Meatless
(or, Why I'm a Vegetarian)
Kelly put the question out there, and I will answer it here. I have railed against meat many times on my blog, and I suppose it's time for me to come clean and explain exactly why I choose to follow a meat-free path. I do not consider myself to be a true vegetarian, because I sometimes eat fish (ONLY wild-caught), and am not above taking a wee taste of my husband's Chang's Spicy Chicken from time to time. That said, I otherwise do follow a vegetarian diet. The reasons for this are probably different from any others you'll see, because I am slightly crazy. I choose to avoid meat for the following reasons:
1. I love animals. I love them all. I am such a sucker for them that it's ridiculous. Despite that, I do not think it's wrong to eat them. I just think it's wrong for ME to eat them, and I think each person needs to make an educated decision about this. I know that I would not kill a cow, not even from a distance. I just could not do it. Therefore, it is wrong to let someone else do it for me, clean up the smelly guts and carnage, and then serve me a "burger". Not a lump of dead cow flesh, a "burger." That's crap, and I'm a hypocrite as soon as I take that first juicy bite. It's the sanitized, misleading form of death.
2. I am disgusted by the degeneration of "animal" into "product". I would more willingly eat a deer that someone shot than a Big Mac, because at least that deer was allowed to be a deer while it lived. Chickens have their beaks and feet cut off on poultry (and even egg) farms. Cows are fed completely unnatural diets and treated like, well, like cattle. Veal, hmmmmph, don't EVEN get me started. Pigs, proven more intelligent than dogs, are often left for dead when they fall off of livestock trucks, and suffer for hours and even days. To me, this is appalling and makes me actually cry. So again, I'm a hypocrite at the first bite of crispy, delicious bacon.
3. I may be a registered Republican, but I'm not crazy. I think when God said we have dominion over the Earth, I think he meant to entrust us with its care, not its rape. Certainly not the adulteration of everything that is beautiful about life, which is what I believe modern farming practices do. And abortion, and capital punishment. And before you get all over me with the tired, old "what about the poor vegetable" argument, rest assured that it has been duly considered. The vegetable doesn't come when you call it. If you can't see the difference there, then I just feel sorry for you. When I cry, my dog jumps on my lap, shaking, and licks my face. No ear of corn ever did me aught.
4. I am thoroughly disgusted with people who willingly bite into a piece of chicken while being appalled that a Chinese restaurant would serve cat. I ask you, what the hell is the difference? An animal is an animal. These unthinking people are valuing one worthless beast over another, and how stupid is that? I say with all sincerity, if the thought of eating your cat or dog makes you sick, then so should the thought of eating a cow. Pick.
All that said, if you DO choose to eat meat, I say, "fine!" and I will never hound you about it or try to ruin your dinner. I do not feel disgust when a dining companion eats a big porterhouse. I won't even bring it up, unless they ask. Hell, I even cook it for my family. I'd rather not, but I do it. For me, it is a personal choice. I feel better about myself and the world when I am meat-free. It is a choice about which I feel very passionate. I have no problem with others making their own choice as well. I just hope upon hope that it is a thoughtful choice.
I can't go on and on about hypocrisy while being a giant hypocrite myself. It's a struggle sometimes, but I must always try. Living with honesty is always a struggle because complacency is so easy. If I don't at least make an earnest effort, I'll be just like every hypocrite liberal.
And so, there you have it.
PS. It also doesn't hurt that my cholesterol, at last check, was 110.
Kelly put the question out there, and I will answer it here. I have railed against meat many times on my blog, and I suppose it's time for me to come clean and explain exactly why I choose to follow a meat-free path. I do not consider myself to be a true vegetarian, because I sometimes eat fish (ONLY wild-caught), and am not above taking a wee taste of my husband's Chang's Spicy Chicken from time to time. That said, I otherwise do follow a vegetarian diet. The reasons for this are probably different from any others you'll see, because I am slightly crazy. I choose to avoid meat for the following reasons:
1. I love animals. I love them all. I am such a sucker for them that it's ridiculous. Despite that, I do not think it's wrong to eat them. I just think it's wrong for ME to eat them, and I think each person needs to make an educated decision about this. I know that I would not kill a cow, not even from a distance. I just could not do it. Therefore, it is wrong to let someone else do it for me, clean up the smelly guts and carnage, and then serve me a "burger". Not a lump of dead cow flesh, a "burger." That's crap, and I'm a hypocrite as soon as I take that first juicy bite. It's the sanitized, misleading form of death.
