tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5593026103512648416.post5179073561289159543..comments2024-03-05T05:13:14.325-08:00Comments on A Meaningful Life, A Better World: Big Numbers Hurt Animals, RevisitedMatt Ballhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12389020149472026193noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5593026103512648416.post-60251657235526549872016-01-04T14:58:26.418-08:002016-01-04T14:58:26.418-08:00This post really resonated with me...while I didn&...This post really resonated with me...while I didn't know his name at the time, I distinctly remember seeing that picture of the young boy lying on the beach. As I write this, in my mind I can still clearly see his red shirt...his blue pants...and his oh-so-small shoes...<br /><br />You are right that relating to one person or animal is easy, whereas it's very easy to feel overwhelmed by large numbers, especially when they reach into the billions like they do for farmed animals. <br /><br />I do still use large numbers when giving figures, but I try to keep it to instances when the person(s) I'm speaking to can relate somehow. For instance, if I've been speaking to someone for 30 minutes about factory farming issues, at the end I'll say something like, "In the 30 minutes we've been talking, half a million animals have been killed for food in the United States." <br /><br />I don't even use the phrase "slaughtered for food" most of the time. I think "slaughtered" has a certain shock factor for the average person, and that has the tendency to overshadow the figure of "half a million" when the person hears it.<br /><br />I'm hoping to make my first combined volunteeer-visit to a farmed animal sanctuary this year. I'm sure I'll return with lots of wonderful stories about the individual animals there to share. :)<br /><br /><br />Christinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08080100467430383802noreply@blogger.com