Why become a Vegetarian?

I've wondered this for many months and thought of posting a thread for a while, just never got around to it.

Anywayyy, why go vegetarian? Some say because they don't support eating things that were once living, but plants were once living, and just because you can't hear their screams as you are ripping them from the ground doesn't mean they aren't there.

Some also say because they appose animal cruelty, but i don't understand that either, because no matter how many vegetarians there are, there will be at least 3 new meat-eaters born that same day they decide to go vegetarian.

the only real reason i might be able to grasp is the health benefits, but being a meat eater myself, i struggle to see how eating a balanced diet of meat and vegetables would be worse than JUST eating vegetables?

I'm not flaming vegans or vegetarians, i'm actually deciding weather to become a vegetarian or not, and your responses will definatly be an influence!

thanks for your time,
Peace and love!

 

genetically modified crops, yum. (u know it causes cancers right, what doesnt these days, even meat is crap, where poisoning ourselves. i can see a soylent green future.) but if u can afford it or grow stuff urself, have at it. buffalo meat is the best, they can keep there cows.

 

man i made this epic post in the other thread today... and you start another without reading it! sad, this may be out of context in this new thread but i can't do it again so just bear with me...


there are a few issues not mentioned, and i have a few issues with some of those that were.

first, analyzing the physiological design of human beings, we see that in fact our systems are designed to run optimally on a fiber (veg) based diet. our intestines are 12 times the length of our body, causing meat to putrify and become lodged in the twists and turns of our digestive system. our hydrochloric acid production is too low for efficient digestion of meat. we drink through suction, like ALL herbavores, and our jaws move from side to side for chewing plants. i don't care what you heard about our 'canine' teeth, try to take down a deer with them!

we do not produce the enzymes necessary to digest meat at birth, and most children will attempt to reject the meat products forced on them... at first. what develops as a result of consumption is nothing other than addiction and dependency. at the time of death, animals (and you lovely humans) release adrenaline and other chemicals related to their fear, pain and sadness. these enter into the bloodstream, tainting the meat. when consumed these chemicals will give a "rush". people will become addicted to this drug, and suffer withdraw symptoms if their craving is not satisfied. needless to say this increases the aggressive nature in anything that eats the flesh.

another factor in creating dependency is what is called autointoxification. the body, when not digesting, is busy cleansing the internal organs. meat, causing a drastic increase in the bodies toxicity, is also very difficult to digest. what happens when people attempt to curb this habit is that the body, no longer strained by the digestive process, begins to clean house. it does this by releasing stores of toxins into the bloodstream, where they are drawn into the colon, tongue, and skin for elimination. if unchecked, it will overload the bloodstream causing weakness, blackouts, headaches, pimples, etc. if you eat something heavy your body will switch back to digestion, and you will feel strength return.

99 cent burgers contain 80% soy. the people raising the animals receive subsidies from the government in the form of water, electricity, land, etc. so that this process can even be made to look economical. it takes 10x the plant protein to create a portion of animal protein, not to mention outrageous land, water, and electric resources. only a staggeringly low percentage of the worlds meat consuming population would have to go veg to end the world hunger problem we are told exists.

it is a fact that commercial agriculture techniques cause massive suffering on so many levels, but that is not a rationalization for your greed. buy local vegetables, handpicked. grow some yourself. go out wildcrafting. or buy commercially produced vegetables if you have to and help put and end to this exploitive industry

as far as ethical meat, it is a tricky thing. killing must occur but how and when and why? overpopulation of deer is a problem, but so is underpopulation of wolves, coyote, bobcats, etc. eating meat builds the aggressive strength of the body, but not the endurance. there are many warriors that have thrived on a vegetarian diet. so, don't go acting like slitting throats yourself is a philanthropic action. you can access the animal protein from the teat of a cow. indians have a lot to say about the mentality of one who takes milk from their mother and then kills her.

nuff said.

 

why not become a vegetarian???

 

is what i want to know

all i hear is good things from vegetarians, but all i hear is bad things from meat-eaters.

it's very confusing.

