We need meat, more accuately though, we need the protein from meat
that's a myth
here is the position of the american dietetic association:
http://www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada/hs.xsl/advocacy_933_ENU_HTML.htm
"It is the position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada that appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Approximately 2.5% of adults in the United States and 4% of adults in Canada follow vegetarian diets. A vegetarian diet is defined as one that does not include meat, fish, or fowl. Interest in vegetarianism appears to be increasing, with many restaurants and college foodservices offering vegetarian meals routinely. Substantial growth in sales of foods attractive to vegetarians has occurred, and these foods appear in many supermarkets. This position paper reviews the current scientific data related to key nutrients for vegetarians, including protein, iron, zinc, calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, vitamin B-12, vitamin A, n-3 fatty acids, and iodine. A vegetarian, including vegan, diet can meet current recommendations for all of these nutrients. In some cases, use of fortified foods or supplements can be helpful in meeting recommendations for individual nutrients. Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer. Although a number of federally funded and institutional feeding programs can accommodate vegetarians, few have foods suitable for vegans at this time. Because of the variability of dietary practices among vegetarians, individual assessment of dietary intakes of vegetarians is required. Dietetics professionals have a responsibility to support and encourage those who express an interest in consuming a vegetarian diet. They can play key roles in educating vegetarian clients about food sources of specific nutrients, food purchase and preparation, and any dietary modifications that may be necessary to meet individual needs. Menu planning for vegetarians can be simplified by use of a food guide that specifies food groups and serving sizes. J Am Diet Assoc. 2003;103:748-765.
But there are many places that exist or have existed that can only depend on meat for protein
excuses good for others don't justify your acts
you're not an inuit, you have easy access to all kinds of foods
Since I'm arguing for the right of all mankind to eat meat, I must consider these places and argue for their right to eat meat
you can't make a generalization of different cases
if you want to prove the right of all humans to eat meat, that's exactly what you have to do
you can't just find one population for which it's justified and magically apply it to all others
that there are places where people don't really have other choices than to make their children work at 8 years old doesn't induce it should be their right everywhere else
Take the native americans that existed in the past for instance. They must depend on meat for protein, they had nothing else. If consumption of meat is wrong or senseless then these people can be seen as nothing but barbaric and cruel - their very way of life is wrong
what is past is past
what is somewhere else is somewhere else
today, do we westerners need meat?
no
the case of native americans is very different from ours
they didn't have access to all the variety all aliments and other products that we do
they didn't exploit animals in such horrific ways as we do
they didn't spoil what they killed and used everything they could
we're much more barbaric than they were
but the welfare of animals is secondary to the welfare of our fellow humans. Simple as that.
there's a very big difference between not interfering with the welfare of animals and making their lives a living hell
if you want to give 2 hours of your day helping others, you have all the right to help your family instead of mine because of your preference
but this preference doesn't give you the right actively hurt my family because it counts less for you
the only reason we can substitute tofu (or any synthetic material) for meat is through science, which is only available due to increased brain capacity and size, which is the direct result of meat eating. catch 22, if we didn't eat meat in the past, we couldn't understand the moral and ethical dilema ofeating meat.
like ebola said, that's only your quick interpretation of evolution
but it doesn't change anything to the question of morality of eating meat today
people before you had to learn how to extract iron so that you could enjoy your computer today
do you still have to learn how to extract iron?
This animal has lived a life where it was fed, taken care of and given a huge and beautiful world to enjoy
do you consider that it's "right" to kill someone if he's had a nice life?
if i feed you abd take care of you during 5 years, can i kill you afterwards?
I believe it's inaccurate and misleading to attempt to try to seperate us from our biological nature
you're creating a misleading concept with the words "biological nature"
our biology allows us to do things that it doesn't need us to do
we can eat meat, but we don't need or have to
but then think how the cows and chickens are treated when they are used for cheese,milk,eggs ect ect.
not much differently to the animals used for meat.
and then you could become a vegan...
it's really not that difficult you know
vegan-since-birth population would find it much harder to start eating meat
because to eat vegan you don't have to actively do something, you just have to boycott a few. so it doesn't demand more effort than knowing what you're eating
on the other hand, it would be quite a shock to someone who has always only seen meat as a corpse if he had to eat some
but then think about the beautiful land that once existed before it was cleared to grow carrots and potatoes..
hey! aren't the carrots beautiful?
when you go to the country, don't you like seeing fruit trees everywhere?
But what about free range animals? Is it wrong in general to consume meat because you're killing an animal?
in their behaviour, animals show that they don't want to die
they try to prevent you from hurting them
so they show they have an interest in not dying and that it gives value to its life
so by killing it, you would infringe its freedom
It's obvious that meat tastes so good because we are meant to eat it.
then you're meant to eat human meat too, it tastes like chicken
were doing the animals a favour, if we didn't eat beef cows would be extint?
they wouldn't be extinct if we let them live
but of course, man thinks he's the master of earth and has the right to overpopulate it and take all the land without letting any space for the other species
but 2 wrongs don't make one right
you can't say putting an animal in a cage is justified because you didn't leave it a place to live in the first place
anyway, they sure would prefer not to exist than to live in hell all their lives
goddamn poisoned favour we're doing them!
my apologies about closing that thread.
I could've left it open, but there were to many freaking ad-homs to edit.
you could merge them to avoid repeats
we'll be as well-behaved as we can
I think in general there is nothing wrong with meat eating, animals do it, we're animals, so its OK
animals don't have the capacity to judge the harm they're doing and to consider other ways of getting food
we can
