Anyone a vegetarian for moral reasons?

[Deleted]

There are times when I feel completely terrible about eating meat. It's nothing to do with any doctrine or health reasons, anything like that. Just...the thought of a farmer raising an animal, that animal grows to trust the farmer because it doesn't know any better, and then it's led into a slaughterhouse, killed, and sold. That is the cruelest, most heartbreaking shit ever.

I ate lasagna earlier, now I'm all blue n' shit. I really want to never eat meat again, at this moment. It's happened many times though, and I always forget or succumb to habit/convenience.

yeah, I just saw the pig farmer on Colbert Report

[Deleted]

Don't kid yourself Jimmy. If a cow ever got the chance, he'd eat you and everyone you care about!

[Deleted]

I'm in the same boat. I feel terrible eating meat, but it's such a hard habit to break. The longest I've managed was 2 years, and I didn't eat meat for a total of about three years. But for me, I just haven't been able to quit permanently. Chicken is my favorite food, and I have no willpower .

[HMARK Center]

I'm a pescetarian, and I definitely feel that at least a part of it had to do with discomfort over the way animals are treated most of the time in food production.

I'm not against people eating meat, and I still feel like there are situations where I might have a little, but the way we produce food, particularly in the United States, leaves me feeling very uncomfortable.

Certainly another aspect of my choice has to do with health choices and knowing what I tend to overeat, but I'd be lying if I said there were no moral aspects to my decision.

[Citizen Grimm]

I tend to feel bad when I'm eating meat that comes from the bigger megafarms, where chickens are forced to live in dark, overcrowded barns and are so fat they can barely stand up. Seriously, what kind of life is that?

Now if I'm buying meat from a local farmer (I buy all my beef from a friend who raises cattle) then I don't feel guilty at all. The animals live good lives and are well cared for until their deaths. Hell, most of the cattle are put down after they break a leg or something similar anyway.

[Toxik916]

I honestly don't give any thought to what kind of life the animal I'm eating lived.

[Deleted]

Mar 27, 2013 23:14:21 GMT -5 Citizen Grimm said:

I tend to feel bad when I'm eating meat that comes from the bigger megafarms, where chickens are forced to live in dark, overcrowded barns and are so fat they can barely stand up. Seriously, what kind of life is that?

Now if I'm buying meat from a local farmer (I buy all my beef from a friend who raises cattle) then I don't feel guilty at all. The animals live good lives and are well cared for until their deaths. Hell, most of the cattle are put down after they break a leg or something similar anyway.

This is where I differ, because it's the whole raising something with love and care only to betray it for profit thing that gets me. I used to think my parents were going to fatten me up and kill me, like those awful childrens' stories we were forced to read. Why else would they be so nice?

From a logical standpoint, I have zero problem with it. It's the order of things, it all makes sense. But on a different level it feels really f***ed up.

[Dub H]

I tried,i failed.I still feel guilty sometimes

[King Ghidorah]

Omg, bbq is so delicious, and if you're gonna stop eating meat of all things for moral reasons. What about things that are made from Chinese sweat shops, or brutally overworked electronic factories overseas. Do you feel guilty when you wear a fresh pair of kicks? Or watch TV on your flat screen?

[Deleted]

Nope. Meat is meat, and I love me some meat.

[HMARK Center]

Mar 27, 2013 23:51:19 GMT -5 King Ghidorah said:

Omg, bbq is so delicious, and if you're gonna stop eating meat of all things for moral reasons. What about things that are made from Chinese sweat shops, or brutally overworked electronic factories overseas. Do you feel guilty when you wear a fresh pair of kicks? Or watch TV on your flat screen?

I do.

Difference is, there's very little I can do in a globalized marketplace to avoid buying goods that might have been produced under harsh, sweatshop like conditions. I could simply not buy things, but it can be exceedingly tough to exist in the modern world or certain professions without goods that are, sadly, made under conditions that are unethical at best.

With food, there's a lot more freedom of maneuverability, e.g. I could seek out organic farms, I can avoid buying meat, I can support local food growth, etc.

