A veggie for meat eating*

Vegetarians are typically held under the stereotype of being hyper healthy and preachy. We are generally grouped with PETA members who splash red paint on the fur coats of the rich while yelling fanatically. However, not all of us believe the “meat is murder” mantra. Personally, I have no problem with meat eating, I simply chose not to myself.
Let’s think about this logically. Humans are omnivores. Sure there are lots of vegetarian and vegan articles out there claiming that human teeth are designed for eating veggies, but that is only partly true. Our teeth are able to process both veggies and meat. This is likely due to the fact that in the early days of evolution we had to make due with whatever we could shove in our mouths in order to survive. I don’t blame our ancestors for this, and neither should anyone else really. Humans are incredibly adaptive animals. Unlike other members of the animal kingdom we are not restricted in what we eat. We do not just eat meat and we do not just eat plants, we are neither leopard nor bunny. As explained somewhat in Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food, humans are able to survive off of incredibly varied diets. There are cultures that eat almost no plant material and there are others who survive almost exclusively on grains. Ironically it seems to be that our modern Western diet is the most harmful, but that is a different subject. Really, we are able to have any kind of diet we like, so long as it is executed sensibly. I’ve always believed in the philosophy of eating anything and everything in moderation, that includes meat.
It comes down to the fact that humans are animals and it is simply just part of the food chain for a predator to eat the flesh of its prey. No one can get angry at a bear for making a meal out of a rabbit or a squirrel (though many of us will squeak and moan about how sad it is for something cute and fuzzy to die). By feeding himself, the bear is assuring the success and balance of the ecosystem. For example, without that bear, the rabbit population might become extreme. When there are a lot of rabbits, there are a lot of mouths to feed and the plants get eaten down excessively instead of delicately because of hunger. When too many plants are eaten, there are not enough seeds left for the next year’s growth causing starvation to the rabbit population the next year, along with that of any other species who survives on a similar diet. Then those prey animals are not enough to satisfy their predators and the whole system goes out of balance. This is a very simplistic yet convoluted explanation of the food chain yet it must be acknowledged that humans do have a spot in this process. Our main problem is that we have messed with this food chain to the point of creating feed lots, mono-agriculture and other non-natural processes of providing ourselves with food.
What I am trying to get at is that I feel that no one should be prevented from eating meat, if that is what makes them happy, but we should be aware of where that food is coming from. The days of going out and hunting for food are long gone and are replaced by grocery stores filled with prepackaged and pre-proportioned food items. Even as vegetarians we are not necessarily involved in ethical ecological practices when it comes to our food. No, this is not here to tell anyone that they have to purchase only seasonal, organic, farm fresh produce. I’m just as guilty as the next person of wanting those bananas that have been trucked in from South America or buying apples year round and ignoring the proper season for fruit growing or snagging a dark chocolate Milky Way bar at the cash register. But I think it is great when people buy free range chickens and beef that never left its field for a feed lot. Getting produce from the farmer’s market is not only eco-friendly, but its fun! It’s also wonderful to check the labels on the food bought and try and get things with less than five ingredients, hopefully all of them pronounceable.
Sure, if I had the time, I would like to live like Barbara Kingsolver, on a farm, growing my own food and maybe even raising my own chickens and turkeys for the table. (As a side note, Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is a great read about her first full year growing and eating only home grown or local food.) But I admit, I would miss bananas and I most certainly could not give up chocolate despite the fact that it most certainly is not a local product. So, for the moment I am just sticking with being vegetarian. It is more a matter of health than of ethics, despite how this article is turning out to sound. I feel better, happier, and healthier when I am vegetarian. A year ago I realized that I didn’t really like chicken or beef; instead I liked the flavors put on them. It just didn’t seem worth it any more. Only after I became vegetarian did I discover all the ecological implication of eating or not eating meat. All that mattered was that the beef-y taste that got on my grilled Portobello from sharing the grill with steaks was unpleasant, to me. If the taste of flesh and blood appeals to you, more power to you. So here is my declaration from one vegetarian to the world, eat what you want, enjoy those burgers and bacon, just do me a favor and be aware of what you are eating, even if that does not change any of what you put in your mouth.

*note: I do not claim to be an expert in this subject and this little note does not cover all aspects of my beliefs or those of others. The facts given here may be incorrect, exaggerated or misinterpreted, for this I apologize. Feel free to let me know if there is anything to be corrected.