The moral necessity of veganism

Join me in imagining a planet where the following happens: billions of cats and dogs are raised in disgusting conditions, killed, and then eaten by humans. Now imagine that these cats and dogs are in as much pain, if not more, than humans, that scientists on the planet have shown that eating them is harmful to humans and that the process of growth and death is destroying the planet’s ecosystem. Take a moment to reflect on this.

Now, I am sure that the picture I have painted will not have suited most of you. You may have been impressed by the cruelty, waste, or arrogance that takes your breath away. You may have felt a sense of outrage, pity, or disgust. You may have wondered how such a state of affairs was allowed to occur, let alone continue.

The problem is that this planet exists. Each year, approximately fifty billion innocent creatures are enslaved, tortured, and killed. They are consumed by humans, resulting in poor health. Our planet, Earth, is destroyed in the process. The power of language and social narratives, such as cultural and religious tradition, has led people to view some of our fellow men, such as pigs and cows, as deserving of premature and painful death, while considering others, like cats and cows. dogs, as a family. People are used to this point of view and that is why it endures. It seems, then, that Orwell’s famous dystopian maxim “all animals are equal but some are more equal than others” contains a more literal truth than is commonly understood.

Now, as strange and unnatural as our meat-eating situation is, I think it’s pretty easily explained: For thousands of years, people killed and ate other animals to survive. Two of the essential components of human life, protein and fat, were often difficult to obtain from plant sources, and killing a large animal could support a family, or even a community, for some time. This made sense. Then, about 10,000 years ago, many people changed this “hunter gatherer” lifestyle for a simpler version: agricultural. This logic is also simple: why spend all day running trying to kill animals with a spear when certain species could easily be tamed and killed? The problem is that the logic got stuck while much of the world was changing.

Now we know the sensitivity and knowledge of animals and, therefore, their capacity for suffering. The farming and slaughter industry inflicts unimaginable physical and emotional pain on literally billions of creatures. They are locked up, castrated, branded, raped and murdered. I challenge anyone to explain how, in many cases, this is not what happens.

We now know the damage that eating bodies and their secretions do to the human body: the chances of heart attack, stroke, cancer, dementia, arthritis, diabetes, and obesity are far from slightly increased.

We now know the damage this industry does to the planet: the disruption of the ecosystem in the form of an abnormally high rate of birth and death of species, the excess of methane and the vast expanses of forests and fields that have become barren, and the enormous grain supplies. used for livestock. Now we know a lot. So why do we continue to live like our Stone Age ancestors, who had no greengrocer on the road?

If every human being on earth adopted the vegan lifestyle tomorrow, we’d be in a better situation – there would be a lot less pain, a lot less disease, and a lot less planetary damage, not to mention more fertile land and cheaper eating methods. growth and food distribution. The problem is, and I know this because I held the opinion myself until I was twenty-five, the vegan lifestyle is generally seen as strange: unhealthy and restricted. But the fact is, as I hope some of you know / will know, it is the exact opposite. A simple purchase of the ‘1000 vegan recipes’ book or a simple watch from the Russia Today interview with Dr. Neal Barnard will prove it.

I have been vegan for almost two years, after a three month ‘on and off’ transition period, and I consider it the best thing I have ever done. I lost weight, I have more energy and I no longer have that distant but very annoying voice in the back of my mind that tells me that my body does not feel good. I find it easy to find vegan substitutes like hot dogs and hamburgers, I find it easy to get vegan options in restaurants, especially Indian, Thai and Italian places, and I am always learning about new and delicious foods to cook. Some of my new homemade favorites include Chickpea and Coconut Milk Curries, Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles, and Brazilian Mango Banana Stew. As long as you monitor your protein (60g per day; good sources are nuts, tofu, and flax seeds), your fat (70g – flapjacks, dark chocolate, and coconut milk), and your B12 (0.0015mg – soy milk, marmite and supplements) every day you can go vegan effortlessly.

So, brethren, look within yourself and search your consciences. Are you ready to obey ethics, obey nature, and help unplug the disgusting industry that convinced you to disobey them in the first place?

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