Are Vegetarians Smarter? Post Your Opinion....

[Misanthrope 0]

Wow, I'm very offended by that remark. "Humans are like cows, slow and dimwitted". There are MANY very intellectual americans who do in fact eat....COWS. Humans eat animals because we need the protien to live. If we weren't meant to eat cows, why were they put on this earth? I may not be the smartest person alive, but I'm surely no dimwit.
Oh, yes, I do eat much meat by the way.

Hi KuBi, sorry you took offense at that statement. It's merely an observation and not meant to be aimed at any particular individual.

Parallel, if you will, the various less-than-complimentary observations stated about vegetarians on this post. If I chose, I could easily be offended by most of them. But what would be the point? I might as well just throw in the towell and stop reading other people's opinions if that's the case. Again, no offense was meant toward you, and thank you for your response.

[biscuitrat 0]

We were put on this earth to not say that we were put on this earth to eat cows...to even think that is absurd. For example, my culture reveres (but does not worship!) the cow. So your statement is automatically untrue. Brilliant people come from upbringing and education, not diet. Sure, a good diet will improve your brain's capacity, but that doesn't make you any better at IQ tests, especially if you can't solve problems or see patterns to save your life. I've had a Mensa book since I was little and I don't think I've ever finished it.Then again...I haven't picked it up in about 5 years. I might as well give that a spin and challenge one of my omnivorous friends to an IQ-Off!

[Misanthrope 0]

Saint Michael! Thank you for your excellent response to this topic. It really encourages me to see intelligent folks like you and so many others interested in this worthy issue. But I would like to clear up just a few points for posterity.

Hopefully that clears some stuff up for your opinion about the American's

Firstly, I consider myself an American patriot and want only the best for my countrymen. And it saddens me to see so many under the spell of the mass media, who in my humble opinion - do not have the best interest of the people at heart. I feel they have taken the greatest country on earth and turned it into something less than what was to be it's "manifest destiny."
With the advent of mass media, many have stopped thinking for themselves and take what they're fed from the TV or newspaper to be gospel truth. Part of that involves the overuse of meat, as it is constantly advertised and readily available at fast food chains. Why won't they serve healthy food at these places? These are questions we need to ask ourselves.

I know I can pick up o things pretty quick while some others take their time

Secondly, no one is questioning your intelligence, Saint Michael. I personally think you're quite smart, or you wouldn't be posting on a topic like this one.
Thirdly, I fully understand this is a VERY provacative topic, one that illicits deep emotion and strong opinions in people. My hope is that this subject will spur the reader on to self-examination of mores and values previously unquestioned or taken for granted to be true. As they say, "The unexamined life is not worth living." In the process, I find your all your excellent comments and suggestions cause me to do the same.

Lets not forget the other side of the story here vbrit. Other members have opinions also. There are 2 sides to each story, we must acknowledge both. Seeing has how many of us have put time and effort into these posts.

KuBi! You are absolutely right. There are always two sides of the story and I appreciate the differing opinions each and everyone of you have given. This seems, however, a topic that encourages REALLY strong opinions in folks, and lots of them have been less-than-nice toward vegetarians. But that's to be expected, and I take no offense to any of it. All the better for a good debate!

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

Hmm, I'm surprised at the amount of interest this topic is getting, considering the title (no offense). If it had been titled 'Is vegetarianism a healthier lifestyle', yes there would be merit in it. But I think that the words (and implied concept) 'Are vegetarians smarter' are misguided at best, and the opposite of intelligent at worst.

 

Lets break down the results of eating meat into the physical and mental aspects, shall we..

 

First, let us discuss the physical:

I eat meat, cow meat, and I am exceedingly strong, exceedingly quick on my feet, with very good reflexes and a training in the martial arts that makes me a rather lethal opponent. I don't say this lightly - I've traveled all over asia and africa, and have been in many encounters where my life has been at threat. And I have survived, and those who took me lightly have regretted their misguided notions.

 

Now that's only speaking of the physical. Yet the physical counts. Physically I'm more like a leopard than a cow, certainly not someone anyone would like to meet in a dark alley at night.

 

My point? Despite what has been said about vegetarians being healthier, I am a person in peak condition and I subsist on a non-vegetarian diet. My teachers, who also eat meat, and who are near 70, look 20 or 30 years younger, and have none of the afflictions that affect most people.

 

This said, it seems to me that good health depends more on how much of your time you devote to MAINTAINING that health, than upon what you eat. Both my teachers and I spend 3 hours a day on training alone, this not counting the things I do for fun like rock climbing, kayaking, long hikes in the mountains, etc.

 

-----------------------------

Now let us discuss intelligence. I consider a lot of the carnivorous folk who've posted on this thread (like Saint Micheal, for instance) to be very smart people, not to mention that I'm hardly unintelligent myself.

 

Again, (and I'm repeating myself here) I live in largely vegetarian india, and having traveled the world I find people in india no smarter and no less smart than anyone else.

