains sans génie puis vous laissez faire ça? Tu pourras dire à ton journaliste qu’il a oublié de citer la best french one liner à dire à un minable comme lui: “T’ES UN OSTIE TROU DE CUL.” C’est son niveau de language. Y va comprendre. Si c’est là qu’on en est rendu, ça fait vraiment dur votre affaire. Congé!

Diez-moi ça sur le champ. Ce serait tout en votre honneur.

» jacques leboeuf

WE WELCOME LETTERS TO THE EDITOR!

Send your comments, compliments or criticisms to:

Letters to the Editor,
c/o Montreal Mirror,
465 McGill, 3rd Floor
Montreal, Quebec
H2Y 4B4

You may also fax us at (514) 393-3173, or reach us by e-mail:

Letters to the Editor

All letters should include your name, address and daytime phone number.

If you wish to reach someone in particular, here's a list of people involved with the production of the newspaper and this site.