Vegetarians. You see them all the time, and if you don’t, then you must’ve at least heard of them. For those of you who live on the moon, vegetarians are people who choose not to eat meat. Some choose to live this way because of health reasons, like if the person is on a diet. Religion is another reason why people become vegetarians. Some religions, like Hinduism, promote vegetarianism. But if you’re like me, then you must be a meateater.
Eating vegetarian is a choice, but eating meat is a better choice. When I see products like “Soy Jerky” on the shelves, it makes my meat-fueled blood boil. I take offense to veggie versions of popular meat products. To me, if it’s not meat, it’s not meat. Don’t try to make a “cool new alternative.” It’s a bad product, plain and simple. Some vegetarians might disagree, but they wouldn’t have the energy to try to. With meat in your diet, you’ll always have plenty of energy to do the things you love. If you’re eating nothing but vegetables and fruits, you won’t have enough energy.
Not to say that fruits and vegetables aren’t good; they’re a part of my diet, but they take a backseat to meat. It’s good for you, and it’s even higher up on the good old food pyramid than fruits and vegetables. Some people might say that just because it’s higher up on the food pyramid, you’re supposed to eat less of them. But to me, all I see when I look at those people is a mouth without a steak inside of it, and that makes me sad.
I see these vegetarians, and it makes me feel uneasy. Since I’m eating meat, they keep looking at me like I’m doing something evil when actually I’m just eating to keep my stomach from being empty. I hate it when people do that.
What I really don’t like, however, is how some people will try and push vegetarianism onto you. These are the people who use the popular phrase, “Meat is Murder.” Well, duh. Of course meat is murder. Animals are “murdered” every single day! It’s called the food chain for a reason, you know. Animals eat other animals in order to survive. Do you go to the jungle and protest to the animals? No, because you would probably get eaten yourself by a big, nasty lion looking for his next meal. It’s these people that I honestly have no respect for. My respect goes to the vegetarians who chose to become vegetarians because of a good reason, like health. It’s quite understandable if you can’t eat meat anymore if it’s going to cause your heart to explode from too much flavor.
When you go to the supermarket and need to find something to eat, just remember another popular catchphrase: “Beef: It’s what’s for dinner.”
Long gone are the days when a man would go out into the woods to kill a deer for that night’s dinner. Now, we purchase our pre-packaged bits of animal carcass at our supermarkets.
Today, our reasons for becoming vegetarian have moved well beyond the mere animal’s right to live.
According to DietFacts.com, a 1-ounce tenderloin steak can have up to 23 grams of fat, 35 percent of your average daily quota. And one McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with cheese contains 29 grams of fat, 13 of them saturated. Meat substitutes such as soy burgers or soy jerky may not sound appealing to some, but in reality, they can be a very tasty and more nutritious alternative.
Meat lovers may argue that vegetarians may not consume enough protein. In reality, it can be quite easy to consume enough protein.Protein compliments can easily be made from such combinations as grains and legumes or grains and dairy and, often times, these options can be much lower in fat.
Vegetarianism also has its environmental and economic benefits. According to “A Diet for a New America”, a single cow has to eat 21 pounds of grain product to produce one pound of meat. Instead of feeding all that grain to the cows, we could be eating it ourselves.
Animals are also treated much worse than they used to be. They are placed in tight corridors and forced to stand in their own feces. Cows are also fed corn to make them grow faster and bigger. The cows don’t naturally eat corn, and eating it in such large quantities makes them sick. Farmers feed their cows generous amounts of antibiotics and this has generated concern over causing immunity in humans.
According to “Modern Meat,” a documentary recently shown on PBS, the largest packing plants slaughter more than 4,000 head of cattle a day. If the people slaughtering these animals aren’t careful, the cows’ fecal matter can get in the meat and can cause such diseases as E. coli poisoning and listeriosis. In the 1993 food poisoning incident at Jack in the Box, several people fell ill and four children died from the E. coli bacteria.
Also according to “Modern Meat,” one hamburger can contain the meat from hundreds, even thousands, of different animals. Would you really want to eat a hamburger that could potentially cause so many diseases?
Vegetarianism has many benefits, but it shouldn’t only be looked on as a matter of avoidance. It should be seen as an opportunity to eat healthier foods that are not just meat alternatives made from soy. Vegetarianism should be seen as an opportunity to eat more whole grains, as well as fruits and vegetables in your diet, items that are lowest on the traditional pyramid and therefore more important in supporting a healthy lifestyle.