Tried to be vegetarian last year after reading about how animals are raised and slaughtered for human consumption. The effort lasted about 2 months until I lost about 5 pounds, became feeble and eventually succumbed to my yearning for food like sushi, shabu shabu, etc.
Then, I came across the photo above last night.
It depicts little male chicks being disposed of because they won't be laying eggs for the grower. They are either gased or crush each other to death in a tiny space. The image brought me back to the video of the dog which saved a drowning deer that I posted the other day-
I am sure all higher animals including dogs, deers, chickens, cows, pigs...all are capable of emotions such as fear, anxiety, sadness, happiness, anguish, relief, etc. The video is evidence that they are even capable of sacrifice and empathy.
It saddened me to imagine the horrific environments that chickens, pigs and cows are confined to and the depressing emotions they are put through.
So, I decided to modify my diet again. I know I won't last long if I completely cut out meat again. I learned from Google that most of seafood that we consume such as fish, lobster, shrimp, and mollusk do not have neocortex that is a prerequisite to process emotions. Even though they may thrust around seemingly in "pain" when cooked, it's more a motor reflex to a noxious stimulus generated via a nerve ganglion in the body. For example, you can chop off the heads of a lobster or a shrimp, and the body may still move around.
So, I'm going to allow myself to eat seafood, but no more beef, pork or chicken. I know I am probably oversimplifying things just fit my own agenda. But, in my mind, half-ass effort is still better than no effort at all in this case.
Good bye, my favorite phat ga prau moo-
and Hainanese chicken rice-
😭😭😭😭😭
But, at least sushi isnt such a bad alternative.
I'm a vegetarian (I suppose lacto-vegetarian would be appropriate).
I try my utmost to live by the "Least Harm" principle.
"Nor the flesh of beast nor bird..."
There's a great deal of interesting discussion surrounding the ethics of food.
Here are some intriguing essays from which to draw your own conclusions:
https://uvearchives.wordpress.com/2008/01/01/contrasting-harms-vegan-agriculture-versus-animal-agriculture/
But cheers to you for making the effort not to feed into the modern capitalist-food-complex that is so horrifyingly destructive and cruel.
I think ultimately if you do decide to eat meat, then you should learn from whence it proceeds.
As in: "Eat Locally".
Visit a small farmer that raises and slaughters their own livestock.
Become intimate with the process.
I feel that understanding your sustenance from cradle to grave is extremely important.
Ethically, ecologically, spiritually, psychologically.
Thank you for sharing. It's gonna be hard. But I will try my best to sustain my pledge this time.
@flyingsolo
Nice Post!
Thanks for sharing this.