Blogging the Intolerant

A Tumblr blogger replied to my post about kosher food for inmates in Florida:

From what I know about kosher meat, it’s inhumanely produced. And providing “Jewish” inmates with kosher food, leading to more inhumane slaughter…no me gusta. Don’t get detained in the first place and practice your silly delusions elsewhere. I don’t like getting into Tumblr wars though. But that wad [sic] my honest opinion when I saw that post.

I like pretty much everything about this reply:

1. “From what I know” almost certainly means “I don’t know very much.” Is slaughter “humane”? Not really; a healthy animal is being slaughtered for food and I’m not sure how you can gussy that up. That’s why most people don’t like to spend time in slaughterhouses. Is kosher slaughter somehow less humane than other forms of slaughter? Not if it’s carried out properly, no.

2. The word Jewish is placed in quotation marks here, as if to suggest that Jewish people (or at least the inmates in the new article, who are now allowed to adhere to the laws of kashrut) somehow don’t comprise an authentic identity. This is further emphasized by referring to Judaism as “silly delusions.” There’s nothing quite like completely invalidating the beliefs of millions. This is especially endearing in that it comes from someone who only identifies herself on her blog as “Queer. ..Latina… LaVeyan Satanist.”

3. The article I quoted in my post is about the fact that Florida can no longer infringe on the freedom of religion of its inmates. The blogger’s reply is apparently that inmates shouldn’t be free to practice their religion: “Don’t get detained in the first place.” Commit a crime? You’re Christian now!

3. Finally, “I don’t like getting into Tumblr wars though” means “I just want to say insulting and ignorant things but then not have anyone respond to them, thanks.” Apparently, that doesn’t fly with me.