In San Jose, they’ve got these bus stop posters that show Einstein and underneath the word “vegetarian”. And some hollywood ditz I don’t recognize, and again underneath her “vegetarian”. I’ve seen them for a month, and though they are annoying, I haven’t pulled over and ripped one down or anything. So today, I’m stuck at a light beside one of these signs and I look at the bottom and it says “PETA”.
Christ on the Crack Pipe! What a crock this is! Like Einstein would have anything to do with those Salad-Tossing Crack-Heads. Oh, I’m seething. I just hope when I die no one sells my face to some cock-a-mamie idiot-of-the-month-club organization.
Are you saying he wasn’t a vegetarian, or that he was a vegetarian but wouldn’t like PETA as a group? (I have no information at all on the subject, I’m just wondering).
Of course you realize, just because he was a genius in physics, doesn’t mean he was a genius in all aspects of life…
I’ve been looking and I can’t find a resource other than vegetarian/vegan pages that state that Einstein was a vegetarian. Anyone able to find a general bio that mentions this?
And I know for a fact that he was an avowed RC Cola drinker.
I’m reading a new bio of Diana Mosley, and in it, one of her friends was reported to refuse to take communion at a church, telling the priest, “I’m a vegetarian.”
What a load of crap! Makes me want to print up a batch of Hitler posters and hang right over the Einstien one. Being a vegetarian is just as likely to make you a homocidal manaic as is to make you a genius.
Can’t seem to find a bio or a cite for the quote, but “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet” appears in many general collections of Einstein quotes:
I was aware that Hitler was a vegetarian, but am wondering why that’s a dirty little secret? At any rate, that’s what makes the whole Einstien thing stupid. Typical of any PC group. They generally pick which facts are convient and ignore the rest.
Do a search on “Mariah Carey” and “starving” and see how many hits you get. And that’s for a quote that definitely wasn’t by her (if you’re wondering what I’m talking about, the full story is here: http://mrshowbiz.go.com/news/Todays_Stories/960829/8_29_96.html ).
Encyclopedia Brittanica didn’t mention he was a vegetarian, nor did any bio sites I found. All I could find were quote pages and pro-vegetarian sites, and I don’t have faith in their “research”.
The latter. I’ve talked to PETA people who sincerely believe that scientists are evil people who enjoy harming animals without cause. They believe that animal testing provides no benefit, that everything can be simulated on computers, etc. What a bunch of bone-heads.
But it’s the symbolism that kills me: the idea that this anti-science klan bought the endorsement of Einstein, one of our greatest scientists. Imagine if someone sold a product that you felt was immoral and put your face in ads for it.
If old Al hadn’t signed a “letter of proposal” (coauthored with Leo Slizard, IIRC) to FDR, the Manhattan project would likely never acheived a “weapon level device” before end of hostilities. Franklin Delano really didn’t believe that this scientific pipe dream was more than a dream, except that Einstien agreed with the basic science.
So, I guess the question is - Is Albert E. morally responsible for Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
My answer - no, heck no - that was not a time when you could moralize. Einstien was of Jewish decent. And Hitler’s policies were scarey enough, even if you don’t know about the camps.
But also, they were talking about a million US casualties if we went ashore on Honshu. Figure it at an even exchange of death - the bombs still work out at a mathematical best. But after three years of war (a war where civilian population centers where legitimate targets). It’s a no brainer, at that time.
Guess I should have started a thread in GD, but heck - it’s already typed.
[hijack]
Joe, you do realize that the A-bombs were also a “hands-off” statement to the Soviets, don’t you? (They were preparing to attack the Japanese and likely would have pulled an “Eastern Europe” scenario in the Far East if given the opportunity.) It is highly debatable whether or not the Japanese would have surrendered anyway without dropping the A-bombs. I’m sure there are many books on the subject, but I do recall a concise interview on the subject in Studs Terkel’s The Good War.
But yes, morally they were no better or worse than the fire-bombing of large population centers (which killed more people).
[/hijack]
We now return you to your regularly scheduled PETA bashing session…
I thought that letter was basically warning FDR that the Germans might be capable of it themselves.
ObVegetarianism: The Quotable Einstein lists the “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet” in its “Attributed to Einstein” section–but gives no source. On the other hand, it has “I have always eaten animal flesh with a somewhat guilty conscience,” on p.216, with an attribution “August 1953; Einstein Archive 60-058” (The archives are duplicated in Princeton and Boston.) Considering that he died less than two years later, he couldn’t have been a strict vegetarian for very long.
On the same page is this quote from Vegetarisches Universum, Dec. 1957 (I know, I know) “When you buy a piece of land to plant your cabbage and apples, you first have to drain it; that will kill all water life. Later you would have to kill all the caterpillars etc. that would otherwise eat your plants. If you must avoid all this killing on moral grounds, you will in the end have to kill yourself, all for the sake of leaving alive those creatures who have to notion of moral principles.” Slap a copy of that on those Einstein posters–including the pepsi ones.
If, in fact, Einstein wasn’t a vegetarian, then can someone please explain to me:
Is PETA legally required to obtain permission to use Einstein’s picture in their ad?
If they didn’t get permission (or aren’t required to do so), then what is to stop ANYONE from using my picture for any purpose whatsoever (especially after I’m dead and presumably unable to speak up for myself)?
Your likeness can’t be used without your consent while you are alive. If you are deceased, I think they have to get the permission of your next of kin or your estate (if you have one) to use your likeness. Awhile ago, the family of John Wayne took a cigarette company to court because they were rather offended by his image being used to hawk cigarettes (a rather tasteless idea considering he died of cancer). :rolleyes:
