Belts,bags,andothergoodsoncemadeofleatherarenow
easily found in other materials.
Other problems that used to daunt the most advanced
opponents of the exploitation of animals have also
disappeared.Candles,oncemadeonlyoftallow,arenolonger
indispensable, and can,for those who still want them, be
obtainedinnonanimalmaterials.Soapsmadefromvegetable
oilsratherthananimalfats areobtainablefromhealth food
stores.Wecandowithoutwool,andalthoughsheepgenerally
roamfreely,thereisastrongcasefordoingsoinviewofthe
manycrueltiestowhichthesegentleanimalsaresubjected.^27
Cosmeticsandperfumes,oftenmadefromwildanimalslike
themuskdeerandtheEthiopiancivetcat,arehardlyessential
itemsanyway,butthosewhowishtowearthemcanobtain
cruelty-freecosmetics,whichdonotcontainanimalproducts
andhavenotbeentestedonanimalseither,fromanumberof
shops and organizations.^28
AlthoughImentionthesealternatives toanimalproductsto
showthatitisnotdifficulttorefusetoparticipateinthemajor
kinds of exploitation of animals, I do not believe that
consistencyisthesameas,orimplies,arigidinsistence on
standardsofabsolutepurityinallthatoneconsumesorwears.
The point of altering one’s buying habits is not to keep
oneselfuntouchedbyevil,buttoreducetheeconomicsupport
fortheexploitationofanimals,andtopersuadeotherstodo
thesame.Soitisnotasintocontinuetowearleathershoes
you bought before you began to think about Animal
Liberation.Whenyourleathershoeswearout,buynonleather
ones; but you will not reduce the profitability of killing
animalsbythrowingoutyourpresentones.Withdiet,too,it
ismoreimportanttorememberthemajoraimsthantoworry