tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1303304997109360003.post4652203273558968995..comments2023-03-31T11:47:01.975-04:00Comments on DYFL: Vegetarian's DilemmaAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08866772657939595834noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1303304997109360003.post-53525614751571133962010-08-04T17:15:06.448-04:002010-08-04T17:15:06.448-04:00There is also the argument for the humane farms - ...There is also the argument for the humane farms - supporting people who ethically (both for the animals and for the environment) produce meat is enabling them to succeed. If all the educated carnivores went vegetarian, then the only people eating meat would be those who couldn't care less where their meat came from. <br /><br />There are people who have to eat meat for their health and I, while pregnant, have gone from eating meat around once a week to about five times a week since I need so much more iron and protein. That we are able to spend a little more and buy organic, free range, grassfed, (in everything including dairy and eggs) seems to be a more proactive way of promoting the humane treatment of animals rather than just abstaining from eating them altogether.emma wallacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09521112479153552434noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1303304997109360003.post-91553699276777634392010-08-04T12:26:57.605-04:002010-08-04T12:26:57.605-04:00This and the vegan issue to me are expressions of ...This and the vegan issue to me are expressions of the same concern- how to best survive and promote life for ourselves and others. Because I don't believe in an objective unchanging God given morality (I'm a Buddhist atheist), what I am left with is not so much a question of "right" or "wrong" choices, but rather skillful and unskillful ones. This means I have to guard against self justification and denial, but it also frees me from the question of guilt while still giving me a framework with which to base my choices on. Eating meat, being a vegetarian and being a vegan, all are part of a spectrum and there is nothing inherently more moral, pure or right about any of them as a choice to support life. Because they are all on a spectrum however we can still evaluate their relative effectiveness at reducing suffering, it just isn't something to feel superior or more moral about though. <br /><br />There is a limit to what I am willing to sacrifice and how much inconvenience I am willing to take on in the pursuit of alleviating climate change, pollution, world poverty and famine, not eating animal products to avoid suffering and so on. If there wasn't a limit then one would be forced into the position of the radical Jain who ritually starves to death because to do otherwise is to kill and inflict suffering on another being (life requires consumption of life). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santhara/2/hi/south_asia/5390162.stm<br /><br />For me it is enough to look into where my food comes from and make choices that minimize my impact (bearing in mind the understanding that some suffering no matter how I choose, is unavoidable).<br /><br />Where exactly this will lead I can't tell, but looking at eggs for instance I see a progression- First I did not care to investigate how they were produced. Then upon learning a little about production I became uncomfortable and after awhile started buying the more expensive "cage free/ free range" eggs..Then looking further into production this was not enough either and I sought out eggs from producers whose methods and values closer matched mine. Places like the farmer's market and WSM are where I buy these products now.<br />http://www.weaverstreetmarket.com/index.php?option=com_content&<br /><br />This is still not perfect of course because what happens to the male chickens? If the producer is not breeding their own chickens who are they buying them from? How are those chickens treated? Often male chicks are unwanted and culled in a gruesome manner. Knowing this I am willing to modify my habits and consumption to a certain degree to do less harm, but how far will I go? Right now I am happy with where I am on the spectrum and the fact that I am heading in an ever more responsible direction, without having to blame or berate myself for falling short of perfection.Edhttp://www.edwardlarson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1303304997109360003.post-75418624956056640452010-08-04T12:26:08.664-04:002010-08-04T12:26:08.664-04:00“As I said at the top, the implications of all of ...“As I said at the top, the implications of all of this are not easy, even for me. It was easy to give up meat and leather, but not so easy to give up dairy - I am still working through the logistics of that.”<br /><br />I eat eggs and dairy and don’t punish myself or feel terribly guilty about it either. I do drink soy (or rice or coconut or almond milk depending on what is cheapest week to week) instead of milk to reduce my dairy intake, but I eat plenty of cheese, ice cream and butter. Heck even Peter Singer considers himself a flexible vegan “I am largely vegan but I’m a flexible vegan. I don’t go to the supermarket and buy non-vegan stuff for myself. But when I’m traveling or going to other people’s places I will be quite happy to eat vegetarian rather than vegan.” http://motherjones.com/politics/2006/05/chew-right-thing <br /><br />I own leather and have no plans to throw it out as it would be wasteful to do so. In fact I think it would be a immoral and self serving to do. It makes more sense to keep wearing the few belts I have owned for 10+ years than to get rid of them and waste resources buying new cloth ones instead.<br /><br />“But dogs are carnivores. Meat is essential to their diet. I can't deny them what they require, but is the relative health of my pampered pets worth the life and happiness that other animals are forced to give up?”<br /><br />Well you could (although I don’t recommend it) try feeding your dog a vegetarian diet as peta suggests.<br />http://www.peta.org/factsheet/files/FactsheetDisplay.asp?ID=34<br /><br />I tend to agree with you and the following link though, that argues a dog was built for meat and survives best on it.<br />http://www.rawfed.com/myths/omnivores.html<br /><br />I don’t think you ought to be overly concerned with feeding your dog meat, but if it really is a huge concern then you could buy more “humane” meat (free range, grass fed etc) and prepare it yourself or skip getting a dog altogether. :(<br /><br />--continued in response 2--Edhttp://www.edwardlarson.comnoreply@blogger.com