So yeah, one can feel bad but also be realistic about what one has or doesn't have much control over.

And watch your tone, too.

[Glitch]

I think vegetarian is for health reasons(since technically you still eat animal byproduct ). Vegan is for ethical reasons.

For my own health I wanted to eat vegetarian on the weekdays(and have a nice steak on my cheat days). As soon as I start my new job and get some money, I'll buy my own stuff and veggie the f*** out of my fridge.

[simplydurhamcalling]

Yes, I won't eat anything that wasn't free range or organic. Once you've seen videos of a pig having it's ears/tail/penis cut off and teeth pulled because they are crammed so tightly together and fed so poorly they turn to cannibalism (all without local anaesthetic), it might change your opinion.

I can understand believing that us eating meat is the natural order of things however I can't see any reason why the animals should live a life of fear and agony. Fortunately Britain is one of the better countries (though still not perfect) in regulating the way animals are raised.

Just watch Earthlings, it's all on Youtube.

Edit; I love the taste of meat and fast food so I do find it difficult bit believe it's the right thing to do. I do think that eventually I will go vegan but that might be some way off yet.

[BigWill]

Meat is too delicious for me to feel bad about the death of some farm animals.

[King Ghidorah]

Mar 27, 2013 23:55:14 GMT -5 HMARK Center said:

Mar 27, 2013 23:51:19 GMT -5 King Ghidorah said:

Omg, bbq is so delicious, and if you're gonna stop eating meat of all things for moral reasons. What about things that are made from Chinese sweat shops, or brutally overworked electronic factories overseas. Do you feel guilty when you wear a fresh pair of kicks? Or watch TV on your flat screen?

I do.

Difference is, there's very little I can do in a globalized marketplace to avoid buying goods that might have been produced under harsh, sweatshop like conditions. I could simply not buy things, but it can be exceedingly tough to exist in the modern world or certain professions without goods that are, sadly, made under conditions that are unethical at best.

With food, there's a lot more freedom of maneuverability, e.g. I could seek out organic farms, I can avoid buying meat, I can support local food growth, etc.

So yeah, one can feel bad but also be realistic about what one has or doesn't have much control over.

And watch your tone, too.

Watch my tone? I'm just asking a question. I never understood why someone would avoid eating meat for moral reasons *health reasons of course are a pass* and guess what. You answered my question, I have a coworkers who refuses to buy any of his electronics or clothing unless it comes from a union protected factory.

[Cyno]

I try not to think about it too much because I don't think I can survive a vegetarian diet. Plus cows can be real assholes.

[Deleted]

Mar 27, 2013 23:51:19 GMT -5 King Ghidorah said:

Omg, bbq is so delicious, and if you're gonna stop eating meat of all things for moral reasons. What about things that are made from Chinese sweat shops, or brutally overworked electronic factories overseas. Do you feel guilty when you wear a fresh pair of kicks? Or watch TV on your flat screen?

Now I do

I mean yeah, injustice everywhere sucks. The world's a shit place and I just feel guilty all the time, feel bad for everybody everything. I know it does no good. This is just something that came up tonight because of the damn Colbert Report. Watching him lovingly cradle a little piggy while eating a fistful of pork...oof. Little squemish. I'm an animal lover, can't help but feel like that.

[Zaq "That Guy" Buzzkill]

Mar 28, 2013 0:11:48 GMT -5 Cyno said:

I try not to think about it too much because I don't think I can survive a vegetarian diet. Plus cows can be real assholes.

Pigs too. That's why I love bacon.

[BK From WV]

Yeah,I wish I had more willpower. I was a vegetarian for about 2 weeks once and I went to a friend's house and his dad was making steaks. I told them I didn't want any and they kept putting it in my face and I caved. Really wish I hadn't but I did. I try not to think about it but sometimes I can't help it and feel bad for the animal.

[SEAN CARLESS]

I think animals should be treated humanely on farms. But they exist only to be my food. They serve no other discernible purpose.