Sep 1, 2009 (2 days ago)

Editorial Statement Denouncing the Sleazy McCarthyist Tactics of Gary Francione

by Camille Marino

Simulposted with Thomas Paine’s Corner

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As some of our readers may be aware, numerous writers from our collective have
been engaged in increasingly intense — and unfortunately hostile — debates with
Professor Gary Francione, the leading theorist and spokesperson for pacifist vegan
abolitionism, and revered Messiah to his cult of followers who parrot his
positions and dutifully obey his commands. It is no secret that Francione, the
Prophet of Peace and champion of nonviolence, is anything but in his real
relations with people, especially those audacious enough to disagree with his
theological doctrine. Behind his public mask of a pacifistic and dutiful follower
of Jainism Buddhism, Gandhi, and King, is an arrogant, aggressive, bullying,
injurious, controlling megalomaniac whose actions consistently belie and
contradict his theory, principles, and public persona. Whereas the Jainist
philosophy of ahimsa enjoins its followers to purge all hatred, hostility, and
violence from their thoughts, words, and deeds, Francione absolutely revels in
these sins and pursues instead the power politics of Machiavelli.

For over a decade, Francione has enjoyed his role as uncontested leader of a
growing vegan abolitionist movement, and he has grown used to the adorning and
fawning praise of his fulsome flatterers, benighted bootlickers, syrupy
sycophants, and dim-witted devotees. But, as a liberal-individualist who never
challenges the ultimate structures of power, who engages only fellow white
privileged people of the West, who diverts attention away from the looming global
social and ecological crisis, and who peddles simplistic fantasyland theories of
“vegan revolution” that magically will eliminate suffering, oppression, and evil
and return the globe to an Edenic state, all without any actual politics,
practice, or even real “education” work, Francione is leading his followers down a
primrose path to nowhere and wasting precious time that the Earth and its sentient
inhabitants don’t have.

But only in the last 6 months or so, beginning in the pages of Thomas Paine’s
Corner and spilling over into Camille Marino’s blog, Negotiation is Over, has
anyone begun to challenge Francione’s facile formulas and cultural narcotics in
any significant sense. His gilded empire, cult leader status, and infallibility
threatened, Francione did not take kindly to these challenges, to say the least,
and has lashed out with unprecedented dishonesty, chicanery, and ruthlessness,
even for him. Backing down from a radio debate with Best (even though he tried to
smuggle in two “moderators” to prop him up if necessary), and then challenging
Best to an unmoderated Skype debate while spreading disinformation that Best was
trying to back out, Francione attempted to raise the moat on his wounded tribe and
empire by adopting increasingly slanderous, reactionary, and demagogic tactics.
His amoral and unconscionable actions became so regressive and dangerous, we have
penned this response to denounce him unequivocally not only as a fraud, charlatan,
opportunist, and megalomaniac, but also as a traitor and enemy to the animal
liberation movement and as a major impediment to social transformation. Just as
Wayne Pacelle of HSUS recently demonstrated that he is a collaborator with systems
of oppression, so too Francione has now degenerated into an agent of state
repression. He and Pacelle have now both attempted to defame and falsely accuse
the radical wing of the animal liberation movement of terrorist actions and have
sought to enlist and join forces with the state, the police and the FBI to break
the back of militant forces in the movement.
Francione’s collaboration with the very corporatist state that enforces the
“right” of animal exploiters to enslave, torture, and murder nonhuman animals
couldn’t be more evident than in this “Tweet” from Adam Kochanowicz, one of his
top lieutenants:

http://www.twitlonger.com/show/etrk

[On Sunday 30th August 2009, @abvegan said: reply ALF-to-vegan death threats are
being sent out. If you are Facebook friends with the following persons, de-friend
them immediately.

From Gary L. Francione:

I have received several messages from people informing me that they have received
threats and/or violent communications because they have posted messages in support
of non-violence or critical of the views of Steve Best.

If you feel threatened, you should go to the appropriate authorities.

You might want to go through your FB list. The administrators of "Go Vegan or
Die," which promotes violence (including personal violence) and the harassment of
those who promote non-violence, are: Mary Xanthos, Karen Challenges, Ward Chanley,
Kerri Millam, Holly Donna Balaclava, Gina Maltese, and Camile Marino. People
communicate with Steve Best at their own risk as he distributes emails to those
whom he knows will respond with threats of violence.

If you are a member of this group or otherwise support violence, please respect my
wishes and leave this site. ]

These wild accusations are obviously baseless, not to mention idiotic, as none of
us, including Steve Best has a means of communicating with the underground, the
ALF does not commit acts of violence against human or nonhuman animals, and even
the more radical AR militants have never killed a human being, let alone a member
of our own movement—no matter how traitorous or misguided they might be.

Please spread the word far and wide that Francione and his cowardly and
treacherous cult followers have now become collaborationists with the repressive
police state that has evolved to crush the animal liberation movement.
Kochanowicz is as much a McCarthyist as Francione, as he disseminated false and
unsubstantiated claims against social activists in a shameless attempt to bring
state repression against them to stifle dissent and to crush resistance.

Let it now be clear: The Emperor not only has no clothes, he has no integrity and
should lose all trust. Indeed, hitherto, Francione is best viewed not as a social
critic, but rather as a capitalist collaborator.

To receive Negotiation Is Over, please send an email with the subject

“subscriptions” to camille@negotiationisover.com

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