 

Speaking personally, I have a thirst for knowledge - I read a LOT, and have a memory that can absorb almost everything I read so that I can remember the salient points years later. Also I devote a LOT OF TIME to the pursuit of knowledge, with interests ranging from astronomy to quantum physics, to history, philosophy and even the simple study of human nature.

 

That said, intelligence seems to depend on four things -

1) Genetics

2) The Desire to Learn

3) The Opportunity for Learning (such as the availability of books, and various other sources of knowledge)

4) An lastly, but most importantly, the amount of time and effort one gives to learning.

 

You see, the mind NEEDS exercise as well - you start out with a certain potential for intelligence, but you will never realize your ultimate potential until you push your mind to the limit and beyond.

 

And I think that the WILL to do this, and the OPPORTUNITY to do this, matter a GREAT DEAL more than diet, really.

 

And that's the last that I have to say on this subject. I think the researchers who conducted that study were wasting time AND money that could be put to better use elsewhere. And I consider that MOST unintelligent, indeed.

 

Just one man's opinions - I might indeed be completely mistaken, being only human hehehehehe (unlike Saint Micheal, who as we all know, is an archangel!! - down, down on your knees before him, all of you, and I mean RIGHT NOW!!!)

 

Right, just kidding, Mike. Take care, all.

[Kubi 0]

That said, intelligence seems to depend on four things -

1) Genetics

2) The Desire to Learn

3) The Opportunity for Learning (such as the availability of books, and various other sources of knowledge)

4) An lastly, but most importantly, the amount of time and effort one gives to learning.

 

Thank you! That's what I've been saying!(I think). I'm glad you agree with me.

 

I think the most 2 important things stated for learning capacity, is the

 

1) Desire to learn

2) Like he said, the availability.

 

You can grow up in dirt poor conditions, not having a penny to your families name. But if you're able to go to school, and want to learn, you can grow up to be an amazing person, very smart might I add. Even without school it's possible to learn. You may observe others, I'm sure you can find a book somewhere.

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

Indeed Kubi - growing up in the east, my first books were bought from people who processed paper of various kinds - I would grab the books just before they were all sent out for recycling, and get them at prices the equivalent of one cent or less. Then I introduced most of my friends on the street to reading - quite an achievement, I can tell you. By the way, all these books we used to buy originated in the west - how on earth they get half way round the world in such numbers AND then end up waiting to be recycled is beyond me.Of course we went to school too, but I was always eager to learn much more, and these books cost us next to nothing - now, when I travel the main problem is how to move my crates of books, hehehhehehe. I usually spend at least six months in a new country that I visit, so I HAVE to take my books.Like once I arrived in Burma (now Myanmar) when I was a few years younger, with canvas sacks full of books, and was arrested on the spot by customs officials who thought that the books were boxes of contraband (they looked pretty much like boxes from the outside of the sacks) - and they were SO angry that someone should try to smuggle so blatantly, hehehehehehehhehehe - most smugglers at least have the decency to hide the contraband, this guy just arrives with sacks full - anyway, when they looked in the sacks and found only hundreds of books, they had to let me go (you could see the thought in their heads - not a smuggler, just a simple madman, ROFL)

[Kubi 0]

After this whole 9-11 thing, they're must stricter on contraband and stuff like that, can't even have a nail filler on an airplane if I'm not mistaken. But that's here.

[Misanthrope 0]

Hmm, I'm surprised at the amount of interest this topic is getting, considering the title (no offense). If it had been titled 'Is vegetarianism a healthier lifestyle', yes there would be merit in it. But I think that the words (and implied concept) 'Are vegetarians smarter' are misguided at best, and the opposite of intelligent at worst.

Hmm, I am not at all surprised by the amount of interest this topic is getting – especially considering its’ title. It's obviously valid enough to garner several responses from you thus far! As I’ve mentioned adnausem, I’m fully aware the provocative nature of my post; therefore, it should come as no surprise to one as smart as yourself this topic garnered so much interest. Nor was the intent behind it in anyway “misguided” or lacking intellectual merit. Indeed, this thread has fulfilled it’s purpose, that is, it has attracted many viewers and caused them to reflect and look inward, if only for a short while, about something they wouldn’t ordinarily contemplate. How often are people presented with that opportunity? Certainly not from the mass media, which forces the populace to look OUTSIDE themselves for personal fufilment, never questioning the status quo as they carry on like good little “sheeple.”

 

Understand: I believe in self-empowerment of the individual, but the person has to self-examine himself to truly know himself. The questions he must ask are not always pleasant or comfortable. Like archetypal heroes of old who descended to Hades before reaching illumination, the individual must at times explore the depths of his own soul before reaching Nirvana. That, Yratorm, is why this thread was titled the way it was.

Lets break down the results of eating meat into the physical and mental aspects, shall we..

Lets be honest here: none of us are dieticians (that I'm aware of) and can only speak from personal experience, which is all fine and dandy. But the scientific statistics remain clear: those who adopt and stick to a vegetarian diet have higher IQs and suffer less disease. I can provide links from reputable sources which prove these facts to anyone who asks. I'd be interested to see if you can do the same to support your personal opinion.

