Hi, I’m kind of interested in this issue, so I thought I’d ask the people here for their opinions. Is anyone here vegetarian? Or have you tried being a vegetarian in the past? If so, what reasons propelled you: the moral/ethical, health, being environmentally-friendly or just dislike of meat? What do you think about some religions’ codexes that forbid eating certain kinds of meat (or even eating meat altogether)? If your child wanted to go vegetarian (presuming you had one), would you try to accommodate them? How about boyfriend/girlfriend or spouse? Do outbreaks of BSE/foot-and-mouth disease/avian flue make you more worried about eating meat? And just generally, what do you prefer more, meat-based or vegetable-diet?
Feel free to share any info or opinions. This issue affects me a little bit, so I just though I’d start a discussion… thanx :)
EvilTree
quote:
Originally posted by Kamka And just generally, what do you prefer more, meat-based or vegetable-diet?
I'm a member of PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals)
So I guess that makes me a meatarian :D
While I'm against excessive animal cruelty and all that, humans by nature are omnivores. Nature revolves around being part of the food chain.
I don't see strong enough argument why humans should remove itself from that food chain
barbina
im a vegetarian!
but not a super strict one
i have been caught eating chicken nuggets after a drunken night out haha
i only do it because i hate the taste of red meat. all i think about is blood and muscles and yuckk. i kinda just psych myself out haha.
and about the religious part.. do whatcha gotta do to make yourself feel worthy. not that excluding some things from your diet really does that.. but whatever floats your boat
thesauce23
not a vegetarian really, but i started eating steamed broccoli and green beans along with corn and yams, and my body fat dropped significantly without doing cardio.. so its wicked for the body to eat veggies, but i also eat protein which in my case is mostly chicken
Dr. DAS
You should be ashamed...
Skipper
quote:
Originally posted by EvilTree
I'm a member of PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals)
So I guess that makes me a meatarian :D
While I'm against excessive animal cruelty and all that, humans by nature are omnivores. Nature revolves around being part of the food chain.
I don't see strong enough argument why humans should remove itself from that food chain
This is a really superficial argument - have you researched the environmental effects of vegetarianism at all? Doesn't sound like it. The human population has drastically inflated that element of the food chain - the number of animals bred specifically for human consumption is many many times greater than how animals exist in nature. Furthermore, the scope of resources - financial and otherwise - that are invested into the meat "industry" are entirely excessive.
- A meat based diet requires 7 times more land than a vegetarian one
- Meat production requires 10-20 times more energy per edible tonne than grain production
- animal products require more energy for processing, packaging and storing compared to vegetables
These are just a few considerations....I'm all for everyone making their own decisions but at least inform yourself before doing so. There are more compelling reasons to be a vegetarian other than "animals are cute" which is often how veggies get perceived.
Dr. DAS
quote:
Originally posted by Skipper
This is a really superficial argument - have you researched the environmental effects of vegetarianism at all? Doesn't sound like it. The human population has drastically inflated that element of the food chain - the number of animals bred specifically for human consumption is many many times greater than how animals exist in nature. Furthermore, the scope of resources - financial and otherwise - that are invested into the meat "industry" are entirely excessive.
- A meat based diet requires 7 times more land than a vegetarian one
- Meat production requires 10-20 times more energy per edible tonne than grain production
- animal products require more energy for processing, packaging and storing compared to vegetables
These are just a few considerations....I'm all for everyone making their own decisions but at least inform yourself before doing so. There are more compelling reasons to be a vegetarian other than "animals are cute" which is often how veggies get perceived.
Good argument. I like meat, simple as that.
I'll start concerning myself with the environmental impact of my diet when we deal with things like this...
If you are concerned about how your diet affects your carbon footprint, consider a macrobiotic diet as an alternative.
The bottom line here is that your diet should be treated like your religion, take pride in it but don't force it down our throats (if you'll forgive the wordplay).
Skipper
quote:
Originally posted by Dr. DAS
Good argument. I like meat, simple as that.
I'll start concerning myself with the environmental impact of my diet when we deal with things like this...
If you are concerned about how your diet affects your carbon footprint, consider a macrobiotic diet as an alternative.
The bottom line here is that your diet should be treated like your religion, take pride in it but don't force it down our throats (if you'll forgive the wordplay).
The fact that you posted a picture of pollution doesn't at all indicate that we're already dealing with it?
Get your head out of the sand and at least acknowledge the results of what you are doing...
There are many indications that the world's population is going to cause a global food scarcity issue soon enough. When livestock consumes so much more landspace to produce, the issue is not just one of a carbon footprint.
Djsketchbag
quote:
Originally posted by barbina
i have been caught eating chicken nuggets after a drunken night out haha
LoL one of my ex g.f's use to do the same thing .... but she ate sea food on a regular baisis so she was like a half vegetarian :toothless
Skipper
Not only that, chicken mcnuggets probably aren't made out of chicken anyways.
Dr. DAS
quote:
Originally posted by Skipper
The fact that you posted a picture of pollution doesn't at all indicate that we're already dealing with it?
Get your head out of the sand and at least acknowledge the results of what you are doing...
There are many indications that the world's population is going to cause a global food scarcity issue soon enough. When livestock consumes so much more landspace to produce, the issue is not just one of a carbon footprint.
I will admit that my omnivorous nature has an impact. No problem.
However, the logistics of producing meat is only one of several contributing factors to an impending global food scarcity.
Off the top of my head, I would say global warming is a more serious threat. The resulting floods, drought, land lost due to rising sea levels, insect proliferation, changes in growing seasons, etc. will make growing adequate food stocks increasingly difficult. Add to that the thousands of tonnes of grain incinerated each year as cull, partly to maintain a supply/demand structure that allows grain prices to maintan market value instead of feeding starving people around the world, and I think I deserve to eat my BLT without getting on.
It's true that animal populations have been exponentially increased to meet demand for meat, but the same arguement could be made for the expansive crop growing operations which force wild animals out of their natural habitat for the convenience of the human race.
Like I said, you are entitled to your opinion. I am entitled not to be made out as enviro-hitler because I like the taste of cow. Agree to disagree?
ChemEnhanced
quote:
Washington, D.C., U.S.A. - Scientists at the Scientific Test Area for Recent Vegetable Eating (S.T.A.R.V.E.) have confirmed that the vegetarian movement may be causing a significant shift in the natural order of our food chain.
Dubbing the phenomenon "Angry Vegetable Syndrome", lead researcher Dr. Michael T. Stowmack is warning of the possibility of a global outbreak of hostile vegetation.
"Remember that movie 'The Birds' that Hitchmade?" asks Dr. M.T. Stowmack, "Imagine an uprising of vegetables. That's what we may be up against soon unless we start laying off the vegetables."
News of the phenomenon spread rapidly in schools across America as children began ritualistically throwing their vegetables in trash cans.
Vegetable rights advocates from Humans for the Ethic Treatment of Vegetables were quick to point out that their long-standing crusade against eating vegetables was finally paying off. "It's like photosynthetic karma dude... Now maybe all you savages will realize that vegetables have feelings too!"
Dr. Stowmack warned, "Maybe we should just start eating little artificial food cubes like in that movie 'Soylent Green'... unless of course they really ARE made from people."
Popeye the sailor, a staunch vegetable advocate, quickly issued an official statement, "Ugh-ugh-ugh, I don' cay-re what 'ze says, I'm still eatin' me spinach."
Vegetables can't defend themselves......how cruel to kill defenceless veggies.
