Veg*n 30 Reasons to go Vegitarian

[Susan9608]

In fact, someone who opens a conversation by indicating that she doesn't eat meat, but qualifies it by adding that she only does it for health reasons and doesn't really care about animals she's "saving" is actually contributing to the discriminatory bias of speciesism.

But in this situation - the vegetarianism should still be encouraged because whether or not this particular individual gives a crap about the animals, the animals are still being helped by her actions. Perhaps some where along the line she'll realize or begin to care that her actions have an impact on others besides herself. You don't want to discourage anyone from being vegetarian by saying that they are vegetarian for the wrong reasons ...

 

[luvsgiraffes]

I don't discriminate based on species, so to me, the only difference between a captive-bred cow and my own guinea pigs is that the animal from which the meat originated is unknown to me. I don't eat meat, because it's the same as eating somebody else's guinea pig. I wouldn't eat your guinea pigs and you wouldn't eat mine. The only consequential difference between a captive-bred cow living his miserable, short life on a beef farm and a homeless guinea pig in an animal shelter is the substantial physical size difference between them, nothing more.

Telling people how gross what is - eating meat, or the sacrifices we have to make to not eat meat?

I don't discriminate against animals. In fact this is the very reason that I started being a vegetarian. I would not eat my dog or any dog for that matter so why should I eat a cow, pig other animal.

And what I meant was telling people whow gross the process of the slaughter house is. I know so many people who have read Upton Sinclair's- The Jungle and say... "That's so sad... I should become a vegetarian" and then the next day go and get a hamburger... People don't know how to follow through and What I meant about impracticallity is that for some people being a vegetarian is very impractical. I know when I was a freshman in the dorms I ate at the dinning commons. There is usually a vegetarian option, but not always... on those nights I would eat a salad fom the salad bar. But this is not really a long term or practical thing. A person cannot eat salad 2 meals a day or survive on french fries. My family does not have a lot of money and a meal plan was required, so even if I got the lowest one and still went to the store to buy protien etc that is a waste of money since we already had to buy the meal plan.

Now that I live in an apartment and have my car (and dont have to buy a meal plan) I can go to the store and buy whatever I please. This will ensure that I am able to eat a balanced diet. This is what I meant by impractical... for health and monetary reasons.

Also, when I have said something I have been told that it is not my place... and in a way they are right... if they do not make a fuss and criticize me for choosing to eat the way that I eat then who am I to judge them?
I dont mind discussing and sharing... but I dont want people judging me because of a decision I have made. This makes me feel like I sometimes dont have a right to tell them they are wrong. I hope this makes sense?

I do understand that for most people being a vegetarian is not impractical, it is pure lazyness and being unwilling to make a major lifestyle change.
I do encourage people to try being a vegetarian if they seem open to the idea, but right now in my life I feel that I dont know enough to be on a full fledged crusade etc. I think its great we have poeple to lead the way by telling everyone else how awful animal slaughter is etc but, I personally am just choosing to lead mostly by my example.

 

[Alusdra]

I've seen this video around and honestly, it sort of makes me want to eat more meat rather then less. It's too over the top. Animal welfare is a big issue for me, but that video makes me chuckle a bit. "Animals scream just like you!" I mean, come on. It's pure shock value. In some ways it's almost harmful to trying to get someone to become more conscious by being that combative.

I do still eat animals, but I definitely want the whole process to be as humane as possible. My solution is more to try to buy local meat from farms that I can visit. Helps to support local farmers versus larger factory-type situations and is tastier. But I've stopped with organic (animal products) since in organic farming animals can't be treated with antibiotics ever- even if they get sick. Anyway, as per that article a while ago you're far more likely to get (broken link removed) than a steak, milk, eggs, whatever. I know that's not the only reason behind the organic movement, but the more I learn the more disturbed I am about the whole thing.

