Omniocracy

A Government that Represents All Living Beings

De: Charlotte Laws

Narrado por: Virtual Voice

“Omniocracy is the blueprint for a truly just world.” — Peter Young, author/animal activist

“If you like books that are extremely thought-provoking, highly controversial, and make you question everything you thought you knew, then this book is for you.” — Jane Velez-Mitchell, journalist/author

"'All oppression is woven together like a patchwork quilt,' Charlotte Laws writes in Omniocracy, making an argument that will fall on deaf ears, even though she’s entirely right; the system Laws envisions would benefit humans every bit as much as it would all of humanity’s countless victims. She movingly asks her readers to take down the artificial barriers they’ve erected to this kind of thinking and allow all other living things to “join the human on the elite side of the divide”; one can only pray she changes some minds. Omniocracy is a heartfelt and richly detailed thought experiment positing a better, fairer world." Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Charlotte Laws’ Omniocracy is not just another book about animal rights. It’s a bold, unflinching challenge to the very foundation of Western political thought. Laws, known for her fearless activism and her willingness to take on entrenched power, makes the case that democracy, the system we celebrate for its inclusivity, is, in reality, a dictatorship of one species. Humans rule. Animals, no matter how sentient or intelligent, have no political voice and no legal standing. Omniocracy is essential reading for anyone who believes the fight for animals must go deeper than incremental reforms. It’s a wake-up call to confront our species’ most comfortable lies, and to imagine a political future that, for the first time, gives voice to the entire community of life.” - Ed Boks, Animal Politics

“A life-changing scholarly book and much needed in a world that is dominated by and for the human. As the author convincingly states: Nonhuman animals will remain in chains until they are recognized within the political system.” — Gene Baur, president of Farm Sanctuary

Omniocracy (AHM-nee-ocracy) argues for a science-based animal rights philosophy and a government of, by, and for all living beings.

Democracy—often lauded by the animal and environmental movements—is a totalitarian regime in which the powerful (Homo sapiens) use, abuse, manipulate, and murder the powerless (animals) for the former’s own perceived gain. This system of government must be eradicated if nonhumans are to be viewed as true constituents, stakeholders, and citizens. Omniocracy—a government with representation for all living beings—is the best option.

Most animal rights advocates err by asking people to use their free will to be moral agents and give sentient animals respect. This argument sabotages the goals of the movement. Free will and absolute morality are not only fairy tales, they are destructive ones. They derail true equality for all living beings by secretly promoting hierarchy, disconnectedness, and a hatred for others. They reinforce speciesism and the erroneous view that humans are the crown of creation.

Omniocracy offers a better approach. It embraces the determined and amoral universe, then builds a political structure based on pragmatism and the “definitional good.” This structure has an added benefit: it brings together the animal and environmental movements, which have long been at odds. An omniocratic system is foundationally consistent and advances much-needed concern for all living creatures and the planet.