Ok. here's the thing.
I am here on this planet with somewhere between 2 and 100 million different species of animals. Someone on a blog recently called me a hypocrite for not eating any of them.
About 24 years ago I decided that I would quit eating meat. I was 13 years old and living in a rural community, and the gross-out factor was probably the biggest influence on my decision. I found it hard to meet a chicken or a cow or a pig and then later eat it. Watching a calf be born and then listening to the plaintive cries of its mother as it is taken away to the “veal” shed is heart wrenching to a 13 year old who is developing values and a sense of moral idealism. This was my starting point. Usually, but not always, as people grow into adulthood perspectives change. I am at a different point now.
The reasons for being a vegetarian are as varied as the number of those who are. It is not a cult in which the subscribers of a practice blindly follow the principals of a leader. I promise no secret handshake or Kool-aid is involved. For some it is religious; for some a personal spiritual endeavor. For some it is ecological; for some it is trendy. Some call it consumer activism; some a life-style choice. For some it is personal preference; for others it is a moral absolute.
Me? I just don’t eat animals. I don’t think it is necessary and I find the thought of chewing up dead animals disgusting. And it is really crappy for the environment and spiritually repugnant to me. I will wear leather, but I buy most leather products second-hand…but I buy lots of things second hand because it is environmentally friendly. Here’s a bunch of environmental reasons I could use:
Source: The Whole Earth Vegetarian Catalogue
1 Conservation of Fossil fuel. It takes 78 calories of fossil fuel to produce 1 calorie of beef protein; 35 calories for 1 calorie of pork; 22 calories for 1 of poultry; but just 1 calorie of fossil fuel for 1 calorie of soybeans. By eating plant foods instead of animal foods, I help conserve our non-renewable sources of energy.
2 Water Conservation. It takes 3 to 15 times as much water to produce animal protein as it does plant protein. As a vegetarian I contribute to water conservation.
3 Efficient use of grains. It takes up to 16 pounds of soybeans and grains to produce 1 lb. of beef and 3 to 6 lbs. to produce 1 lb of turkey & egg. By eating grain foods directly, I make the food supply more efficient & that contributes to the environment.
4 Soil conservation. When grains & legumes are used more efficiently, our precious topsoil is automatically made more efficient in its use. We use less agricultural resources to provide for the same number of people.
5 Saving our forests. Tropical forests in Brazil and other tropic regions are destroyed daily, in part, to create more acreage to raise livestock. By not supporting the meat industry, I directly reduce the demand to pillage these irreplaceable treasures of nature. Since the forest land "filters" our air supply and contains botanical sources for new medicines, this destruction is irreversible.
Here is the thing…I do not need a reason good enough for you. Unless I am asking you to stop eating meat…WHY THE FUCK do you care why I don’t?
About 24 years ago I decided that I would quit eating meat. I was 13 years old and living in a rural community, and the gross-out factor was probably the biggest influence on my decision. I found it hard to meet a chicken or a cow or a pig and then later eat it. Watching a calf be born and then listening to the plaintive cries of its mother as it is taken away to the “veal” shed is heart wrenching to a 13 year old who is developing values and a sense of moral idealism. This was my starting point. Usually, but not always, as people grow into adulthood perspectives change. I am at a different point now.
The reasons for being a vegetarian are as varied as the number of those who are. It is not a cult in which the subscribers of a practice blindly follow the principals of a leader. I promise no secret handshake or Kool-aid is involved. For some it is religious; for some a personal spiritual endeavor. For some it is ecological; for some it is trendy. Some call it consumer activism; some a life-style choice. For some it is personal preference; for others it is a moral absolute.
Me? I just don’t eat animals. I don’t think it is necessary and I find the thought of chewing up dead animals disgusting. And it is really crappy for the environment and spiritually repugnant to me. I will wear leather, but I buy most leather products second-hand…but I buy lots of things second hand because it is environmentally friendly. Here’s a bunch of environmental reasons I could use:
Source: The Whole Earth Vegetarian Catalogue
1 Conservation of Fossil fuel. It takes 78 calories of fossil fuel to produce 1 calorie of beef protein; 35 calories for 1 calorie of pork; 22 calories for 1 of poultry; but just 1 calorie of fossil fuel for 1 calorie of soybeans. By eating plant foods instead of animal foods, I help conserve our non-renewable sources of energy.
2 Water Conservation. It takes 3 to 15 times as much water to produce animal protein as it does plant protein. As a vegetarian I contribute to water conservation.
3 Efficient use of grains. It takes up to 16 pounds of soybeans and grains to produce 1 lb. of beef and 3 to 6 lbs. to produce 1 lb of turkey & egg. By eating grain foods directly, I make the food supply more efficient & that contributes to the environment.
4 Soil conservation. When grains & legumes are used more efficiently, our precious topsoil is automatically made more efficient in its use. We use less agricultural resources to provide for the same number of people.
5 Saving our forests. Tropical forests in Brazil and other tropic regions are destroyed daily, in part, to create more acreage to raise livestock. By not supporting the meat industry, I directly reduce the demand to pillage these irreplaceable treasures of nature. Since the forest land "filters" our air supply and contains botanical sources for new medicines, this destruction is irreversible.
Here is the thing…I do not need a reason good enough for you. Unless I am asking you to stop eating meat…WHY THE FUCK do you care why I don’t?