Meat eaters / Vegetarians / Vegans. Why are you whichever you are?

[lambada]

Hi,
I'm currently interested in the is it right to eat meat etc philosophy type questions.

As such I would like to know your views - not just which you are, but WHY you are what you are.
Hence why there is no poll with this.

I, personally am meat eater, as I feel that life is survival of the fittest and to survive we had to eat meat. I also happen to enjoy vegetarian dishes, but I find I enjoy the taste of meat.

I can, however understand where vegetarians are coming from as things need to be done to improve living conditions of the animals etc - however I do not believe not eating meat will help, instead I believe that using trusted 'free-range' suppliers so-to-speak sends a stronger message.

With Vegans, I find I can accept their lifestyle, but I often wonder about how they go about avoiding things like milk and eggs - which can be essential for the things like Bread etc. My knowledge of Veganism is sketchy, so maybe one of our members could broaden my horizons.

As this is a highly sensitive topic I wish to make it extra clear that I expect to find no Personal attacks, or attacks on their lifestyles - What I DO wish to see is plenty of reasons why you are what you are, and if you think you could adapt to the other lifestyles, i'd also like to see some philosophical arguments as to whether it is right to eat meat.

I will be closely watching this topic and anything close to a personal attack will be deleted and the user will be warned as it IS discrimination.

With that in mind, lets see some debating!

lambada

 

[Cynical]

I eat meat.

Mostly because I love meat, but also because obtaining the nutrients that are plentiful in meat are a burden to obtain any other way (namely protein). However, there has to be some way to get around eating meat. My band's singer only eats things he doesn't have to kill to eat. This eliminates all meat and most everything else. For example, he will eat apples because you don't have to kill the apple tree, but he won't eat potatoes because you have to kill the potato in order to eat it (because there is no potato-bearing plant, just the potato itself).

Meat FTW.

 

[Spartan Erik]

I'm an omnivore! Hah I remember that discussion back in the second grade; anyway, I love essentially all meat, and most vegetables. I don't mind eating meat since I know that a.) we're the top of the food chain, b.) animals taste good, and c.) animals are quite abundant. It's not like I'm eating animals to the brink of extinction; although there are practically no health benefits from meat (you could obtain plenty of protein from soybeans), it just tastes good! It's like asking, "why do we eat candy?"

 

[deadimp]

I eat food. If it's meat, and it's food, I eat it. If it's some derivative of a living creature, and it's edible [meaning that it isn't crap], and it tastes good, I eat it. I usually just eat whatever I feel like eating, which is good when I want to eat something wholesome, bad when I want a crapload of junkfood.
Whether or not it was a living creature doesn't really make me stop and think about what I'm doing. It's great that some people are concerned for animals and their lives, but they must remember that some animals do eat other animals, so they won't necessarily save an animal if they don't eat it.
Veganism just makes me wonder why. I don't exactly see any reason why people feel the need to avoid that kind of food. It seems as frivolous to me as the stories of those monks who didn't even want to kill insects on accident.

 

[reichiru]

I eat meat, although not a lot of it. For some reason it never really appealed to me as a type of food, but of course for nutritional reasons I still eat it. Some are pretty good, but I try to keep it to a minimum. I like vegetables much better. And no junk food for me, other than the occasional cookie or something. I recently gained a lot of weight from too many carbohydrates (my family's Chinese, so we eat a lot of rice), so I'm currently cutting down the amount of food I eat. I know a friend who's a vegetarian. She actually wants to be a vegan, but her parents won't let her. I respect those views and stuff, but I don't think it's healthy, that's all.

 

[MicrotechXP]

Meat here. I love steak.

I am sorry cows.

 

[emo366]

I actually think that eating meat is fairly essential, I mean, if animals eat other animals, why shouldn't we eat them?

I work in construction, and nothing gets me going than eggs and bacon in the morning. I have to get up at 3:00 am to get to work by 5:00am and I normally get off work around 1:30pm. My Aunt is visiting us for awhile, and because of medical issues with her pancreas(I think that's what it is causing it, it could be her liver too I'm not sure) but we haven't had any meat in the house and I find myself running to Subway or something so I can get a turkey sandwich or something because I always feel sick in the morning if I eat any of those veggie burgers and vegan meals, and stuf flike that.

 

[Archkronos]

I am a meat eater, and I think that I like to eat meat because I was brought up with this view by my parents and that its considered 'right'.

