As most of my readers already know, I have been a vegetarian for almost 11 years now. I've been an animal rights activist for much longer. Every once in a while, I remind myself why I do it. There are a million reasons and I'd be here for a week if I tried to write about all of them.
I get asked about it very often, too, so I thought I'd just say a few words here and then give you some links. I just thought too much time had passed since I mentioned the animals here.
First of all, my being a vegetarian has nothing to do with food. Yes, it is healthier than eating a lot of fattening meat products, but that's totally a side effect for me. I'm a vegetarian because I think it's the right thing to do as a Christian and as a human being. Essentially, I don't have to be part of the cruelty that is the meat industy. I can easily survive and be very healthy and happy in this world without being knowingly responsible for an animal's death.
Every time I ate meat or wore leather, I was personally responsible for an animal's death. I could lie to myself and say it wasn't so, or say it was just the way things were, but it wasn't true. Just because I'm paying a slaughterhouse and restaurant or a clothing company to do the killing for me, doesn't make me any less responsible. And I have lived without for 10 years now, so I know it doesn't have to be "just the way things are."
I just felt that it was the right thing to do to be compassionate to all living things with a capacity for suffering. If I feel that my kitties are capable of suffering, then so is a cow slaughtered for my hamburger, or a chicken slaughtered for my McNuggets. Just because an animal isn't "cute" or doesn't have a name, doesn't make it okay to force it to live a life of suffering and then kill it. I don't have the right to do that to another living thing - not when there are so many cruelty-free foods out there I can eat and be healthy with.
This, of course, is only a small part of why I'm a vegetarian. You don't have to agree with me or become a vegetarian yourself. I don't hate you if you eat meat. I wish you wouldn't, but I don't disrespect you or dislike you as long as yours is an informed choice. But I think if you choose to eat meat and wear leather, you really must know where the vast, vast majority of those things come from. I beg you, if you eat meat of any kind (chicken counts!) to click on the link below and watch the video, Meet your meat. You can watch it online and it is about 13 minutes long. If you're comfortable being a party to these actions, fine. If not, consider going vegetarian - at least trying it and seeing how you do.
Another very useful link. Please follow it. It will tell you a whole lot about why people like me are vegetarians and chances are it'll answer most of your questions better than I could. I don't agree with the answers to every question, but I agree with the most.
Posted by Erin at February 25, 2003 01:47 PMthanks for this post erin. i too am an animal lover and have always toyed with the idea of going vegetarian. my mom was a very strict vegetarian when we were growing up and we rarely had red meat in the house. now, we don't eat red meat at all but we have a lot of fish and chicken. i have a tendancy to be anemic and the doctor has always frowned frowned frowned when i have suggested going vegetarian - for many of the same reasons that you talked about - because it would be bad for my blood cells, exhaustion, etc. do you have any information on vegetarianism for the super protein needy crowd? i know eggs, soy, etc, but i guess i was looking for some information for people with health concerns. thanks so much for sharing. good thoughts.
Posted by: jane at February 26, 2003 01:03 AMI have been anemic on and off in my life, too. Both before and after going veggie. There are three kinds of food that pack a really good nutritional punch for vegetarians: beans, nuts and dark green veggies. I like to eat a few nuts (walnuts are my favorite) for a snack every few days, or have some peanut butter on crackers. Andrew prefers his peanut butter on a spoon. LOL.
Beans and rice is usually touted as the ideal meal for health-conscious vegetarians. I personally prefer a nice green salad or soup - maybe a veggie-burger (usually made from a combination of veggies, nuts, soy and/or beans). I find that as long as I'm getting a good variety and try to make sure I'm eating beans or nuts on a pretty regular basis, I don't have any anemia.
There's a good web site for the Vegetarian Resource Group you might check out. They have a lot of information about the nutritional aspects of vegetarian and veganism.
You might also check out the info here at the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine's web site. They have several factsheets you can peruse.
Interseting to hear from somebody who grew up in such an animal-friendly home! Thanks for your feedback, as always.
Posted by: MrsHughey at March 1, 2003 03:14 PM