What Is The Whole Point For Being "a Vegetarian"

[Mermaid711 0]

The main reason for being a vegitarian is that you believe you should not kill another living animal (Plants do not count) in order to eat. And besides, first level consumers recive more energy than second or third may recieve. And usually is (not always) an all around it is a healthier lifestyle than be carnivorous. However humans are herbivores, and should have at least a small amount of meet in thir diet because the need the protien.

[jlhaslip 4]

Actually, mermaid, the Protein from meat is not "required" in our diets. I would encourage you to read the book "A Diet For a Small Planet" where they discuss the concept of 'complimentary' foods. Certain foods, when eaten together provide better and more nutrition than if consumed individually. And there are many cultures where grains, and legumes(beans), are the major components of the culture's diet with very little meat of any kind included in their diets.One example, as I recall is the combination of grains and milk products. Did you have a bowl of cereal this morning? Then you are already practicing 'complimentary' foods. The next step is to remove all the 'processing' from the foods you eat. Oatmeal is processed minimally and is better for your digestion and health than heavily processed 'breakfast cereal' where they remove some of the healthiness from it in the processing of the grains. Likewise, Brown rice is better than White rice which is healthier than plasticised "Minute" rice and whole wheat bread is better than "white" breads, etc.All things considered, it is better to take a few extra minutes to prepare wholesome food than the 'fast foods' we consume in North America, and not just at McD's and other restaurants. Packaged foods are not as tasty, nor as healthy, as home-cooked foods. Generally.

[Unholy Prayer 0]

My sister is a vegetarian and it kind of pisses me off. She's always like "they're just poor innocent animals and they can't defend themselves". It doesn't matter. It's called survival of the fittest. If the animals were stronger than us, I'm sure they'd do the same thing. It always makes me mad because if my family goes out for dinner, we have to find a place that has food that she can eat(and there aren't many in the small town that I live in). She's the kind of vegetarian that doesn't eat eggs or cheese because they come from an animal. I hate it when people are vegetarians because they animals are innocent. I could understand if you don't like the taste of meat or if it's too fattening, but come on.

[NNH1254 0]

I'm a vegetarian because I can be. Humans are different because, though they're evolved to eat meat, we don't have to. IMO, if I don't have to cause the death of a being to eat, I shouldn't. So I don't.

[FolkRockFan 0]

I was a vegetarian for a couple of years because the taste and smell of meat - any kind of meat - made me nauseous. It wasn't because I cared about the animals - I didn't. My body just went through a phase of reacting badly to meat. But that passed and I resumed eating meat. Pork in particular. Yes, pigs are filthy animals. Yes, it's disgusting to think about. But wow...it tastes so good.We all have to make our own decisions. If you (generalization) don't like the idea of animals being slaughtered for your food, then don't eat them. But please don't try to shove your ideas down my throat. I'm not trying to force-feed anybody a burger, so...yeah.

[TikiPrincess 0]

I tried to be a vegetarian after I read Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation the same semester. It wasn't necessarily about the poor animals, though it is really sad, it was more about the unsanitary conditions at the meat-packing plants and the suppliers for the fast food industry. Unfortunately, we've learned that our supermarkets and grocery stores aren't terribly safe either. I finally went back to meat because it's what my body craved and I just didn't have the strength to get through the cravings.

My sister-in-law is a vegetarian and has been for over 10 years now. While she was pregnant and nursing, she did crave tuna every once in awhile, so she ate it because she figured that's what the baby needed at the moment. She went back to being vegetarian before her daughter had her first birthday. The problem is that she eats crap. She doesn't really cook for herself and she's not terribly fond of salads. She mostly eats spaghetti and bean burritos. Her best friend is a vegan, meaning no animal products whatsoever. She has to take dietary supplements to get all of the nutrition that her body needs, despite eating a rich and diverse diet. She even had a vegan cake at her wedding, with no butter in either the cake or the frosting.

My friend's fiance grew up as a vegetarian because his parents didn't eat meat. When he was finally on his own in college, he ate like the rest of the omnivores and actually enjoyed meat. But he developed a rare arthritis condition, so he can't eat most meats anymore. He can still eat seafood, but there's something in meat, poultry and pork that makes his arthritis flare up.

[sheepdog 10]

First you have to know that most of those chickens you eat live 15 days maximum and is that healthy meat?-

Huh?????? Have you ever raised chickens???? I don't care what or how much you fed them, there is no way on gods green earth a chick is going to grow enough to be eaten in 2 weeks. I have no idea where you got that info, unless it was one of those wacko AR sites, and since none of them raise chickens why on earth woud you believe them?

I can't imagine what you saw about butchering that was so bad. We have a profesional come out and kill our steer every year, one 22 round to the head and the steer jerks all 4 feet in the air and thumps down on the ground, stone cold dead. He is dead before he ever knew what hit him. Nothing inhumane about it.
Edited August 4, 2007 by sheepdog (see edit history)

[Plenoptic 0]

The way I see it, either way you are killing animals. If you hunt and kill the animals to eat, then there you go, you are killing animals. If you eat meat but don't actually kill the animals, you are still part of the demand to kill animals to feed you so they kill animals to supply the demand so you are still indirectly causing their death. Now as for not eating animals or killing them, this means you generally eat vegetation. Now what do animals eat if they don't eat other animals? Vegetation. So if everyone ate vegetation there would be a shortage of vegetation for the animals, so then the animals would die anyway. That is why I eat meat either way. I am not saying being a vegetarian is bad, I just don't see a point to it in my beliefs.