Vegetarianism? Pros and Cons

Speedlimits · #1 10-30-2006, 12:45 PM

I'd first like to say that I currently eat meat,fish, everything that I like. I am interested in hearing people's views on going vegetarian and what kind of food vegans/vegetarians eat in place of meat/fish. Also the reason I have not gone vegetarian/vegan is because I feel like it would not make a difference and that the animals that are being slaughtered would be killed anyways.

Is this flawed thinking?

guesswest · #2 10-30-2006, 12:53 PM

It's definitely flawed thinking. It's not so much that the animals wouldn't be killed, more that they wouldn't exist in the first place - they're bred for meat. That's not to say eating meat is unethical, it's a much more complicated question than that, but thinking that it 'wouldn't make a difference' is not a good reason at all if you do think it is unethical.

As far as what you'd eat goes - just whatever. I often say, as a vegetarian, when people ask me about this - that if you imagined not eating meat for one day it'd be a trivially easy thing to do. You just do that - then do it again the next day, it's way easier than you'd imagine.

valenzuela · #3 10-30-2006, 12:53 PM

I just love meat way too much to leave it, but I do try to eat less meat.
I dont mind about fish, I dont think fish suffer that much anyway.
Btw my problem is not the actual killing but the way the animals are treated their whole life in which they basically cant move.

also i think this is in the wrong forum, this should go in OOT.

valenzuela · #4 10-30-2006, 12:56 PM

thats flawed thinking guesswest.
Well not having any sexual act isnt bad, just think of it as one day you dont have any sexual act, and so on.

Or an even better example( because you could say that we are not free from restraining from having sex) should be to not see the person you love the most, just think of one day without seeing her...etc,etc.

vhawk01 · #5 10-30-2006, 12:59 PM

[ QUOTE ]
thats flawed thinking guesswest.
Well not having any sexual act isnt bad, just think of it as one day you dont have any sexual act, and so on.

Or an even better example( because you could say that we are not free from restraining from having sex) should be to not see the person you love the most, just think of one day without seeing her...etc,etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

I dont think he is claiming its some universally applicable policy. He's just saying its a practical solution to assuaging fears that giving up meat 'cold turkey' would be too hard.

If I had decided to give up the love of my life, because of some overriding concern, I think this is EXACTLY how I'd try to get through it. Same for *shudder* any sort of vow of abstinence.

guesswest · #6 10-30-2006, 01:02 PM

Your desire to eat meat is, in my experience, not culmulative - is my point. You won't crave meat more after not having eaten it for a week than you will after not having eaten it a day. In fact the opposite is true, the longer you don't eat meat the more gross it seems. The same is obviously not true of sex.

hmkpoker · #7 10-30-2006, 01:08 PM

Animals don't matter. Kill them all.

Speedlimits · #8 10-30-2006, 01:14 PM

[ QUOTE ]
It's definitely flawed thinking. It's not so much that the animals wouldn't be killed, more that they wouldn't exist in the first place - they're bred for meat. That's not to say eating meat is unethical, it's a much more complicated question than that, but thinking that it 'wouldn't make a difference' is not a good reason at all if you do think it is unethical.

As far as what you'd eat goes - just whatever. I often say, as a vegetarian, when people ask me about this - that if you imagined not eating meat for one day it'd be a trivially easy thing to do. You just do that - then do it again the next day, it's way easier than you'd imagine.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well I do think it is unethical to treat animals as badly as they do. My question is even if I don't eat meat, how will that change the fact that it won't happen still?

Also what is the difference between vegetarian and vegan.

guesswest · #9 10-30-2006, 01:20 PM

[ QUOTE ]
My question is even if I don't eat meat, how will that change the fact that it won't happen still?

[/ QUOTE ]

Animals are bred for meat based on market demand. Less market demand, less of them bred and slaughtered for meat.

And a vegan doesn't consume any animal products - eg milk, eggs etc.

valenzuela · #10 10-30-2006, 01:29 PM

I think the desire of eating meat is defenetly culmulative for most people, any volunteer who is willing to do the experiment for us ?