2. I am disgusted by the degeneration of "animal" into "product". I would more willingly eat a deer that someone shot than a Big Mac, because at least that deer was allowed to be a deer while it lived. Chickens have their beaks and feet cut off on poultry (and even egg) farms. Cows are fed completely unnatural diets and treated like, well, like cattle. Veal, hmmmmph, don't EVEN get me started. Pigs, proven more intelligent than dogs, are often left for dead when they fall off of livestock trucks, and suffer for hours and even days. To me, this is appalling and makes me actually cry. So again, I'm a hypocrite at the first bite of crispy, delicious bacon.
3. I may be a registered Republican, but I'm not crazy. I think when God said we have dominion over the Earth, I think he meant to entrust us with its care, not its rape. Certainly not the adulteration of everything that is beautiful about life, which is what I believe modern farming practices do. And abortion, and capital punishment. And before you get all over me with the tired, old "what about the poor vegetable" argument, rest assured that it has been duly considered. The vegetable doesn't come when you call it. If you can't see the difference there, then I just feel sorry for you. When I cry, my dog jumps on my lap, shaking, and licks my face. No ear of corn ever did me aught.
4. I am thoroughly disgusted with people who willingly bite into a piece of chicken while being appalled that a Chinese restaurant would serve cat. I ask you, what the hell is the difference? An animal is an animal. These unthinking people are valuing one worthless beast over another, and how stupid is that? I say with all sincerity, if the thought of eating your cat or dog makes you sick, then so should the thought of eating a cow. Pick.
All that said, if you DO choose to eat meat, I say, "fine!" and I will never hound you about it or try to ruin your dinner. I do not feel disgust when a dining companion eats a big porterhouse. I won't even bring it up, unless they ask. Hell, I even cook it for my family. I'd rather not, but I do it. For me, it is a personal choice. I feel better about myself and the world when I am meat-free. It is a choice about which I feel very passionate. I have no problem with others making their own choice as well. I just hope upon hope that it is a thoughtful choice.
I can't go on and on about hypocrisy while being a giant hypocrite myself. It's a struggle sometimes, but I must always try. Living with honesty is always a struggle because complacency is so easy. If I don't at least make an earnest effort, I'll be just like every hypocrite liberal.
And so, there you have it.
PS. It also doesn't hurt that my cholesterol, at last check, was 110.
posted by Kristine at 1:58 PM
5 Comments:
Wow. Seriously, Kristine, that's the best defense of vegetarianism I've ever read or heard. I've not eaten veal since I found out how they treat those poor cows. However, I've never had a problem eating beef. I once visited a farm with an onsite slaughterhouse. The cows all looked fine to me. (This was a small, local farm. I don't doubt the bigger, factory-like farms treat the animals poorly.) Of course we didn't go into the slaughterhouse, but they described the process and it all sounded very humane to me. I've never even thought that chickens were treated so harshly. Now that you mention it, I guess that's why free range poultry is such a big deal. I'll definitely need to research that further.
Oh, and I hate the vegetable argument also. Talk about intellectually dishonest.
Thanks for taking the time to post this.
Kristine, I applaud you for the contemplation and compassion you've obviously put into this position. I agree with most, if not all, of your points. I think the first point is really the only one that really validates your own personal choice to avoid eating meat, however. You can't bring yourself to kill animals, so why should you eat what's killed by others out of your sight? I can respect that.