Meat also helps provide various substances like Iron, and other things that its hard to get, if you can at all, from vegetables.

In addition, our bodyies are designed to take and digest meat, or the philosphical/god side of things. If we were ment to be on a vegetarian diet, then we would have evolved or been created in such a manor.

 

[CrownVictoriaCop]

Meat eater, my taste buds don't like some vegetables, and vegetariansim has some downsides. And if you become a vegan and you don't keep up with your nutrients, you could die.

 

[tam-iam]

Hi. I eat meat, but try to minimize how much due to ethical reasons. I don't have a hang up about eating what was a living animal, circle of life and all that.

The real problem I have with meat eating is damage to the environment. Mainly, I am referring to beef and the damage cattle grazing does to ecosystems. It is one of the primary reasons for deforestation throughout the world, particularly in Brazil. As more and more people eat beef, there is an increased need for cattle grazing, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions (IE. cow flatulence) and damage to ecosystems.

I am not suggesting that everyone should give up beef, I just think moderation is a good philosophy in general. So I limit my beef intake to twice a week at most and try to keep it to once or less.

 

[KowKing]

I'm going to attempt to become a vegetarian starting August first. I already take multi-vitamins due to the amount of water and tea I drink.

I wonder how it will go...

 

[duckyinc]

I don't have anything against vegetarians but I think you should stick to what your body is build for, nature knows best If not we probably won't be here or at the brink of extinction like the panda, it's digestion system is for a carnivore but it eats bamboo, result has to eat alot and because of lack of energy value the milk isn't very good for the babies.

 

[legendphil]

We're a part of some ecosystem (circle of life), and we're highly intelligent predators. I've heard that eating meat helped us evolve into men, so why stop if we're made by doing so?

Well that's that, but I also like eating vegetables specially when they're fresh then blanched or magically turned into salad. Burgers are good with 'em too. So I say neither is bad.

 

[0mfg0rz]

I don't eat meat. For a reason, because i have love of animals, mostly the ones that are killed for meat. And it does have quite a bit of damage to the environment. I've heard it does let off gas, but i'm not really sure. The more we kill, the more work people have to do. I mean, raise a big large cow, grow to love it.. and then it's killed :/ it's happened to me so i gave up meat. I'l live off the things i normally get nowadays, so i'm a vegetarian, all the way.

 

[uncommon_muse]

I was raised completely vegetarian (thankfully not vegan though). My first cheeseburger at 14 tasted good, but made me incredibly sick, however my first steak sandwich (med-rare) was divine and I digested that without much distress (of course by then I was an adult). Chicken and Fish I enjoy weekly, though certainly not every meal or indeed even every day (or every other). I drink and cook with Soy milk , eat nuts&beans instead of red meats for protein and general health reasons. But I find the whole "don't eat anything with a face" logic to be absolutely silly. *Especially those who think that they by purchasing are supporting the abuse/cruelty of animals as a result of- when these practices are considered to be standard and are supported by thousands of asses and mouths (afterall it is an INDSUSTRY)
In conclusion eat what is right for you, but unless you are cooking for someone else stay the hell out of their kitchen!

 

[Vipey]

I'm a meat-eater.
I feel that animals were made for the resources of humans.
Without them many of us would be weak and possibly humans would be a at a lower status in the food-chain.

 

[darkstang]

If it tastes good, I eat it. This is why I could never just become a vegetarian... cows, chickens, deer, and pigs just taste too good to give up. Then again I could never become strictly a meat eater... I love peanut butter, potatoes, peppers, and whatever makes mustard.

If I seriously had to think about it though, I grew up in a family that does a lot of grilling and barbecuing. So if it's cooked over a fire, I'll probably like it.

 

[GamingX]

Well Me... I am an omnivore. Because I love to eat meat....and coming to few points I have observed, goats, cows have just the front teeth and the molars, so they just eat grass and keep munching and coming to carnivores, the lion..it has canines it uses to tear apart flesh..so it is a carnivore but we humans we have both canines as well as front teeth. So it is justified that we be meat eaters, but still everyone is entitled to what he eats..

 

[The_Magistrate]

It seems that uncommon_muse and I are some of the only vegetarians on the forums, so I'll go ahead and dispel some myths around vegetarianism/veganism.

