A friend sent me a link last night to yet another article where attempts are made to justify a sense of ethical correctness to killing animals for food. The piece was posted on a site called Eco Child's Play which touts itself as being about "green parenting". The term "conscientious carnivores" is used to describe people who "just aren't ready" to stop eating animals but who are "honestly trying to live as green as possible". According to the piece's author, some of the purported reasons people won't stop eating meat are that they're "just not healthy without some animal protein in [their] diet and that there is some logic to the argument that humans are biologically omnivorous". The thing is that just because humans can eat meat, does not mean that they need to eat meat.
A link is given to back up the statement concerning omnivorism, but the article to which it leads actually states outright that we "are not, however, required to consume animal protein. We have a choice." It goes on to state that the best "arguments in support of a meat-free diet remain ecological, ethical and health concerns". Strange that this article would be referenced in a piece that's all about how to seek out happy cows to eat because although you want to pat yourself on the back for being "green", you're "not ready" to make the right choice.
It's a real shame that so many of those involved in environmentalism today are hopping on the "happy meat" bandwagon. It's alienating a lot of people who've been a part of the movement who aren't desperately seeking excuses to continue raising animals for food.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Conscientious Killing
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2 comments:
Anytime you put the word "killing" with words like conscientious, green, eco-friendly, humane, etc, it sends the wrong message. It's an oxymoron. Those who try to equate any of these words are duping themselves into thinking they're doing the right thing when in fact they are still supporting an entire industry based on exploitation.
Absolutely. I think that it's really self-delusional and that the fact it's become such a hip niche market right now that there'll be a lot more money pumped into encouraging (and spreading) that sense of self-delusion.
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