Weekly Newsletter from Christian Vegetarian Association CVA - May 9, 2026
From Christian Vegetarian Association (CVA)

  1. Should They Have Walked Away from Omelas?
  2. Check out the All-Creatures.org May 6 Newsletter

1. Should They Have Walked Away from Omelas?

Last time, I discussed Ursula Le Guin's short story The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. Those townspeople who could not countenance torturing a child as the price of the community's peace and well-being chose to leave. Yet, they had another option: they could have stayed and opposed the injustice.

It makes no sense to claim that torturing an innocent child would actually produce communal well-being. Rather, it is the belief in this process that gives community members a sense of peace and tranquility. Anyone who questions the efficacy of scapegoating risks undermining that belief. Such dissent is dangerous. The logic of scapegoating depends on the conviction that the victim is evil and must be punished to restore social order. Those who challenge this framework - on which general equanimity depends - may themselves be labeled "evil" and subjected to the same fate as the scapegoated victim.

A further challenge for opponents of scapegoating is that it can appear to work in the short term. People come to believe that evil has been eradicated, and a sense of camaraderie arises from identifying and punishing those held responsible for communal anxieties. At first, many genuinely believe they are safe and that their lives are secure. However, because scapegoating rests on a false claim about the victim's guilt, the resulting sense of well-being is inherently unstable and ultimately fleeting.

Next, I will elaborate on why the peace and well-being in Omelas were unstable. For similar reasons, scapegoating nonhuman beings cannot bring lasting peace and well-being to us today.

Stephen R. Kaufman, MD

2. Check out the All-Creatures.org May 6 Newsletter

https://all-creatures.org/newsletter/news-20260506.html

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International Calf & Cow Mother's Day this weekend! - cognitive dissonance in nature enthusiasts - if veganism has healed you, speak out - unexpected benefits when another vegan joins your group - learn about the Jewish principle of tza'ar ba'alei chayim - watch the Widen Our Golden Rule music video - I Miss You, Mother [new song from Camille Harrison] - They're cutting down trees [new poem from J.H. Dickinson] - birds and other wildlife devastated by pesticide use, land development - and more...

Please support the CVA! At www.christianveg.org/materials.htm, you can find literature, T-shirts, bumper stickers and more, and donations are always welcomed!

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