Vulnerable Quotes

“Any serious social, political, and economic change must include veganism.”
― GaryLFrancione

“So I make no effort to hide my pain. I don’t ever put it all on display like this—but for today and all the rest of the days of the trial, I must. My every flinch, every flicker of pain, will be
magnified a hundred times over, then dissected by the pundits and talking heads. But I’m told it’s necessary; the world needs to see me vulnerable and wounded. I cannot appear not to care or to lack remorse, but that removes a crucial component of my self- defense mechanism and leaves me bleeding for all the world to see. I suppose that’s rather the point.”
― Ann Aguirre, Aftermath

“You cannot live a nonviolent life as long as you are consuming violence. Please consider going vegan.”
― GaryLFrancione

“It's not the substance of what you make known to me that's beautiful; it's the opening of your heart. It is the 'yes' in your heart to be mine. The fact that you are revealing the secrets and letting me peer into your heart--that is in itself the beautiful part.”
― Dana Candler, Deep Unto Deep: The Journey of His Embrace

“He was already intuiting that attachment - if only to a squirt gun - made him vulnerable.”
― Lionel Shriver, We Need to Talk About Kevin

“The notion that we should promote “happy” or “humane” exploitation as “baby steps” ignores that welfare reforms do not result in providing significantly greater protection for animal interests; in fact, most of the time, animal welfare reforms do nothing more than make animal exploitation more economically productive by focusing on practices, such as gestation crates, the electrical stunning of chickens, or veal crates, that are economically inefficient in any event. Welfare reforms make animal exploitation more profitable by eliminating practices that are economically vulnerable. For the most part, those changes would happen anyway and in the absence of animal welfare campaigns precisely because they do rectify inefficiencies in the production process. And welfare reforms make the public more comfortable about animal exploitation. The “happy” meat/animal products movement is clear proof of that.

We would never advocate for “humane” or "happy” human slavery, rape, genocide, etc. So, if we believe that animals matter morally and that they have an interest not only in not suffering but in continuing to exist, we should not be putting our time and energy into advocating for “humane” or “happy” animal exploitation.”
― GaryLFrancione

“So it is always preferable to discuss the matter of veganism in a non-judgemental way. Remember that to most people, eating flesh or dairy and using animal products such as leather, wool, and silk, is as normal as breathing air or drinking water. A person who consumes dairy or uses animal products is not necessarily or usually what a recent and unpopular American president labelled an" evil doer.”
― GaryLFrancione

“If we take the position that an assessment that veganism is morally preferable to vegetarianism is not possible because we are all “on our own journey,” then moral assessment becomes completely impossible or is speciesist. It is impossible because if we are all “on our own journey,” then there is nothing to say to the racist, sexist, anti-semite, homophobe, etc. If we say that those forms of discrimination are morally bad, but, with respect to animals, we are all “on our own journey” and we cannot make moral assessments about, for instance, dairy consumption, then we are simply being speciesist and not applying the same moral analysis to nonhumans that we apply to the human context.”
― GaryLFrancione

“To be found is to be exposed. No wonder so many of us are still lost.”
― Craig D. Lounsbrough

“I beg your pardon; I am drunk without a drink. English wine & words are vulnerable to every man.”
― Santosh Kalwar

“If we are ever going to see a paradigm shift, we have to be clear about how we want the present paradigm to shift.

We must be clear that veganism is the unequivocal baseline of anything that deserves to be called an “animal rights” movement. If “animal rights” means anything, it means that we cannot morally justify any animal exploitation; we cannot justify creating animals as human resources, however “humane” that treatment may be.

We must stop thinking that people will find veganism “daunting” and that we have to promote something less than veganism. If we explain the moral ideas and the arguments in favor of veganism clearly, people will understand. They may not all go vegan immediately; in fact, most won’t. But we should always be clear about the moral baseline. If someone wants to do less as an incremental matter, let that be her/his decision, and not something that we advise to do. The baseline should always be clear. We should never be promoting “happy” or “humane” exploitation as morally acceptable.”
― GaryLFrancione

“There are some animal advocates who say that to maintain that veganism is the moral baseline is objectionable because it is “judgmental,” or constitutes a judgment that veganism is morally preferable to vegetarianism and a condemnation that vegetarians (or other consumers of animal products) are “bad” people. Yes to the first part; no to the second. There is no coherent distinction between flesh and other animal products. They are all the same and we cannot justify consuming any of them. To say that you do not eat flesh but that you eat dairy or eggs or whatever, or that you don’t wear fur but you wear leather or wool, is like saying that you eat the meat from spotted cows but not from brown cows; it makers no sense whatsoever. The supposed “line” between meat and everything else is just a fantasy–an arbitrary distinction that is made to enable some exploitation to be segmented off and regarded as “better” or as morally acceptable. This is not a condemnation of vegetarians who are not vegans; it is, however, a plea to those people to recognize their actions do not conform with a moral principle that they claim to accept and that all animal products are the result of imposing suffering and death on sentient beings. It is not a matter of judging individuals; it is, however, a matter of judging practices and institutions. And that is a necessary component of ethical living.”
― GaryLFrancione

