Having said that, I want to add that while I am mostly cheery and happy, devastation and pain are still happening around us and within us and I am not immune to that. Just because I make yummy food and connect with other bloggers doesn't mean my mission for this whole blog and my goal in life isn't to be compassionate towards animals and humans alike and inspire others to make the connection that all creatures are living beings and no animals belong to us to destroy.
I have thought long and hard about even writing this post, and I know I may either lose some supporters or lose some viewings, but I discussed it with The Boyfriend, and something he said rang true to me. He said "It doesn't matter if you lose popularity. Your moral and ethical obligation is to the true purpose of the blog." And it's true. So I will write.
Ever since I've been a part of the food/vegan/fitness blog community, I have read and am still reading a variety of blogs. Some of the authors are vegan and some are vegetarian and some are neither. The ones who are not usually mention every so often how they've "thought about going veg" or "know someone" who is veg and they almost always follow up by saying "I love animals so much" and "I am a huge animal lover" but then end their soapbox with, "I just couldn't give up meat." This weighs very heavy on my heart and bothers me so much every time I hear it. If I had a nickel every time a carnivore told me "I am an animal lover!" ...
Why is there such a dis-connect between loving animals and eating animals? I have always been a baby lover. I love babies soo much. I have loved babies since I was a baby myself. Would I eat a baby? Absolutely not! To say "I love animals soo much" and "I go to the humane society to play with the animals because I love them so much" and "I want to be a vet" and then go home and eat the animals that you claim to love, and contribute to the devastation that is humiliation, degredation, and taking the life of another living being is a huge dis-connect.
There are other people besides me who feel this way. For example, I was looking for something on YouTube when I saw this, an interview with Ellen, who is vegan:
I feel like Ellen literally stole the words right out of my mouth. How many times have I said those exact words when someone asks me why I'm vegan? Some of my favorite quotes of hers from the interview are:
"You see that...and you go, "I cant participate in that. I cant be a part of something that is suffering"
"I think we all fool ourselves that there is some sort of happy animal."
"They're all in pain. They're all treated badly. They're all diseased."
"I saw the reality. And I couldn't ignore it anymore"
"Food Inc is a disney movie compared to Earthlings" <-- haha, love that one.
While on the subject of videos, here is a neat one where Alicia Silverstone discusses how she felt after going vegan:
And another one, famous vegetarians and vegans with some nice instrumental background music:
Back to the topic at hand... It bothers me when I hear people say "I love animals" and then I see them eat meat. To me, the bottom line is if you loved something, you wouldn't destroy it. And I just wonder where the disconnect is coming from? In a perfect world, we would say what we mean and speak the words of truth. We wouldn't say one thing while meaning another and then do a completely different third thing. This brings me unrest and discomfort.
What do you think?
5 comments:
It's great you're so passionate about being Vegan and your recipies look yummy. When you grow up eating meat it's hard to give it up because it tastes good. It's that simple. I don't eat a lot of meat but when I do I don't even think about it. I guess it's a disconnect but I never said I love all animals. I love dogs and I would never eat a dog cat or horse but I don't feel the same about fish or farm animals. Tell you what I won't eat meat or talk about meat when I'm with you :)
I think the main reason that meat eaters can also proclaim themselves as animals lovers is because of a disconnect. I think when people say they are animal lovers, I think they mean they are cat and dog lovers. I think if meat eaters were able to make the connection that the animals they are eating are just as intelligent and emotional and capable of forming bonds with humans as cats and dogs are, they would stop eating meat.
The bottom line is, whether you can make the connection or not, it is well known that you can eat a plant based diet and be perfectly healthy. So the only reason people are still eating meat is because of the taste. Is taste worth killing/torturing defenseless animals? Meat eaters need to be asked this question!
Thank you so much for this post! I agree with you about everything.
I love this post - I just had time to watch the Ellen interview - and I appreciated how articulately she explained her position. I hope more people listen to her!
I love this post - very good examples of why... Ellen is so thorough in her explanations.
Dora responded to your writing by explaining: "When you grow up eating meant it's hard to give it up because it tastes good."
What she really means is...screw the life of any animal that tastes good to me...my experiencing some taste is more important than any animals life or any animals misery.
She is making the statement that her taste is more important to her than the suffering and death of a cow or a pig or a chicken...
She places a rather high value on her pleasures, doesn't she?
But, the disconnect is explained wonderfully by her when she also writes..."...I don't even think about it." I believe her and she is quite likely not only accurately describing herself but also most other people who continue to harm animals.
She apparently has to like an animal to not be willing to kill him/her or have her/him killed so she could get a taste. Best to be on Dora's good side if you are an animal.
Dora is no better, no worse than the majority of folks. They don't think, they have been conditioned to not think and most will get hot and bothered or blow you off if you ask them to think. The absence of thinking makes the disconnect possible. Following a trail of logic to a conclusion takes effort and also can fairly easily be disrupted...most of us are taught by family, friends and society which trails to follow and which trails to avoid or distract ourselves from.
You're a brave young woman and be aware that your unrest and discomfort is your core self expressing protest at a world that doesn't make good sense.
If you continue the path of an ethical vegan I fear you will have many more occassions for protest.
By the way, the photo you attached to this piece of writing is superlative...thank you!
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