What are your feelings on being a vegitarian?

[Ericah Jo]

I tried to be a vegiterian for a while, but when people asked me why I decided to become one, they thought my answers were not good enough... why are you a vegitarian? or why are you not a vegitarian?

[Contradiction]

Birds and mammals are demonstrably more aware and have a greater ability to feel suffering than fish.

[Fern]

Most people object more to killing conscious beings. 

[Tayler Ellis]

I do agree with American farming practices being messed up, there are a lot of things that are very wrong with the system. In fact, there are so many that it's hard to pick the biggest one.

 

But I think that healthy is an invalid thing to say. WHY is being a vegetarian healthier? Because you can find all the vitamins and minerals that are in meat in vegetables? It can just as easily be argued that you can find all of the vitamins and minerals that are in vegetables in meat (Mind you, you have to go farther than the muscle that is the main item of consumption in modern society, but everything you need is there!) Yes, being a vegetarian is perfectly healthy, so long as you have a balanced diet. But I'd argue that it's equally as healthy to be a person who eats meat and has a balanced diet.

 

[Blaine Martin]

Sorry, I have a tendency to ramble and not complete my thoughts entirely.  It is entirely possible to eat meat and be healthy.  However, even if you cut out red meat and stick strictly to the leaner meats (chicken, turkey, and fish), there is still drastically more bad fat in meat.  Cholesterol is completely non-existent in the plant world and saturated fats are found in very few vegetables, usually only the ones that get converted into oils.  Even the vegetables that do contain saturated fats contain significantly less than meat.  Also, non-saturated fats, such as the Omegas, are found in higher concentrations in vegetables and legumes than in meats.  Vegetables are also more nutrient dense, allowing you to get more of the important nutrients in a smaller amount of food.  Meat farming practices also create a good deal more food-borne disease and are more likely to spread those diseases.

 

I'm not faulting anyone for eating meat.  I miss it every single day.  And it is possible to be healthy and eat meat.  It is also very possible to be a vegetarian and not healthy.  Cheese pizza and french fries are both vegetarian friendly and incredibly bad for you.  But if you are paying attention to what you eat, it is significantly healthier to cut meat out of your diet.

 

But, as I said in my earlier post, I think it is more important to really understand why you eat what you do and where what you eat comes from than it is to necessarily cut out meat from your diet entirely.

 

Just my two cents, everyone is entitled to eat/think what they want.

[Ali M]

Personally, I don't get it, but I freaking love meat. I can't imagine my life without meat, and I'm not about to give up meat any time soon. But, I don't care about others being a vegetarian. If you like it, you like it and if you don't, you don't. It's your choice whether or not you want to be a vegetarian.

[Fern]

It doesn't matter what other people think about your dietary choices.

I am a vegetarian because I beleive in the absolute sanctity of life, and do not like to kill things unless I have to.  Also, the way meat is prepared in this country is despicable.  If you ever think about going veg again, do some good research.  I'd reccommend watching Food, Inc. , and reading Fast Food Nation, Chew on This, and some internet articles.  Avoid extremists like PETA, though.  They want "total animal liberation" i.e., complete veganism, no pets, and no animal product.  Eggs and dairy are okay with me as long as they come from humane farms.  (And unfertilized eggs aren't killing anything)

And for all you people saying otherwise,  people usually don't become vegetarian because they dislike meat.  I never loved meat all that much, but I liked pepparoni pizza, ham sandwiches, burgers, tuna, etc.  And I find myself missing meat once in a while. Some of the most common reasons for vegetarianism are: religion, personal ideaology, budget (staples of a vegetarian diet [rice, lentils, beans] are cheaper than eqivalent meat servings), and health (a meat-free diet is low in fat and cholesterol).

As long as you make choices for you, you don't need to care about others questioning your motives.

[Maddie]

I want to minimise the number of deaths I'm responsible for

[Rebecca Lissette]

I think it's a inefficient eating disorder

[Amanda Cathey]

I'm not vegetarian... but I'm vegan which (for those who don't know) vegans don't eat/use anything that comes from animals. No meat, no cheese, no dairy, no eggs, nothing (or at least that's the traditional vegan). The thing about vegan and vegetarianism is that you choose how strict or laid back you want to be about it. Like I'm strict about the food, but I still use cashmere (most strict vegans use NO ANIMAL PRODUCTS i.e. no wool, leather, any kind of fur etc. I don't use wool or leather.)

My definition for sentience is when a living being is in need of something and it goes consciously out of its way to get it (Hank Greens definition!) I just think that as a species we have evolved past the point to kill other sentient beings to require nutrients. I haven't had ANY ANIMAL PRODUCTS for about 11 months now and despite a vitamin D deficiency (it was winter and I didn't go outside because it's cold and I'm at school so...) I have been the best ever! I lost over 100 pounds and I like my body a whole lot more. It makes me feel good and energetic and happy. They only problem is the food substitutes my mom buys me cost more (just Almond Milk usually so it's not that big a deal).

I feel good, I love what I'm doing. I'm not starving myself because I actually eat like almost 2 bowls of spaghetti a day (with pizza sauce :D), I eat a lot more and a lot healthier (I did go to the doctor and am medically healthy!) and I like myself, and before I really didn't all that much. I'm content and proud!

[Kira Hayes]

Well I became a vegatarian because I was trying to improve my health and I also got very disgusted by the sight of dead animal  meat, but my dad thought I was just being physco and made quite being a vegatarian. Some people just don't understand.

 

[Josh Braun]

How does your dad force you to stop being a vegetarian? Does he literally shove a 40 oz sirloin cooked to perfection with juices dripping, wrapped in sizzling, greasy bacon in your mouth?