This one's for VEGETARIANS and the ANIMAL LOVERS?

Question

i am a vegetarian, and i am totaly in love with all kindsa' animals. So, i often preach to my non-veg friends to stop eatin meat, coz it's like ur killin and eatin a live thing that is as alive as u r. BUT i m always stumped when dey say that even PLANTS are living too, and isn't it cruel THEN to kill and eat a live thing??? HELP ME WITH A NICE REPLY

Answer 1

Silver,

Don't worry -- people will say many things to keep from having to change their own point of view.

There are many good reasons to be vegetarian, and preventing animal cruelty is only one of them.

For example, eating vegetarian is good for the planet even without considering the cruelty angle.

Growing and harvesting plants for food takes much less energy and resources than growing and harvesting animals does. Fifty percent of all water in the the U.S. goes to animal production. Think of all the water that would be saved if more people ate vegetarian. Plus today's horribly crowded livestock practices contribute to a lot of pesticide pollution.

If you really want to talk about "plant cruelty" there are a lot of good arguments. Here are a couple of them:

First, plants dont have nerves and they don't feel pain like animals do. We know animals feel pain when killed but we're pretty sure plants do not.

Second, many animals raised for food are treated cruelly during their entire lives. They are crowded together or kept in cages, their wings are clipped, they are treated inhumanely. Plants usually get to grow happily in a field, and then they are quickly harvested.

Don't let the answers from the meat-eaters here distress you. They are the ones who feel guilty for the way they eat. It doesn't seem like you are out to preach vegetarianism to anyone -- you are just defending your choices when they challenge you.

Answer 2

I tried being a vegetarian for like 6 months before but I had to eat meat. God that was a boring meal nothing like a big fat juicy stake to get your mouth watering. Yes a plant is alive it may not be able to think but it does grow and reproduce. I love animals and do not like the SENSELESS killing of animals. But eating meat is a natural way of life. What would wild animals do if the didn't eat meat? Carnivores (which include humans) can not eat vegetation and stay healthy with out nutritional supplements. Our country use to live off of the land. That included eating wild animals to live. Back then though everything from the animal was used nothing was wasted. Now animals are mass produced and raised to become food. While other animals are hunted to help with over population.(Although we leave humans out of this). You have your own good views but please stop nagging people with what you believe. Just because people eat meat doesn't mean that they all don't care about animals.

Answer 3

people will do what they choose. Maybe not preaching to them will put them more at ease. My fiance is vegetarian as i am not. he has been for over 8 yrs. He has never once said i should be vegetarian in the 4 yrs we've been together. Although i must say that i have tried alot of veggie burgers and other soy products and i actually quiet like them. About the only time i eat meat is when im not at home. And technically, they are right when they say plants are living too but in a different way. Plants do not have livers, heart, lungs, brain....etc......

Answer 4

Hmmm...sorry to say, but I guess on a certain level, they're probably right.

Just because one person (or a thousand for that matter) doesn't eat meat, that doesn't mean that those animals won't be sent to slaughter to feed someone else - or that your perspective is "right."

I do not however advocate cruelty. If an animal is going to be slaughtered for food, do it humanely.

It's YOUR CHOICE to be vegan - they're not forcing it on you; you therefore shouldn't try to "force feed" (sorry couldn't avoid the pun) your philosophies upon your friends.

A final thought.... the next time you want to start in on those who DO eat meat, just remember that man has been eating animals since he discovered that it [meat] was edible (in scavenging form, most likely is how it started). Animal consumption has gone on for millions of years. Vegetarianism is a relatively new concept.

And remember too, that there are people in the world who don't even HAVE vegetarian items to eat, let alone meat, so there are far bigger things to worry about than whether or not the Big Mac is good for your friend to eat or not.

Answer 5

I don't preach what I do regarding my diet but if someone asks me why I'm not picking up a hamburger or a piece of chicken at a cookout, I explain that I'm mostly a vegetarian but I eat seafood. I get the same thing- they throw it up in my face that- aren't fish living creatures? Do you think they're not as alive as cows and chickens and pigs? It's like they are assuming I tried to be a veg and failed. And they're major hypocrites because the only people who say this kind of stuff to me will eat any kind of meat. And they're always lecturing me about a healthy diet, and asking me if I get enough protein. Of course I do.

I gave up red meat to be healthier, and though it was around the time of the mad cow disease scare, that's not the reason I did it. I gave up chicken partially because I wanted to continue a trend I had created in giving up red meat, and partially because of a distasteful comment a coworker had made about chickens which made me not want to eat them anymore. I did give up fish for a couple of years, but I love sushi so I went back to it. I also did this for the benefit of omega fatty acids in my diet.

May go back to being fully veg though, by the end of the summer. There is nothing worse than to be labeled as a failed vegetarian.

Answer 6

I just sounds like a weak arguement to me. No one can prove that a vegetable has a consciousness. Yes, they are living but to what extent? Does a plant desire things? Does a plant feel pain and want freedom? You can't answer these questions truthfully.

You just have to know that you are doing the right thing by not eating meat.

Btw, you can't preach animal rights to people. You have to wait for someone to approach you about being vegetarian. It is not a matter of conversion it is about choices.

Answer 7

Plants don't have brains; therefore, they cannot interpret pain or suffering.

I am a vegetarian also and for the same reasons as you, but I would encourage you not to preach at people who eat meat. It's off-putting, and it angers people to be attacked for what they do. If someone asks you, by all means, explain your reasons for being a vegetarian, tell people you are a vegetarian, and be proud of it, but don't walk around the meat counter at the grocery store saying "meat is murder," or attack your friends when they order something with meat at a restaurant. That's not the way to persuade someone.

I hope that didn't sound rude. That wasn't my intent. I understand the urge to spread your knowledge and beliefs, but there's a time and place for it. :)

Here are two essays that might be of interest to you and that you could reference if someone does ask you about being a vegetarian:

http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/philosophy/animals/regan-text.html
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~norcross/Engel_short.htm

Answer 8

Kim N, I and others percentage a aspect. i'm no longer balloting for McBush or Palin because they're both complete morons. What does it remember in the adventure that they killed a deer? in case you want to eat an animal that's wonderful to kill it your self. i'm vegan and keep in mind that anti-hunters can make our veg community look quite ignorant. Obama in all likelihood eats production unit farmed meat so why are not you complaining about him? searching isn't the precedence. utilising animals for income is the precedence. Capitalism at its wonderful.

Answer 9

Man evolved to eat meat. They were herbivore to start with as far as science goes. There are advantages and disadvantages to that.
But yeah, love for animals is a good reason to be vegetarian I guess. But plants are alive too, don't they have the right to live then?

Answer 10

Plants don't have blood, they do not have souls and they can't move around freely. If you want a nice comeback ask them which would they rather eat their household pet or a plant? whatever they're eating that is meat is the same thing as your everyday cat or dog. Both are living breathing animals (well, that is until you eat them.) Hope this helps! Good Luck!