I may stir the pot a little by this post. In fact, I'm hoping to. If you chose to comment either on my Facebook page or on here, please understand that we are all entitled to our opinion. We are neither right nor wrong in having an opinion. Be respectful please.
I was watching a video someone posted on FB about animal cruelty so that we, the righteous consumer, "Man" being the top of the food chain (listen I'd say humanity, but it was anything but humane... ok, "People" being the top of the food chain; better?) could fulfill their gluttonous faces full of meat.
Now, I know I may sound a little naive here, but I'm really going to put this in my own perspective. I eat meat. I'm not ashamed of it. I don't eat copious amounts of it and I really do try to shop where I know it is organic and not stuffed full of hormones, and if at all there is a way to know where it came from, I try to, because I don't like these cruel videos that circulate. But then I feel terrible for eating meat, which is somewhat a staple in my diet. To top it all off, I want to scream at the poster of the video and say
"this was filmed in China! Of course we know not to support their back-asswards economy! Don't support cheap goods from China; that shit'll kill you! Show me the cruelty at the farm down the road where I buy my stuff from, at the Farmer's Market!" And that in itself is the wrong attitude to take, because I know damn well the animals aren't dying graciously to be served at my table, regardless of where I bought them, or how much research I do. I want to eat meat. I like meat. I like fish. I like protein that doesn't taste like erasers soaked in broth.
Then there is the "red-neck" point of view. They are in fact raised for food- pigs, cows, chickens, tilapia, tuna, salmon, lamb, even elk and bison these days. I mean, come on, who are we kidding? Are we just going to set them all free to roam the earth? Really? Where's the master plan here? Are we going to go back to hunting and fishing only? What about gardens? If we all grew our own food and hunted our own meat, well then I guess that's just dandy, because I will need to stock up on kerosene and wood and probably buy a horse, since I won't be able to hold a job now that I'm a cave-woman.
It is a beautiful thought to be able to go back to simpler times, but mass-consumerism is a reality. We are accustomed to everyday luxuries like power and running, heated water, and not freezing to death in our own home in January. We can get in the car and drive anywhere in mere minutes or a few hours to purchase our own luxuries or visit friends and family. And I know, we all look at the family who weighs over a ton , just the 3 of them, and judge them for their unhealthy ways as they wander down the isles at Costco and their cart is full of crap.
There is responsible consumerism, isn't there? Buy local, buy organic, educate yourself on how it's prepared, where it comes from, how it will affect your over-all well being... hell if you're lucky enough, visit the damn farm! Consider not too long ago, where our First Nations people killed an animal and treated it as a sacrifice and gave back to Mother Earth. Can we still operate that way without the mass-production factories that treat animals so cruelly that we feel guilty for ingesting them at all? Because the only reason those places exist is to mass produce, grow/fatten for a few months and kill at an alarmingly fast rate to fulfill our need or demand for animal protein.
I don't want a cow, or a goat or a flock of chickens or a garden! I don't! I'm sorry, but my life is too damn busy to do that. I want to have a bbq with my friends, eat a burger, know that it was from Canada and feel guiltless doing it. I want the damn burger to have cheese on it, because it's delicious. I might enjoy a slice of bacon or two. And mayo. And tomato and lettuce. And no, I'm sorry, but a veggie burger with vegan cheese won't cut it for me. I would rather eat falafel, and that's cool too, but I wanted the burger because you said we were having a bbq. That's it. That's my take on it.
I don't mind if you decide to eat meat. I don't mind if you are vegetarian or vegan. I understand that people have varying levels of being able to stomach the cruelty that animals go through to arrive at our table. It's easier for me to turn a blind eye. I don't want to know what it went through exactly; I just want to eat it. What is the alternative, really, in the grand scheme of things? There are plenty. I personally would rather know the farmer, but since that's almost impossible- but not totally, if you buy from Farmer's Markets- I actually know one farmer who I deal with quite frequently, because I know he's organic, and he kills and butchers his own meat. Somehow that rests easier with me, because I've known the family for years. I have never seen it done, but I guarantee it's not as cruel as being forced into a truck with an electric prod, being shipped down the road for 4 days shitting all over yourself only to arrive to smell the death of your own species, and then being beaten, as you are forced through a series of gates while you fear the bullet that will ding you in the skull but if you make it through that, you're neck will be sliced open and your blood drained all over the floor. Yeah, it is sick. But it's not enough for me to stop eating it. I'd just rather eat it knowing it came from a well run farm, by a good family who knows these animals are raised for food, but they don't put them through anything as tortuous as that. That's the alternative I chose to take. And it's my choice.
What is your choice?
What is the solution to the problem?
Is there a
viable solution?
Do you think these animals should be free? What about ecosystems and the fact that these now domesticated animals are dumb as a pair of old socks and would never survive? (And I know, they feel, therefore they are. But just because they feel doesn't make them equal to humans- That's probably very red-neckish of me to say, but when a cow invents an electronic device, or a pig can fly an aircraft or a turkey can do algebra, then the argument that animals are equal to humans will hold water.)
I am not trying to stand up on a soap-box and say "I only buy organic, humane meat, I'm a better member of society!" Hell, there are plenty of times I need to run to the grocery store out of convenience. The Farmer's Market is all the way in Calgary and they do come to Airdrie on Thursdays... in the summer. I prefer to buy Canadian. I prefer to buy organic. I will ingest a Top-Dogs hotdog once in a blue moon. And I will probably buy a bagged salad rather than grow my own lettuce. I strive for leaving less of an environmental footprint on the world, but it's not always that easy. Sometimes I buy non-organic, or canned something that I discovered later was made in China. I'm human. But I try.
I'm very curious as to your feedback. Let me know what you think.
