Meat
Posted in Misc by Harley
I’ve watched two interesting videos this morning, the first was >> 100 Reasons why Evolution is Stupid and the second was a short clip entitled >> Meet Your Meat.
They both got the cogs in my brain clanking, the second especially, so I went digging for more information. In case you didn’t know already I am a meat-eater. I eat beef, pork and chicken. I also eat eggs and drink milk. Meet Your Meat showed recordings of animal abuse in cattle-sheds and slaughter houses. It showed the cramped conditions in which animals raised for slaughter or for products are kept. There wasn’t anything in the video that I hadn’t seen before so it’s not like a big revelation, but obviously it’s not pleasant to watch. I watched another related video ‘30 reasons to become a vegetarian’ and those were reasonable arguments. The thing that’s always bothered me about these animal right petitioners is that they’re so damned self-righteous. They can’t present an argument without insulting the opposition. Something along the lines of “it takes a small-minded person to beat a defenceless animal, it takes an even smaller-minded person to eat it.”
It’s exactly the same with smoking. A non-smoker or worse yet a reformed-smoker will have no problems with bashing a smoker. Smoking is an addiction, it’s a mental/physical addiction, yet those who haven’t got a clue about the addiction (non-smokers) still feel they can give out their opinions. A reformed smoker forgets quite a lot of what they went through while they were a smoker. It’s human nature, we weed out the bad things so we’re able to continue functioning.
The chicks in the 30 reasons to become a vegetarian were hot. It makes me think.. just how much animals/plants had to suffer in order to make them pretty and stick them on film for a few minutes? Then there’s distribution costs on top of that. Electricity runs their web server, the film alone probably cost a pretty penny. If environmentalists were so interested in saving the earth as much as they say they are, then they’d all be living in wooden shacks completely cut off from the modern world.
Just cos I rant about these things doesn’t mean I don’t give a shit.. I hate the idea that animals are suffering for food, you know what I really hate though? I hate that animals suffer for our clothing, or make-up. Oil-drilling causes huge disruptions for marine-life yet it powers our over consuming modern world. We have TV’s (I don’t ;P), widescreen, flat and LCD. We have computers, internet, digi-boxes, videos, dvd players, coffee-makers, kettles, toasters, ice-cream makers, popcorn makers, hair straighteners, hair dryers, clothes dryers, microwaves and god knows what else.. all stuff that we don’t really need. Those things cause as much impact on the environment as raising cattle for slaughter.
Another point I’d like to make is that the only people who campaign endlessly for animal rights, smoking bans and other related things are those people that have the luxury of being able to do so. If Angelina Jolie really wanted to save the world she’d be giving ALL of her money to charities, but no.. she still has to have enough for those fancy dresses, hair cuts and a few mansions. It’s all very well saying ‘feed the starving children of Africa’ when you have enough money to eat what you like. Processed food is cheaper, two euro will get me three chicken thighs from which I can make three meals. Fresh vegetables are expensive and no matter what way you cook it it all basically boils down to… water :O which doesn’t nourish.
Our modern society wastes a lot, things suffer because of our thoughtlessness. Even as I write this I’ve got junk mail coming through the letterbox. Things I didn’t ask for offering me a choice from 12 digi-boxes, all on paper that came from some poor tree somewhere. I say we put a stop to that kind of shit and maybe once we’ve done that we can find better more humane ways to eat.
By the by.. I’ve tried to do some research on farming methods here in Finland and it does appear to be more humane than the U.S way of ‘cut their throats and dunk them in boiling water’. Dairy cows get milked if they chose to. I think I’ll go for Finnish meat products in the future. A small change maybe, but a small step towards something better.
August 23rd, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Ha, you should have come to me and I would have given you an argument for veganism without insulting the opposition.. unless suggesting that their methods of food production are unethical is an insult. In any case, my main argument is that causing suffering to any even partially sentient being when not necessary is unethical. Of course it is very difficult to avoid causing suffering in our modern world, especially as we do not always see the suffering we have been contributing to. Out of sight, out of mind.
I’ll reply to the rest of your thoughts tomorrow or whenever it is that I have more time.
Dodgy GeezerAugust 24th, 2007 at 10:30 am
Back again.
If those chicks were vegans (as I’d assume), their make up propably wasn’t tested on animals and no animal products were used as they were made. I know this wasn’t your point really, and I have to agree that all the junk we love propably harms some creatures somewhere. Especially as we’re contributing to global warming we endanger other (and not just animals but humans as well). An individual who likes to avoid this would try to keep their lust for electric devices and speedy travel in check, and start bying more environmentally friendly electricity.
Actually, according to my information, raising cattle (/ animals, can’t quite recall) for slaughter causes as much green house gas emissions as traffic (globally). That’s partly ‘cos cows tend to burp methane while they’re digesting their food.
I don’t think there’s much of a difference between slaughtering for food and slaughtering for clothing. The main issue is whether or not you need to slaughter an animal for something; if you don’t need to eat meat (as most people in developed countries don’t) your getting animals killed because you like the taste of meat or are accustomed to your eating habbits. You could eat soy and/or oil-hemp seeds instead (though you still need to get vitamin B12 from somewhere but you can get that from certain vegan-products if your not against farming bacteria).
I think your supposed to eat fresh vegetables while they’re fresh ;) Boiling vegetables does suck, it curbs their tastes and destroys their vitamins. It’s true that vegan sources of protein can be more expensive and that not everyone can afford them (of course in some cases one can spend less money on something else). If you can’t afford to eat / live vegan, you have no choice in the matter, and thus your actions have little or nothing to do with ethics.
Btw, if you’d like to avoid that kind of junk mail you can tell Posti or whoever it was that they can’t give your info to any company. This may not eliminate junk mail in your household completely, as your name and address are already in circulation between the companies, but it will cut down their numbers. I can find out where it was that you can do that thing, if you like.
Well, I guess that was all. This was just a morning rant so there might be some errors (of fact or logic) but I’m sure you’ll let me know :)
Dodgy GeezerAugust 26th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Make a little sticker what says “Ei ilmaisjakeluja” above your mailbox and you should be set for junk mail. Although, it doesn’t reduce the amount of waste. It just goes to trash. Maybe just keep receiving the junk mail and recycle it better by yourself :)
Dodgy GeezerAugust 26th, 2007 at 11:01 am
I have an entire recycling cupboard under my sink i.e I put the junk there and never do anything with it :) Maybe I should start sticking it in a recycling bin, soon it’ll overflow. Ack Sundays.. got practice in an hour and I’m still in my jammies. Go me!
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