But in general I think we as a country, people, species, whatever- we eat too much meat. It seems to me more practical if everyone in the world could cut down on their consumption (especially in the US) so that we don't need these huge productions where standard of care is hard to maintain. We should be getting much of our proteins and nutrients from veggie methods. I'm beginning to feel the veg*n's pain even being an opportunistic omnivore when I go somewhere and they meal is MEAT with a side of meat, with some greasy meaty meat as an appetizer. Makes me desperate for some veggies, or beans, or... gah! even some other animal product like cheese just to break it up. It's depressing how every flipping meal is so meat centered... to the point I suggested to my dad when visiting that we stop having steak every night and he suggested chicken, lamb, pork... I asked for something not meat and he just looked at me in confusion and asked 'what would we eat then?'...

But probably eating less meat is a more approachable goal for 'converting' people, as is getting them to eat more humane meat. Like that challenge- I easily go weeks or months not eating any meat at all, just because I try out more veggie dishes. It's certainly healthier and I've had good success getting most/all of my family and a good chunk of my friends hooked on tasty no-meat meal options. So as a group, we probably are 50-80% vegetarian. Extrapolate to the world and that's pretty cool.

Probably that's a goal that will be attacked by hard-line AR people, but that's sort of my point, I guess. If it's going towards a goal of less animals eaten and those that are are better treated- why attack your allies, eh? Attack us after most people are 80% vegetarian. You know, sneaky sneaky!

 

[PiggieMamaKelly]

Alusdra, I totally agree with you that people eat FAR more meat than is reasonable or even healthy. Even if I believed eating meat was morally correct, this whole routine of bacon for breakfast, turkey sandwhich for lunch, and steak for dinner is most certainly not optimal for the human body. I just read something the other day about how Americans get far too much protein- which is actually unhealthy (all the while most omnivores are chronically questioning me about getting "enough" protein). People even take perfectly good vegetable dishes and add meat. My mother-in-law puts bacon in her green beans!

I was watching a show on the food network today where the "Hearty Boys" were making an all veg dinner. They kept commenting how omnivores wouldn't even miss the meat and attempting to convince the imaginary meat-eater that it would still be satisfying. Are people so brainwashed to think that food=meat that they can't even fathom a meal without it?

 

[Alusdra]

Well, see- that's the attitude I'm talking about Susan. I admit, I'm for animal welfare rather than rights. So yes, I guess I want happy meat. Once I'm more settled in life I intend to have land where I can raise my own animals for eggs, milk and meat. 1) So I know they were properly cared for 2) because fresh milk is hella tasty 3) So I appreciate the work going into it and thus eat less 4) I like farm animals (in a more pet sense) among other reasons.

I realize that it breaks down to a moral divide here where I don't think that animals should have the 'right' to live and reproduce as they see fit. But then again, I don't necessarily think humans should have that right, either. But no, I don't really see anything wrong with using animals, as long as it is done humanely, with care towards them, and done as little as possible. Maybe in the future we will all be vegetarians. I'm not all that opposed to the idea. I just really like the occasional steak, deer jerky, fried egg or yogurt (or whatever- like cheese!). So far veggie alternatives- while tasty- are just that: alternatives. I consider them as completely separate meal options, or dishes that used to have meat that are just fine without it. And since I don't feel the same moral sentiment of an AR person, I don't see why I shouldn't eat it, so long as I work to give the animals that I very gratefully and appreciatively use the respect they deserve. I have met vegetarians that are of this opinion rather than AR. Even vegans, too. They don't consume animal products because of the cruelty more than from the rights perspective.

I do consider myself an ally to AR people- I appreciate the view even though I don't share it, and I feel many of our goals are the same. The fact that I get verbally assaulted most times I talk with them notwithstanding...

 

[thalestral]

(broken link removed)

narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, original score by Moby.

