Rain Without Thunder: The Ideology of the Animal Rights Movement

In everyday language with respect to human animals, the word "welfare" has very good connotations. However, in the areas of _law_ and _institutional policy_ with respect to non-human animals, words like "welfare," "humane," "care," "unnecessary suffering," and so on only mean _one_ thing. Namely, they mean that the interests of non-human animals will be protected only to the extent necessary to exploit them in an economically efficient manner. For example, in law and policy, the welfare of a pig not to starve is protected because it is necessary to feed the pig in order to get her or his meat. The same is necessarily true of every animal welfare law and regulation. Therefore, any advocacy that attempts to achieve animal rights and the abolition of animal exploitation in the long-term by using the supposedly short-term strategy of trying to pass welfare regulations achieves only _one_ thing. Namely, if those measures are implemented, it will be further ensured that the only interests of non-human animals that will ever be protected are those that are required to exploit them efficiently. In other words, the supposed "success" of implementing a welfare measure only further ensures that the interests of other animals that are not required to exploit them efficiently will *always* be violated in the most abhorrent ways imaginable. In short, welfare measures *only* harm non-human animals and never help them.

Again, before I read Francione's arguments and evidence, I found his claim to be counter-intuitive. If this describes your views on the subject, for the sake of non-human animals who are exploited everywhere, I urge you to read and seriously consider _Rain Without Thunder_. Francione offers an excellent practical alternative to welfarist advocacy that, if followed, will further the rights of other animals on a workable *incremental* basis. As an animal rights advocate, I am extremely grateful that this book exists.


A Must Read!   November 30, 1999
 7 out of 12 found this review helpful

This book is a must read for anyone who considers themselves a supporter of animal rights. Francione powerfully argues that the animal rights movement has spiraled down into a animal welfare movement--a movement that has failed horribly in the past. Please read this!


Important book for the modern animal rights activist.   September 21, 1998
 8 out of 11 found this review helpful

In "Rain Without Thunder," Francione discusses the emergence of "new welfarists" who are doing the animals more harm than good. He meticulously lays out why animal welfare cannot lead to animal liberation. And argues a need for change. This book is a must read for all animal rights activists. Unfortunately you won't see it carried by mainstream "animal rights" (which GF calles the "new welfarists")organizations, because it is much too controversial!


An important and controversial book for animal activists   April 21, 1997
 7 out of 9 found this review helpful

Rain Without Thunder is a penetrating look at howanimal rights activism without a clear understandingof important philosophical differences between animal rights and animal welfare has led to ineffective strategies which, Francione argues, serve only to more deeply entrench the speciesist paradigms that lead to animal oppression. Francione's insights are important not only for animal rights activists, but for everyone working for social justice. The first truly original animal rights book I have seen in a long time. Read it!


Only if you have trouble sleeping.   October 27, 1996
 10 out of 51 found this review helpful

First, this is a book for the anointed. Those who don'talready think cows deserve personhood need not bother;there's absolutely nothing here that will convince you. For anyone left: Written in wandering, equivocal academic speak and crushingly redundant, this is a book that took 230 pages to say what could have been said in ten, and still failed to say much at all. Synopsis: "Animals are persons, too. `Mainstream' animal rights groups aid animal `exploiters' because they still behave as if animals are, well, animals. 'Mainstream' animal rights groups are also sexist because they only throw red paint on women. We must demand an immediate end to institutionalized animal use. We'd be silly to expect an immediate end to institutionalized animal use. We must demand incremental changes within the `all animal use must end' paradigm. I don't know how, but let's talk." Unless you'd like to give this book to someone too comfortable with the state of higher education - Mr. Francione is a law professor at Rutgers - I'd strongly suggest you save your money. If you must read it, take mine. Please.