I saw over at food not oil that a sequel to The Meatrix is being released at some point this month, The Meatrix 2.
While I am actually strongly considering the possibility of eating meat again in the near future, I am still a vegetarian for now because any meat available to me at this point would be coming from factory farms. It is both a matter of health and to make a political statement that I continue to not eat meat until I have some control over where the meat I would eat comes from.
I am looking forward to eating meat again, so I can start to move towards the paleo diet more solidly. It's really hard (impossible, really) to try to be vegetarian and paleo at the same time. They're incompatible in what you are allowed to eat and in how you view the world. Any source of protein in the vegetarian diet- dairy, beans- is not included in the paleo diet. And the vegetarian diet, while it has the noble goal of not supporting the factory farming industry, acts to further remove people from the natural flow of life and death that is what actually makes life possible. If a vegetarian holds the goal of not harming any sentient being (as many I know do, as I did, to some degree), what they are really saying in effect is that they are above living. Violence is integral to life. Without death, there could be no life.
So I'm making a distinction between economic veg'ans, who would never buy animal products but would eat them if they are free (which is what I would be right now if I wasn't in college and didn't have a meal plan through the middle of may) and elitist veg'ans who feel that they are above all of the dirty violence of life and sustain themselves with store-bought soy products (who I have been).
So yeah, check out the movie when it comes out, or the short little trailer right now.
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ReplyDeleteI'm curious to know how you feel about hunting your own food? Would you be able to kill an animal yourself? Have you? If you couldn't buy meat and the only way you could get it is if you hunted it yourself, would you be able to do it, and would you feel comfortable doing it, enough to justify being a meat eater?
ReplyDeleteThe reason I mention this is because in my opinion buying already killed and packaged meat in the store has a way of desensitising people from its source, and from the violence endured by the animal (whether it suffered in a factory farm or not). I agree that violence and death is a natural part of life, but I don't agree that eating meat killed by someone else and bought in a store, integrates someone any closer to the natural cycles and flow of life, any better than consuming plant based food. I guess I agree with Ted Nugent, in that if you want to be a meat eater, you should hunt the meat yourself, otherwise be a vegetarian. I realise this is an extreme view, but it's something worth thinking about.
I also think that there is not one diet that works well for everyone. Some people thrive on a vegetarian diet, others don't. Some people have a strong metabolic need for animal flesh, others don't. Our nutritional needs are not all the same, as our body types are not all the same. The key is finding out what is best for you, and the paleolithic diet may or may not be right for you. In case you're interested in a different point of view, here's a link to a spiritual article I found about Vegetarianism, called The Wisdom of the Vegetarian Diet. I don't support everything these people advocate, but I found it to be an interesting article nevertheless.
I am very much in favor of hunting my own food. I have never done so before, but I look forward to future opportunities. I cannot stand trophy hunting, but I have no ethical qualms about hunting my own meat in the future (that would be completely hypocritical). I definitely agree that buying already killed and packaged meat at the store is not going to tune people in to the natural cycles of life and death any more than a vegetarian diet would. So I would like to hold myself to Ted Nugent's standards eventually. Thanks for bringing the topic of hunting up!
ReplyDeleteBascially if it is DIY (do it yourself), I'm all for it.
Hi Tom,
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting about The Meatrix, our official launch date for The Meatrix II: Revolting is March 30. I work with Sustainable Table and we're the ones who produced the film. My name is Matt.
I think you've hit the nail right on the head as to the purpose of the film. The film isn't trying to convince people to stop eating meat and dairy (though that is perfectly ok if people choose that lifestyle), but instead seeks to simply raise awareness that meat and dairy from corporate industrial factory farms is unfit for human consumption. Not to mention the fact that is subjects animals to cruel and unusual treatment above and beyond that of most local family farms. Added antibiotics, horomones, and other toxins like ammonia (from the feces they stand in) all contribute to what goes into that meat and dairy. Even the hardest carnivores would reconsider if they realized how much of these toxins remain in conventional meat. Simply put, it's gross. Nobody I know likes to eat feces or the byproducts, yet most of us don't even think about the fact that our meat and dairy sources not only stand, but live, in their own excrement their entire lives. This is strongly contrasted with sustainable meat and dairy - which are higher in Omega 3's and better for you to eat (should that be your lifestyle choice.)
You can find local farmers that have healthy and sustainable meat and dairy at farmers markets and some specialty stores (most of whom have arrangements with local farmers anyway.) I just want to encourage you that there are indeed sustainable meat and dairy options available. And the more local, the more organic, and the more sustainable you can get the better. If your preferred lifestyle includes meat and dairy, please consider the source of it. It's a step forward from any angle; for everyone, yourself, kids, environment, and the animals.
To the hunt!
ReplyDeleteI'm a dedicated meat eater. I can't help it, they're soooooo delicious.
I had the challenging experience of butchering hogs back in 1985 at my former in-law's out in rural St. Charles county. It was awesome how they used every part of the animals they raised themselves and provided an abundance of steaks, tenderloins, bacon and sausage.
It was quite the community experience.
Do you know of any local groceries that sell such meats?
I have yet to look into it myself, but I would guess that organic grocery stores like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods would be good places to start. I remember there being a meat store in Soulard Market, and I would guess that that meat does not come from a factory farm, but I really don't know.
ReplyDeleteLet's not forget that plants are living, too, and eventually they will consume us.
ReplyDeleteex veg, now paleo