 

[Alusdra]

I don't really see how I'm being hypocritical, per se. For me, personally my morals are such that I don't find eating animals as being all that objectionable. Being on this site has made me realize that how much I did wasn't healthy, however- and I've cut back. Plus seeing how some animals are treated on larger farms. I consider meat as another ingredient- like peppers or tofu or cheese. Cheese doesn't taste like tofu, tofu doesn't taste like peppers, etc. So on the one hand- irreplaceable, but on the other, not necessary in every meal.

And yes, I have seen that video. I like it much better than the "30 reasons" one as it has concrete evidence and clips to back up what it is saying. I take it with a grain of salt as it is exaggerated and sensationalist, but that video is a large part in why I've cut back. The other being a study on Chinese people and how the increased % of protein is giving them all sorts of health problems.

I'm just trying to say that by not being willing to accept baby steps, you're shutting a lot of people out. Think about the positive training that this site endorses. Is it 'do the trick NOW or no reward?' No- every progression towards the desired behavior is rewarded, at least for a while. So, for me I guess when I say- I agree with you and I'm trying to help, and then I get pictures of cute animals shoved in my face and told I'm a hypocrite it's like- hell, they don't even care, why am I bothering? Yes, I know I shouldn't care what other people think as it's about the animals. But who are YOU helping by attacking people on the fence? You'll just push them away. Maybe instead say- 'good that you're thinking about it, why don't you try this other thing next'. Sensationalism makes you think- the first maybe 5 times you hear it.

 

[Alusdra]

Ok- you're right. You didn't say hypocrite- that was my extrapolation from the "apple doesn't fall far from the tree" comment.

Since you bring up those questions again RE: speciesism. Yes, I would eat a guinea pig (but probably it's illegal). I might not eat my pet guinea pig because we would have had a long life together with lots of time put in for trick training, bonding, etc. Any animal I knew I was going to eat I would care for just as well, but more emotionally distantly. I have yet to actually raise an animal intentionally for eating it, though I have cared for animals that other people have used for those purposes (eg- my cousins who buy male calves, raise them and then eat them). Maybe I'll find I haven't the stomach for it. But at the moment I don;t exactly have a field to do that in. The only animal I would not eat would be humans and possibly non-human primates as I'd be afraid of getting a Mad Cow- like disease from them. Even barring that, probably I would still be wary. I don't want to get hepatitis or herpes or other such transmissible unpleasantness.

Anyway- I'm not sure what that picture means to me except that I probably would almost rather eat the guinea pig versus the pig. Pigs are so smart that it saddens me that they are raised like they are. I try to never eat pork, really. So I guess it gets me a bit mad that you are implying by the comparison that I should have more feelings for a cavy than a pig. The first time someone accused me of being speciesist I realized I sort of was, and I guess I still am.

I tend to view animals on a sliding scale of mentition. It's hard for me to think that a say... goldfish is on the same level as a... raven. Goldfish can learn tricks, sure- but they can't unlock your cabinet and steal your supper. Hard to think of them the same. Especially as I feel if you are really going to go that route you should try not to be life-ist. (Not a word, I know). But what about a tree that is older than any person on the planet being callously cut down? That is worse to me than someone eating a fish, or maybe even a pig. True we haven't yet proven they have any awareness at all of it- but they do chemically respond to injury by healing it over. I mean, where's the line? Bacteria? Invertebrates? You have to harm something to live- I feel that's sort of the way it goes. There are so many nutrients the human body simply can't make.

I do like your quotes this past post, though. I agree with the first and I hadn't thought about it like the second said. He/she is right- we should be more mad. It's not all my fault I didn't know about the meat industry- they go to pains to make us not think about it.

But I still have to say that meat does have a flavor/texture/something that no other food can replace. I love veggie burgers and tofurky etc- not meat though. Good, but not the same. Before you argue with me more, I'm not saying it's not impossible to "sub in" veggie options for a meal and have it be amazingly tasty- it is! Like today- I tried Silk. Tasty stuff- makes this one kind of tea I have absolutely heavenly. Not milk, though. I'd say it reminds me more of this Chinese candy called White Rabbits. (Maybe also made of soy?)

