My family is good friends with a vegetarian that has had health problems. She’s been a vegetarian for the past fifteen years after a previous 25+ years as a vegetarian since she made the choice as a child. She used to buy fast food cheese sandwiches (hamburger with no burger, pickles, onions, or ketchup) for her child because that’s all her child would eat and could eat when they were busy, as she enforced vegetarianism on her also.
I sympathize with vegans and vegetarians like her, and I don’t like thinking of the machines some fast food chains use in their supply chain to slaughter massive numbers of animals, as humanely as you could do such a thing, with an automated spike that goes through their heads after they squeeze their hips to stimulate comfort.
I know caged hens may get excessively fat and maybe aren’t as happy, because I’m not happy when I’m fat. Cage-free egg can mean that chickens are packed into an ever more stressful pen, which is similar to the chick pens, where dead chicks have to be plucked up regularly from the moving masses. Free-range chickens may not have a temperature-controlled environment.
I like to eat chicken, and I’m told it’s healthy. But I spent time with a chicken yesterday that seemed like it wanted to talk with us and ask for food or other help, and it seemed to be patient with us, but eventually raised it’s voice when we weren’t understanding it.
Before I eat, I pray by quickly thinking of the sacrifices made for us and our comfort- the chicken that provided her egg, those that harvested the vegetables, and anything else I think of. I don’t want to cause harm, but until I understand how I can eat in a healthy way with the least negative impact, I eat meat.
I understand from others we may be eating unsustainably, and food may not be shared to all of those who need it. Some of those considered in poverty level in richer countries eat too much of poor nutrients that lead to obesity and health problems, and education alone is not the answer, as it’s the only food that’s affordable; being richer and fatter than others globally with much less food and money, they may be the least healthy.
Where do we go from here? I’m told fish, eggs, chicken, and beef are good for me, but I should eat more vegetables.
Greenpeace can tell us how to choose tuna: https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/eat-tuna-know-fish/
So long and thanks for all the fish.