A Vegetarian On a Soapbox

Dear Friends,


As many of you already know, I am a vegetarian.  Duh.  Now, when I was younger, I used to go all PETA on people's asses.  Telling them that eating meat was disgusting and wrong, abusing boys at high school football games for "killing an entire cow" to make their leather jackets.  As I got older, I simmered down with abusing people for making a different life choice than me.  Not because I think that eating meat is any less wrong or less disgusting than I did in highschool, but because I don't think attacking people is a good way to help them see the light.


Now more often than not, I leave most my comments to myself, and instead try to lead by example (our wedding was even vegetarian), and get very excited/give my friends lots of tips and advice when they announce that they've decided to embrace the vegetarian way of life.  Unfortunately, I actually only have a few vegetarian friends, and alas, even Nick is not a vegetarian - which I would like to point out before I continue this little rant.


Hi people that are meat eaters and read this blog, I like you.  I like you a lot.  I like when you come by and leave nice comments.  (and occassionally mean ones - hi Charlotte - you telling me my pictures were wack was possibly my most fave comment ever.)  Now that I have said that... I am going to go PETA on your asses.


I understand that there are many causes one can be passionate about in this world and sometimes we must choose our battles wisely, but I think vegetarianism/veganism is more of a way of life than a cause.  I can't count number of times I have been absolutely disgusted when a person has said, "I just don't want to know where my meat comes from."  But friend!  You are PUTTING THAT INTO YOUR BODY!!!  You, you crazy person who counts calories, and worries about getting enough protein (which we vegetarians have NO problem with BTW), and portions out your food so as to make it match the food pyramid.  Maybe you prefer to buy things that say local and shop at farmers markets in the summer.  You think about and worry about food... and you don't care where it comes from?!?  Nothing offends me more than an individual who chooses the ignorance is bliss route when it comes to meat eating.  You should know what you are eating.  You should know the process that landed that pig on your plate.  Ignorance is certainly NOT bliss for the animals you are eating, the conditions many of them are raised in are absolutely horrible, not to mention inhumane.  


I bet plenty of you love animals.  And if given the opportunity to kill a cow yourself, you just couldn't do it.  There is a reason you couldn't do it, silly - it's because it's WRONG.  Killing cows and pigs for your own carnal pleasure is wrong, especially ones that have been raised in factory farms.  There is no way on earth that you can call yourself an "animal lover" if you eat animals.  It's a contradiction.  Plain and simple.  


Personally, I am mostly a vegetarian for ethical reasons, but there are other reasons to be one as well.  It's better for your health, it's much better for the environment (hello cows are big methane producers), no worries about foot and mouth disease, food poisoning, or consuming weird antibiotics or hormones either.  


If you have read this far, thanks for sticking with me.  I think Sir Paul McCartney can explain things a little more eloquently and in a little more detail than I can... so can I kindly ask that you meet your meat before you leave this page, or leave any snarky anti-vegetarianism comments on this blog.  After you watch it, be my guest.

And, if by any chance you have been contemplating vegetarianism and don't know where to start, or are now contemplating it, please PLEASE email me and I promise that I will help lead you in the right direction.  And I won't judge you if you still really like bacon or can't imagine a life without hamburgers.   


xoxo


Kelly


ps.  Are any of you already veggie?  I would love to know why you chose this lifestyle too!