Let me start off by saying, I grew up eating meat. At the age of 12 I ate a bad hamburger which put me in the hospital for 3 days with food poisoning. After that I didn't eat red meat (e.g. beef, lamb, venison) and stuck pretty much to fowls and seafood. About two years ago, I decided that I would give up meat altogether and I can say, it hasn't really impacted my life that much. I haven't gone vegan, but soy-based substitutes for what normally would have been meat, have filled in my recipes nicely.

That said, I'll go ahead and address some of the things people before me have said:

1. The main-stay of ideologies surrounding vegetarianism/veganism is the disconnection from the mistreatment of animals. On a basic level, domesticated animals are slaves to humans to serve their own ends. While lambada brings up a good point;

I do not believe not eating meat will help, instead I believe that using trusted 'free-range' suppliers so-to-speak sends a stronger message.

'free-range' meat and poultry still isn't really free. They meet the same fate as other animals treated fairly or not.

2. It is a myth that you need to eat meat to get vital nutrients.

because obtaining the nutrients that are plentiful in meat are a burden to obtain any other way (namely protein).

This is blatantly untrue, and anyone who does their research knows that assuming that meat is the only way to obtain protein is a sure-fire way to not get enough. Also, meats contain high levels of saturated fats, which are associated with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and some cancers. Plant based sources of protein are high in unsaturated fats, fiber and folic acid which are healthful to eat and help maintain high energy levels.

3.

Meat also helps provide various substances like Iron, and other things that its hard to get, if you can at all, from vegetables.
In addition, our bodyies are designed to take and digest meat, or the philosphical/god side of things. If we were ment to be on a vegetarian diet, then we would have evolved or been created in such a manor.

I can address two issues with this quote. 1. Similarly to #2 above, meat does provide a high level of some nutrients, but at a cost. You can actually ingest too much iron or protine which can cause irritability, high levels of stress, digestive problems and kidney failure. 2. Our bodies were NOT designed to eat meat. Simply look at our teeth. As natural herbivores, our teeth are mostly flat, for mashing and grinding. If we evolved to be carnivores, we would have teeth like a cat or dog; pointed teeth for ripping and tearing.

4.

if you become a vegan and you don't keep up with your nutrients, you could die.

While it is true you have to be mindful of your nutrient intake, becoming a vegan isn't a dangerous activity. Being mindful of what your eating is something that everyone should do no matter what they eat. And just think, you don't hear of anyone eating only meat, 'cause that's a pretty quick way to end up in bad shape.

5.

The real problem I have with meat eating is damage to the environment. Mainly, I am referring to beef and the damage cattle grazing does to ecosystems. It is one of the primary reasons for deforestation throughout the world, particularly in Brazil. As more and more people eat beef, there is an increased need for cattle grazing, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions (IE. cow flatulence) and damage to ecosystems.

I agree with tam-iam. The real problem is the ecological damage that producing food for these animals causes. Did you know that not eating red meat saves an equivalent amount of energy as if you only took showers once a year and never drove your car again. Vegetarians in Hummers are better for the environment than meat eaters driving Prius'. Also, cows eat enough grain in one year to feed all the hungry in the entire world. That's a lot of food to put a steak on your plate.

6.

I feel that animals were made for the resources of humans.
Without them many of us would be weak and possibly humans would be a at a lower status in the food-chain.

Thinking that animals were made for humans is a absurd thought started by religious fundamentalists who believe that God made the animals and that Adam named them all. Humans are animals. We are not at the top of the 'food-chain.' We are smack dab in the middle of the circle of life. We eat, we die, we become feed for plants, other animals eat those plants, someone else eats that animal.

And alluding to the fact that humans would be weak without animals is preposterous. I can assure you that there are plenty of very strong vegetarians/vegans in the world who are in MUCH better shape than their carnivorous peers.


In the end, vegetarianism and veganism are lifestyle choices that people make to improve their own lives and to help nature in ways that it can't do by itself. By eliminating my association with the mistreatment of animals, I can sleep soundly at night knowing that the environment isn't being exploited to raise an animal simply so it can die.

For more reading about these topics check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarianism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veganism
http://www.treehugger.com

 

[mr kennedy]

I'm more of meat. I gotta agree with lambada about not eating meat won't help! but if it's all meat or all veggies, that's not a balanced diet and that's not good for any person either. But being a Catholic in an Islamic country, no pork gets in the country. My family hasn't eaten pork in like a year or so....