"Tell your boyfriend if he said he's got beef, that I'm a vegetarian and I aint fucking scared of him" 3oh!3
2009-08-24, 10:30 p.m.

I've been a vegetarian for almost three years now. I used to be super enthusiastic when someone wondered why I went veggie, but that enthusiasm has begun to wane as I begin to sound like a broken record. This is no reason for me to quit disseminating information about some of the things that moved me to think twice about what I eat, and where it comes from. Here I present in abbreviated, bulleted form, issues that came to my attention and that have continued to arise, that shape my thinking about food and meat in particular.

Meat dishes are a cultural tradition here in the states (Thanksgiving turkeys, backyard bbq's, a Christmas ham), and eating meat in general does not only allow one to partake in time honored traditions, but is a biologically typical source of nutrition. However, there is a MAJOR problem with the way we consume and produce meat today. The rate at which meat is consumed, especially in the united states (two times that of the national average) plays a large role in the current increases in the cost of grains and creates unnecessary pollution. Furthermore, there are health benefits to consuming less meat. There is no reason that people HAVE to eat meat. All the nutrition gained from meat can be easily found in combination of grains, green veggies and legumes which provide not only what meat does, but has health benefits over and above just eating meat. The variety in diet vegetarians receive may be why research shows that vegetarians often live longer and are much healthier that their omnivorous counterparts. These benefits can also be enjoyed by those who may not want to go vegetarian, but make an effort to replace some of their meat meals with fabulous veggie and grain options.

* Economy: Late last year, a universal "food crises" was splashed across all kinds of news agency websites and publications. While most affluent countries felt nothing more than a little bump in their average spending, developing countries were (are) suddenly paying another full days wages in order to put food on the table. Furthermore, aid agencies like the UN had to start cutting the amt of food aid places like the Sudan and Gaza Strip received. Many developing countries depend on cheap beans and grains for daily sustenance, but these cheap grains are being rerouted to feed the cattle that we produce to quench the growing demand for meat by more affluent societies (for example a growing middle class in India and China). If developing countries, especially where meat consumption is above average, such as in the united states, began to moderate meat consumption, more of the grain that traditionally goes to cattle, can be sold directly to these developing nations.

* Environment: Meat production also plays a large role in depletion of our energy resources, and current climate change worries through the pollution it causes. In Texas alone (number one manure producing state in this great nation) waste burden has polluted 388 miles of Texas streams and over 21,000 acres of lakes, and this is besides the incredulous amounts of ammonia that can be found down wind of these animal factories.Furthermore, much of the land used to cultivate crops for cattle is cleared rain forest. One farm alone can use almost two million gallons of water every dayfor things like washing off the concrete floors from manure. That waste is washed into a limited amount of soil which becomes overly concentrated. The result is contaminated surface and ground water from uncontrolled runoff. Note, meat factories are the largest polluters of water in the US, topping all other industries that produce toxic wastes. The list goes on and on . . .

* Health: Meats are also high in saturated fats, contributing to both the obesity and the heart disease problems in the US. The hormones in our meat and the crap the cattle gets fed before it reaches our plates, along with the pollution we endure because of meat factories, take a tole on our health. High rates of meat consumption have also been linked to diabetes and cancer (but of course, what hasn't).Note also that vegetarians, through sheer virtue of being more conscious of what goes in their bodies, tend to eat healthier and subsequently live longer!

* Ethical; While I usually get moans and groans about this next part, it cannot be ignored. The absolutely savage way we treat both the animals that end up on our plates, and those who work on the assembly line making sure those animals make it to the dinner table is morally debilitating. I like to think as a species, we are above acting so base. From what we feed the animals (other animals among other things) to how we treat them (cutting of beaks of chickens to reduce pecking, skinning cows that are still conscious) we begin to take a blow to our own humanity.

Consuming less meat weekly, going vegetarian (or even vegan for you brave souls!), can contribute to creating a more sustainable future, an ethically aware community, and a healthier you!

The following resources provide an overview of our current food problems (of which meat production plays a major role, but not the only):

1) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/business/worldbusiness/27iht-meat.1.9525251.html

2) http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2FPHN%2FPHN8_04%2FS1368980005000492a.pdf&code=6b8d71f03134c1948a9e7b504bdd5319

3) http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_agriculture/science_and_impacts/impacts_industrial_agriculture/they-eat-what-the-reality-of.html

4) http://www.closeanimalfactories.org/the-issues/

2008 World Food Crises: (note, that these issues have NOT been resolved, and while this started gaining media attention early 08, it has been in the works long before, and is currently still an issue).

1) http://www.sundayherald.com/news/heraldnews/display.var.2104849.0.2008_the_year_of_global_food_crisis.php

2)http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/10/opinion/10thu1.html

Broader reads to get you thinking about food:

1) Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

2) The Ominivore's Dillema by Michael Pollan