 

Now let us discuss intelligence. I consider a lot of the carnivorous folk who've posted on this thread (like Saint Micheal, for instance) to be very smart people, not to mention that I'm hardly unintelligent myself.

I hope this is the last time I have to say this: no one is questioning the intelligence of any individual reading this thread. On the contrary, anyone who opened, read and responded to this thread is to be commended for having the werewithall to question the status quo, and is therefore, quite smart in my book. If you somehow interpret the premise of this title as an attack on your own intelligence, than your ego is in control and, unfortunately, you’re only scratching the surface of this topic (no offense).

 

I think the researchers who conducted that study were wasting time AND money that could be put to better use elsewhere. And I consider that MOST unintelligent, indeed.

I couldn’t disagree more with this erroneous statement. The vegetarian diet saves lives, human and non-human. It encourages self reflection and a desire to help all living things. And that, my dear Yratorm, is most intelligent. Edited January 20, 2007 by vbritton (see edit history)

[Sprnknwn 0]

Well, I've red the post and I must say that, although I kind of have sympathy for vegetarian people (I like people that in some aspect of their lifes don?t go with the mainstream) mainly because I?m near to hardcore music movement. I think that being vegetarian you show that you think for yourself, that you?re not going to live like your society tells you. But this doesn't mean that you are smarter than the rest of the world (that comment about you having to slow yourself to adjust to the rest is ridiculous, and it?s ridiculous that you believe it). From your words I think you?re using your vegetarianism like a way of feeling superior.By the way people don't become cows for eating cow the same way cows don't become grass for eating grass. Or maybe veggies tend to be like lettuce, green and immobile...

[Misanthrope 0]

Well, I've red the post and I must say that, although I kind of have sympathy for vegetarian people (I like people that in some aspect of their lifes don?t go with the mainstream) mainly because I?m near to hardcore music movement. I think that being vegetarian you show that you think for yourself, that you?re not going to live like your society tells you. But this doesn't mean that you are smarter than the rest of the world (that comment about you having to slow yourself to adjust to the rest is ridiculous, and it?s ridiculous that you believe it). From your words I think you?re using your vegetarianism like a way of feeling superior.

 

By the way people don't become cows for eating cow the same way cows don't become grass for eating grass. Or maybe veggies tend to be like lettuce, green and immobile...

 

Hi Sprnknwn! Those are very valid points you make, especially about some vegetarians feeling superior.

 

I've noticed this annoying quality when I vist some health food stores. Some of the shoppers (many of whom I suspect are vegetarian) seem to think they're better than everyone else just because they're shopping at an "exclusive" store. But then, you can see this in all of life's venues, not just vegetarianism. Some folks think they're better because they live in nice neighborhoods, or drive fancy cars. The list goes on.

 

My observation about slowing myself down to adjust to SOME people is just that - an observation. There are certain traditions that expound on this pheonomonon further, and I was merely giving my own personal take on it. I also think it makes for an interesting analogy. I can assure you, Sprnknwn, I don't think myself better than anyone else. I'm just another soul traversing the wheel of life. In fact, I've already discovered another reader on this thread who has a vastly higher IQ than mine, and he eats meat! That proves the study on !Q and vegetarians is a generalization of the population. There will always be acceptions to any scientific study. Thank you for responding to my post!

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

This post has been edited by Yratorm to remove those parts that were impolite to vbritton, for which there was no real necessity. Those who are interested in my personal thoughts on this issue, please consult my earlier posts.

 

I was impolite here because vbritton casually discounted the knowledge gained in a lifetime of study. However, logically speaking, I agree that that she has the right to whatever opinions she may hold.

Edited January 22, 2007 by Yratorm, LightMage (see edit history)

[me_boxer_dude 0]

Just replying to give you a piece of my mind, personally I do think that diet must have some kind of effect on intellect and the thought process however I wouldnt go such far to say that vegetarians are smarter than us who are not. I totally respect all vegetarians coz I think that their life style might be healthier than ours but still Its something which would be extremely hard to give up. Thats all what I had to say.(I must admit this debate is getting more than its share of intelligent discussions and the points raised by both vegetarians and NONS are equally intelligent so doesnt that prove that we all are equal maybe?)

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

I must admit this debate is getting more than its share of intelligent discussions and the points raised by both vegetarians and NONS are equally intelligent so doesnt that prove that we all are equal maybe?

Hmm, I would really have to agree. Very well put, me_boxer_dude (as usual, ). Hehe, I like the way you drop in on these discussion with words of wisdom, so to speak. Very well put, really.

[IURI 0]

I don't know if they are smarter... For example I am vegetarian. But I don't consider myself a smart guy. :| Maybe vegetals have nothing to do with my intelligence or others.

[QuickSilva 0]

Hmm... I don't really know on this issue, so I have been reading through the replies to this topic. It shows that there are some experiments going on, but some people are normaly brainier than others? Like my friend is a vegetarian and she is more smarter than me at somethings, but I am better than her at others. I don't really know.