Although I totally agree that our dominion as the human stewards of God's Creation is to be conducted with appropriate respect for all living things, I am not as concerned as you about the various horror stories of animal abuse that are taking place around the country. Don't get me wrong. I am not condoning in any way, shape or form the mistreatment of any food animals. I just think that there are more important things to get worked up about. I'm not an animal person like you, although I am a pet owner. As such, I disagree with your position, to a certain extent, that one animal is like another. Animal breeding has always been a significant part of man's dominion over Creation, and different animals are bred for different purposes. God's purpose for certain animals also seems to be evident in His design. Cattle and pigs have no redeeming value in my mind, if they are not food. They smell, and pigs -- despite their intelligence -- are ill-tempered motherfuckers. On the other hand, my Shih Tzu's value to me is one of companionship, affection and pure cuteness.
I don't eat cat or dog for the same reason that I don't eat deer -- it's not part of my heritage. Meaning that I wasn't raised hunting and eating wild game, and it's gross to me. I take great comfort in processing and packaging, even though I know that some of it's not good. Had I been raised on a farm, for instance, I might feel differently.
Finally, I believe that if people who believed as we do about the compassionate responsibility of man's dominion over the earth would spend more time caring about people, the rest would take care of itself. These animal abuses that you are so concerned about occur more because of the underlying disrespect for the people who consume the meat -- both by the producers and the consumers themselves. Love the people, and teach them how to respect creation, and the animals will be fine.
And the food will be better!
Kelly, as I said, I have full respect for anyone who chooses to eat meat when it is a contemplated decision. I have seen a cow slaughtered, and I wasn't OK for a week. So for me, the choice is clear. Naturally, I would LOVE to see more people go veggie, especially because of the effect it would have on menus! If there were enough of us, they would have to take us more seriously, and offer better than a limp-assed pasta primavera, which I hate.
Data Nazi, I completely realize that point #1 is the only truly valid point for eating green. The rest of them may have some emotion attached, and I admit that. I agree wholeheartedly that environmentalist wackos mostly need to get a life and concentrate on people. I'm not about that. I'm not on a crusade. But this is something I believe in, and not feeding the system is something I can do, and something that has a direct, albeit miniscule effect. But it gives me a little bit of my personal power.
For what it's worth, I feel just as passionately that people are mean and horrifyingly self-centered. I try to do my part there, too, but nobody ever calls you out onto the carpet for being nice. But go out to lunch with business associates, and ask quietly if there is any meat in the soup, and then watch the experessions change. Watch the questions start rolling in. Check out the way they all start asking me to defend myself, or worse, start defending themselves. That's the one that gets me. And I didn't have to say a word. It's astonishing that my little question could stir everyone up so, but it always happens. I usually "defend" myself by saying, "I just don't like meat."
Data Nazi, I don't think it matters what your "cause" is. I'm suspicious of anyone who has a great cause. But if everyone would just live honestly, the world would be a better place. If people wouldn't defend actions they know are wrong (thank you, Bill Clinton, for singlehandedly lowering the bar even further)then the world would totally rock. The environment would be clean, old people wouldn't be lonely, and nobody would consider aborting a baby. It's all about honesty and responsibility. Nobody's perfect, but so few people even seem to try. Vegetarianism is just one of my ways of trying to be honest. Nothing more.
I have to say I really admire your "personal choice" philosopy rather than the opinions forced upon the masses approach that a few take.
As far as the chicken / cat thing, I'm more grossed out as I don't see a cat as "a thing to eat", but whatever people want to eat, that is fine by them... as long as the cat wasn't someone's pet and as long as cat meat isn't substituted as something else on my plate.
As far as pigs go, some time I'll have to tell you about the time I was attacked by a pig near the Wendy's where I used to work (the one across from the Chevy Dealer with the KILLER annoying jingle... "Minutes from the mall!"). I will never again have any guilt biting into bacon! ;)
And to be fair, cholesterol levels are largely genetic. I eat processed and fried crap food and my cholesterol is 140 as of last week. Although if yours was high before... *golf clap* Excellent job!!!
Oh, and it also might be all that wine you drink that is helping keep your cholesterol low. ;)
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