Vegetarian for the right reasons
By Ted Trevorrow
Issue date: 4/7/08 Section: Op-Ed
In the last few decades, vegetarian and vegan diets have gained momentum and increased in popularity. These diets are promoted by multiple celebrity endorsements and widespread media coverage. This new high profile status is due, to the most part, to the efforts of animal rights groups like PETA and The Humane Society. These groups have sought for years to equate animal cruelty with eating meat. Recently, though, they have changed tactics to associate the meat industry with the destruction of the environment.
While the meat industry does create pollution, PETA has applied some clever tactics to skew statistics and studies to try to make the meat industry's pollution appear worse than it actually is. As PETA's literature states, "A 2006 U.N. report found that the meat industry is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than all the cars, trucks, planes and ships in the world combined."
The problem is that this study included animal waste and gas as part of that pollution. This seems fair until you consider the fact that all animal life on Earth produces waste. Most mammals also pass gas. That would mean the elimination of waste- producing mammals all over the world would help stop global warming, not just those raised on farms. Using that logic, killing any mammal, including humans, could be considered part of the environmental effort.
PETA also likes to point out that we are losing the rainforest due to farmers clearing land to raise animals. They claim that "more than 90 percent of all Amazon rainforest land cleared since 1970 is used for meat production."
This is problematic because it brings in three other very complex issues. First, these mostly impoverished people need these animals for food. This is not to help Burger King to make a quadruple burger, but to help feed local villages and towns where food can be scarce or lack variety. Second, many of these people come from poor countries where they cannot take advantage of new technologies, which would reduce the amount of land needed or help them better incorporate rain forestland with farm land. Third, many of these groups provide a very clear and troubling counter-argument to one of PETA's long held beliefs, which is that people are not meant to eat meat.
While the meat industry does create pollution, PETA has applied some clever tactics to skew statistics and studies to try to make the meat industry's pollution appear worse than it actually is. As PETA's literature states, "A 2006 U.N. report found that the meat industry is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than all the cars, trucks, planes and ships in the world combined."
The problem is that this study included animal waste and gas as part of that pollution. This seems fair until you consider the fact that all animal life on Earth produces waste. Most mammals also pass gas. That would mean the elimination of waste- producing mammals all over the world would help stop global warming, not just those raised on farms. Using that logic, killing any mammal, including humans, could be considered part of the environmental effort.
PETA also likes to point out that we are losing the rainforest due to farmers clearing land to raise animals. They claim that "more than 90 percent of all Amazon rainforest land cleared since 1970 is used for meat production."
This is problematic because it brings in three other very complex issues. First, these mostly impoverished people need these animals for food. This is not to help Burger King to make a quadruple burger, but to help feed local villages and towns where food can be scarce or lack variety. Second, many of these people come from poor countries where they cannot take advantage of new technologies, which would reduce the amount of land needed or help them better incorporate rain forestland with farm land. Third, many of these groups provide a very clear and troubling counter-argument to one of PETA's long held beliefs, which is that people are not meant to eat meat.
Viewing Comments 1 - 6 of 6
cyberbrook
posted 4/08/08 @ 12:37 PM EST
While it's good that this vital issue of meat and the environment gets raised, there are various factual and logical errors in this article. For the truth about meat and the environment, as well as information on vegetarianism, please visit Eco-Eating at www. (Continued…)
Maureen Woodham
posted 4/08/08 @ 4:44 PM EST
Interesting article. You did not mention all the terrible suffering that animals endure before being killed. My family and I are vegan first of all because we respect all creatures on the planet amd secondly because it is better for our health and the health of the planet. (Continued…)
Scott Lahteine
posted 4/09/08 @ 2:50 AM EST
Lazy writing, not the sharpest crayon in the box.
Humans can eat meat, they can eat fish, but the real point is, they don't have to if they don't want to, and many of us don't want to. (Continued…)
David Goldbeck
posted 4/10/08 @ 2:37 PM EST
Please take a look at our "21 Reasons to Eat Like A Vegetarian" on HealthyHighawys.com
BS
posted 4/22/08 @ 7:40 PM EST
You do not have any proof of what you are saying. Why should people believe you! At least Peta have statistics and they know what they are talking about. (Continued…)
darkest-X-destiny
Kitty
posted 6/04/08 @ 5:28 AM EST
there is terrible pain and suffering to some of these animals that we take for granted, animals are meant to be eaten by other animals and it just so happens that we are on top of the food chain. (Continued…)
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