And it's not just we omnivores/ "carnivores" that can tell, either- sneak in a meat dish/ingredient to a veg*n (even accidentally or ignorantly) and they know. And let you know they know- some more politely than others. But in general you're right. If you're going to spice the meat so much that you can't even taste it anymore, just leave it out. Mostly now when I eat meat it is very close to unaltered, lightly cooked or sometimes even raw. In a stir-fry or something- what's the point? Usually it just ends up dry and unpleasant in that sort of situation anyway.

I don't really want to watch Earthlings again to get some specific examples (both because I don't have time to and because I'm not a total masochist) but I do know that many of the scenes portrayed are of unusual, undesired and sometimes illegal events. As an aside- I have heard arguments recently that exsanguination is not humane in cows due to the blood supply to their brain (which is different than other animals) and I'm pretty convinced. That's an argument that I can get behind.

Anyway- in the movie they imply that the scenes they show are typical, when really it's a percent of a percent of the time something remotely like that might happen. Maybe it' unacceptable for it to ever happen. I wouldn't say so, but probably many would.

Plus they don't give a balanced view with a look at the pros and cons of current regulations that seek to prevent such things from happening, if those regulations are any good or not, what need to change to make them less frequent. I doubt that horrific accidents or sadistic people won't get into the works even in the best of best worlds, but I'm ok with that if it's a rare anomaly. Probably you or other AR people wouldn't be- but saying it more like that would make it more balanced, fair and objective. I think it would make for a more powerful argument. Well, maybe- that movie is pretty powerful as is.

Anywho... sorry for the book. My lack of response in this instance is because I'm really busy. Giant test yesterday- this site is usually pretty good for procrastinating... And maybe a bit I was avoiding it. But I'm pretty sure I've had this argument at least 3 times on this site (probably with some of the same people lol). I thought it was going to get more hysterical instead of more thoughtful (like this time) and I don't want to get myself banned.

 

[CavySpirit]

Anyway- in the movie they imply that the scenes they show are typical, when really it's a percent of a percent of the time something remotely like that might happen.

Where are your facts to support that statement?

 

[CavySpirit]

What a crime that this movie was released in 2005 and has received such little coverage that I hadn't even heard of it. EVERY HUMAN BEING ALIVE ON THIS PLANET SHOULD WATCH THIS MOVIE.

I completely agree. When I have some time, I'm going to link to that movie on a variety of my sites.

 

[CavySpirit]

Just wanted to say that I made that photo (pig vs. pig). Modified the cat vs. pig photo. Recently I sent it to the meatout group to take a look at.

 

[catzeye21138]

It is the same scenario that I am in, but I manage to scrounge something up when we have meat for dinner. For example, our dinner last night: Steak, mashed potatoes, corn, crescent rolls, and key lime pie(my uncle went to Florida last week!). This what I took: Mashed potatoes, corn, crescent rolls, and key lime pie, hold the steak. It's great to know how one person can make a difference. :cheerful:

I try this occasionally. It's always a no go with my parents. My mom will usually load it onto my plate. It's kind of difficult for me because in my house the main food is meat. For example, last week 'we' had pork chops... and corn. I'm not even exaggerating. We also had bread but my mom wasn't ABOUT to let me only eat bread and corn. I wasn't given a choice. It's hard sometimes, but maybe some day after i'm out of the house I can give it up.

HOWEVER, I am now eating a meat free breakfast and lunch. Not dairy, but meat. Also after constant nit-picking at my mom i think I broke through about eggs layed by Hens in plants or whatever. All of a sudden, out of the blue we have been eating Free range, I can tell because they are smaller, darker yolks, different colors and sometimes dirty haha. I wonder why. Maybe I disgusted her enough to get her to switch. lol