Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - UN urges global move to meat and dairy-free diet

Baraka_Guru · 06-08-2010, 05:06 AM

If you want to talk about imperatives and overrides, then consider why throughout our evolution that we depended on meat: food security. We have had a long history of killing animals for food with little problem on an ethical level because it was often "eat or die." It's much easier to accept the suffering of others if it is for the benefit, and especially survival, of one's family.

We have, however, come to a point in our evolution (by which I include social, scientific, and technological progress) where the consumption of meat is not required for survival. It has even come to a point for many where the consumption of meat (i.e. excessive) is harmful.

This is where the game changes. Meat is no longer a part of the food security equation for many. The security mechanism triggered when it comes to seeking and securing food is now more focused on indirect systems/resources, namely, employment, money, assets (i.e. a place to store and prepare food). The security mechanism is no longer geared toward whether a type of food will be available---at least not in developed countries.

What this has done is create an environment of food security awash in choice: we can choose what we eat on an unprecedented scale. We also have a keener knowledge of nutrition and the human body. This environment makes room for other factors that may influence choice, such as ethics, emotion, and reason. We can choose foods emotionally and eat junk food when we're feeling good or bad. We can reason that we should cut down on bacon because of saturated fat. Ethically, we can decide to not eat meat at all because we no longer wish to force animals to suffer the pain of death after a miserable farm life. These choices are a luxury that previous generations would have never imagined.

For many of us, we no longer need to eat meat. That's where we are right now. Our survival no longer depends on it. Because of that, we can decide either to a) continue eating it because it's so goddamn delicious and we don't care what has happened to the animal and its environment before its flesh reached our plates, or b) stop eating it because of the suffering the animal goes through and the impact on the planet to produce such food.

I may have oversimplified it, but we have that choice.

06-08-2010, 05:06 AM	#55 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	If you want to talk about imperatives and overrides, then consider why throughout our evolution that we depended on meat: food security. We have had a long history of killing animals for food with little problem on an ethical level because it was often "eat or die." It's much easier to accept the suffering of others if it is for the benefit, and especially survival, of one's family. We have, however, come to a point in our evolution (by which I include social, scientific, and technological progress) where the consumption of meat is not required for survival. It has even come to a point for many where the consumption of meat (i.e. excessive) is harmful. This is where the game changes. Meat is no longer a part of the food security equation for many. The security mechanism triggered when it comes to seeking and securing food is now more focused on indirect systems/resources, namely, employment, money, assets (i.e. a place to store and prepare food). The security mechanism is no longer geared toward whether a type of food will be available---at least not in developed countries. What this has done is create an environment of food security awash in choice: we can choose what we eat on an unprecedented scale. We also have a keener knowledge of nutrition and the human body. This environment makes room for other factors that may influence choice, such as ethics, emotion, and reason. We can choose foods emotionally and eat junk food when we're feeling good or bad. We can reason that we should cut down on bacon because of saturated fat. Ethically, we can decide to not eat meat at all because we no longer wish to force animals to suffer the pain of death after a miserable farm life. These choices are a luxury that previous generations would have never imagined. For many of us, we no longer need to eat meat. That's where we are right now. Our survival no longer depends on it. Because of that, we can decide either to a) continue eating it because it's so goddamn delicious and we don't care what has happened to the animal and its environment before its flesh reached our plates, or b) stop eating it because of the suffering the animal goes through and the impact on the planet to produce such food. I may have oversimplified it, but we have that choice. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot Last edited by Baraka_Guru; 06-08-2010 at 05:14 AM..