When the citizens of America wake up in the morning, hair tousled and eyes bleary, their first worry of the day may concern what they will eat for breakfast. For some, they choose an egg or two as their meal. However, lately many have not been thinking of eggs as just a favorite breakfast food, but a political debate.

How did the simple egg turn into a lawsuit? According to the Washington Post, it began in 2008 when the citizens of California passed a proposition that required chickens to live in larger cages so they may be treated more humanely. However, some California farmers were worried about how costly the larger cages would be for them. Therefore, in 2010 the state passed a measure that required out-of-state farmers exporting their eggs to California to comply with these same measures. This will take effect in 2015.

Right when California was about to change the cruel and abusive lives of chickens into a happier and healthier existance, Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed a federal lawsuit against California.

Koster’s argument is that this California proposition violates the Commerce Clause in the Constitution. Although it could be costly for Missouri farmers, these steps need to be taken and agreed to for the safety of the chickens.

“If California legislators are permitted to mandate the size of chicken coops on Missouri farms, they may just as easily demand that Missouri soybeans be harvested by hand or that Missouri corn be transported by solar-powered trucks,” Koster said.

I feel Koster should not take such drastic measures against this proposition. To some extent I can understand why he does not appreciate how California is trying to have power over Missouri. However, the initiative California has taken to protect their chickens is revolutionary and Missouri should follow in their footsteps.

Many people have become aware of the abuse cows suffer in the beef industry through the undercover work by many animal safety organizations. However, not many people have thought of chickens in the same manner. Yes, at first glance they do not seem to do much other than cluck and eat seed, but they are still animals. They feel pain and understand danger.

According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), chickens are the most abused animal on the planet. Each year, 452 million hens are used for their eggs. In addition, chickens are just as intelligent as many mammals such as dogs, cats and some primates.

The hens kept in captivity for their eggs live in small wire cages where they do not have enough room to even spread their wings, according to PETA. This means that these usually clean animals have no choice but to urinate and defecate on each other.

Therefore, the new measures California has begun to take are moving the farming industry down a positive and humane path. For Koster to try and halt this process is cruel to all the millions of chickens who suffer neverending abuse everyday. Koster needs to realize money is not always everything, and saving animals from pain is much more important.