WCU professor’s book on human-animal interaction, ‘Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat’, earns praise

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Here’s part of today’s Asheville Citizen-Times story by Bruce Steele about a local book that’s getting a lot of national attention. It’s called Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat, and it’s penned by Western Carolina University professor Hal Herzog. It’s about humans’ relationships with animals:

Like a late-night college dorm debate, Herzog’s book is smart and chatty, with just a hint of academia. He strikes an effective balance between tackling tough moral questions and offering compelling stories about people and their pets, animal activists, lapsed vegetarians, animal abusers and more.

It was the hard-core activists Herzog thought would most take issue with his book. He doesn’t take sides in the debates over meat-eating and industrial chicken farming but rather examines the moral motivations of those who do.

“One of the things that surprised me about the book is that the people who are the most enthusiastic are the people who have thought about these issues deeply, which are animal rights activists,” he said.

The controversial national group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals “was very cooperative when I was writing this book,” Herzog said.

“The thing that I think I didn’t understand about PETA was how funny they are. They have this twisted sense of humor. I like animal activists. I’m not one, but I admire them. On the other hand, they carry a heavy moral burden.”