“We should never present flesh as somehow morally distinguishable from dairy. To the extent it is morally wrong to eat flesh, it is as morally wrong — and possibly more morally wrong — to consume dairy”
― GaryLFrancione

“Most sincere things feel at least a little embarrassing. It’s part of our defense mechanisms. Our heart’s way of protecting us from potential hurt.”
― Ann Liang, This Time It's Real

“An abolitionist is, as I have developed that notion, one who (1) maintains that we cannot justify animal use, however “humane” it may be; (2) rejects welfare campaigns that seek more “humane” exploitation, or single-issue campaigns that seek to portray one form of animal exploitation as morally worse than other forms of animal exploitation (e.g., a campaign that seeks to distinguish fur from wool or leather); and (3) regards veganism, or the complete rejection of the consumption or use of any animal products, as a moral baseline. An abolitionist regards creative, nonviolent vegan education as the primary form of activism, because she understands that the paradigm will not shift until we address demand and educate people to stop thinking of animals as things we eat, wear, or use as our resources.”
― GaryLFrancione

“I’ve realized the most effective writing and living are done when we are willing to be vulnerable. I think we spend most of our lives trying to cover up our insecurities.”
― Katie Kiesler

“It was a vulnerable thing; falling for someone when your feelings painted the world around you. Like I was made from glass, and everybody could see inside. No secret safe.”
― Laura C. Reden, Dark Reflections

“This isn't a journey of you becoming the perfect version of yourself; that's what cults are built on.

This is the journey about receiving the gift of yourself - the beautiful, vulnerable you... that you're the kind of person who is relatable, touchable, and in solidarity with others on the journey of life.”
― Scott Erickson, Say Yes: Discover the Surprising Life Beyond the Death of a Dream

“To be vulnerable, to be raw, to virtually expose your guts, I like doing that.”
― Lana Parrilla

“To want something, she realized, was to make yourself vulnerable to losing it.”
― Olivia Ford, Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame

“The kidneys are vulnerable to hypoxic damage.”
― Steven Magee, COVID Supplements

“Hubert did not want to go into this room. He was scared and he felt vulnerable and the last think on earth he wanted was to try to make friends with these strangers. He wished with all his heart that Joyce were here with him. After all, it was always easier to meet new people if there were two of you. It gave you confidence and made you feel at ease. Look, it said to the world, I already have one friend so I can't be all that bad.”
― Mike Gayle, All the Lonely People

“The advantage of sex is that it cannot occur without a high degree of vulnerability on both sides. The physical act requires an almost unavoidable degree of physical and emotional intimacy - which explains why sex can be so difficult between two people who lack trust or are nursing tensions and resentments.”
― The School of Life, How Ready Are You For Love?: A path to more fulfilling and joyful relationships

“A man is most susceptible to terror when he is in the earlier phases of his night's sleep.”
― Thomas Berger, Neighbors: A Novel

“I'm totally vulnerable to all conditions of existence all the time, no matter where I go or how good I am. Really getting this deconditions me from illusion and entitlement. It’s a fast track to letting go of the ego. To say yes, to the conditions of existence liberates me. I face them directly rather than F.A.C.E them, with fear, attachment, control, and entitlement.”
― David Richo, How to Be an Adult in Love: Letting Love in Safely and Showing It Recklessly

“While every robot seeks emotional maturity, be the human who cherishes vulnerable love.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Visvavatan: 100 Demilitarization Sonnets

“Any ape can find escape in romance novels,
It takes a human to be the living pillar of love.
While every robot seeks emotional maturity,
Be the human who cherishes vulnerable love.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Visvavatan: 100 Demilitarization Sonnets

“God will be with you. His goodness will stand the test of time and His control will never end. Even when you are at your most vulnerable, God is still on His throne and nothing will move Him from this place of authority.”
― Marc Webb, A Theology of Sleep: Trusting in the Lord When You Are Most Vulnerable

“A person to take refuge in, a purpose to be driven by, that's all you need to lead a good life.”
― Abhijit Naskar, World War Human: 100 New Earthling Sonnets

“I stood in front of the class. I announced who I was and what I was going through. I was transparent about my situation and circumstance. I answered questions and endured criticism. Then, I took my seat in the back and remained quiet. I did not make a noise as I waited for my name to be called.”
― Niedria D. Kenny