 

inahD thanks for another epic post. You mentioned some of the reasons I became veggie back when I was younger.Spent prbably 2 yrs meat free,felt lighter and cleaner.Also had much less agressive strength like you said.That and social pressures being big reasons why I switched back to meating.
Check out "naturel hygiene" if you want some good reasons to go vegan.

 

yeah i checked out that arnold ehret guy, dropped out of highschool to study on my own. this was because of the blatant misinformation, which i particularly identified in health class. being raised veg, i was always amazed by peoples conception that vegetarians were some way unhealthy, and would always be ready to throw elbows to prove the contrary. eventually just decided to take education into my own hands, and specifically focused on raw food nutrition.

what i found was that milk, cows goats or buffalos, was an incredibly potent raw food! taken from animals allowed to live, i saw this as the ultimate animal protection principle. that is why i raise goats now

 

don't forget the poop! vegetarian farts can smell bad enough...

very good points, except for the partner part which is rather subjective and pessimistic

also my meat eating friends gorge themselves when i cook, unless their digestive system is so incredibly toxic that healthy food makes them sick. that makes me sad.

 

It's a personal choice. There are definately health benefits but besides that the meat industry is one of the leading causes for our depleting ozone and global warming. All the factories and machines it takes to process meat. And there is such cruelty taking place at these factories....cutting cattle's throats with dull tools, in cramped conditions. Being kicked, punched, thrown, and some even being scalded in boiling water (for chickens to remove feathers) while still alive.

Try and picture dying by BOILING to death and it puts things into perspective. Either that or watch some of the video or the facts on peta's website. It takes a strong stomach to watch that stuff no matter how much you like meat.

And a lot of these animals are SICK. They put them in such cramped conditions that they get sick but the farmers don't care b/c they are making a profit b/c cages cost money. And even milk is considered unhealthy even by health food standards b/c it's a known fact that there are high levels of PUSS, yes puss, in it.

Just read up and you'll find a TON of reasons vegetarianism is not a bad idea at all.

 

also, if your really 14, it is a big head start on life. shouldn't be a big transition, don't wait till you get colon cancer or something like many do...

 

when I first became a veggie I just felt a huge wright off my shoulders. I think-if we can live without meat,without killking innocent animals then why don't we? I feel sooo much better about it and way healthier. a lot closer to the earth or something. I also find cooking more fun as you get to explore different vegetables, seeds and things

 

that implies it is not a natural thing for humans to do.

ive never heard of someone having to have a personal reason to be a omnivore,they just are...

way to undermine the rest of your post right off the bat mamma..

:leaving:

 

oh yeah so quitting cigarettes or alcohol is unnatural as well?

 

no starting using them is....

 

To answer your specific questions...

It's not about killing living things, it's about harming sentient beings. A plant is a living thing but does not have a central nervous system and is in no way capable of feeling pain or having any amount of self-awareness. When we are talking about eating other mammals like ourselves (cows, sheep, rabbits, etc) they are creatures with an awareness of the world similar to our own, although somewhere slightly lower down the continuum of complexity. They are capable of feeling pain, and probably to some extent fear and dread, in the same way that we do. There couldn't be a clearer distinction betwen causing the death of a plant and causing the death of a cow in terms of the amount of suffering.

The fact that what you do does not end all animal cruelty is no argument against trying to stop a small amount of it. You will be stopping your own contribution to cruelty and suffering, and also serving as an example to others.

The problem with meat-eating from a health perspective is that people eat way too much of it. If you only eat a small amount of meat (say a couple of times a week) and an otherwise balanced diet of vegetables and fruits etc, then there's not much benefit to be gained from cutting out meat altogether. The studies on vegetarianism and longevity are equivocal.

There are health benefits, perhaps mainly because vegetarianism forces you to think about what you eat and to try and eat healthily, but in my view this is not the strongest case for vegetarianism; the ethical reasons far outweigh the health benefits.

 

you haven't seen the secret life of plants obviously, or read the book. plants are incredibly aware actually.

 

Yeah… they get sick because the food is so good?

Uhmmhmm.. That’s the sign of a great restaurant how sick you get afterwards.

I guess it is because you and the rest of the vegetarians are so pure, elite and special that it rubs off on them and makes them purge their insides out?