Humanity's Ideal Ideology

If anything, my intent in this blog is to dispel misconceptions about vegetarians. Ever since I decided to abstain from meat and most dairy products diet to show my love for animals, I've received a slew of comments about how I'm treading a path that will only result in hospitalization and unfulfilled dreams. I must first take the time to applaud you all for your rank stupidity and inability to comprehend life's most fundamental nutritional facts. I also laud your ability to blatantly make conclusions about other lifestyles without thoroughly examining them first and taking the time to learn about them. If you want to return to your meal of maltreated animals, there's nothing I can do to hinder you. I will, however, say this: you, sir, are a proponent for a movement that contributes to the maltreatment of farm animals.

You all have to realize that there are untold millions of vegetarians in the world, and the "they all are frail and unhealthy" comments sustain themselves on misconceptions and a lack of understanding. If your knowledge of vegetarianism ends at the fact that we opt not to consume meat (which, because you're so accustomed to it, is the only way you know how to obtain what's needed in your diet), then you don't know that there are alternate sources of protein that also support life (such as tofu, which can be found in numerous recipes for both vegan and vegetarian diets). Oh, no! Did I just boldly state that you are all incorrect?

Some of us are oblivious to the deplorable acts of violence perpetrated against animals by our factories. We assume that they are fair with their work, and that the animals do not experience too much suffering. That assumption could not be more wrong, and I'm sorry to inform you that the entire process is more heinous than most of us would think. The plurality of stations are required to knock the animals out before they are ravaged for their meat, but they oftentimes arrive fully awake and aware of the pain. Since the factories don't want to forfeit profit by slowing down the line, they will proceed with the slaughtering even if the animal is fully conscious throughout the whole ordeal. Furthermore, the use of knives to cease the kicking of the animals is accepted and considered necessary if it allows the worker to do what he must.

My eyes have been subjected to the absolute horror of seeing workers (in videos, of course) chuckle at half-dead cows that break free and lamely endeavor to escape. The process is a humiliation to humanity, and a reminder that our dependence on animals has transmogrified into an addiction that encompasses sadism and cruelty when we are dealing with them. Their legs are removed; they are skinned; and rods uncomfortably move through them as indifferent workers shamelessly turn a head to their constant screams and twitching.

Instead of actual milk, I drink soy milk. I don't eat cheese or other dairy products, simply because I don't advocate for the torture or killing of animals for our food. Just because it's what you claim to be "life", it doesn't mean we have to follow the misguided plurality and do what they suggest. It's making an unmistakably resounding statement to the world about how we can support ourselves and expand as individuals without depending on animals. It's a strong message about what's right over mere convenience. It's, more importantly, about love and co-existence over slaughtering.

I don't profess to be the purest vegetarian in the universe, and the process of converting may not exactly be a simple task for someone who has spent most of their life eating meat without much knowledge of the alternative. The benefits of making the switch couldn't be more appealing: a lesser risk of cancer, heart disease, an increase in self-confidence, a generous boost in how you perceive yourself as a whole, a lowered risk of diabetes, and greatly lower blood pressure. I invite you now to show your love for animals, break from the crowd that advocates the slaughtering of innocent beings, and spread tolerance for all forms of life. The "circle of life" and "how it should be" do not govern our choices; our lifestyles should be based on the convictions of our heart and the subtle pulling of our morals.

I'm not imploring any of you to actually consider converting by abstaining from meat, but I do want to enlighten others on the lowly standards of factories. To ask meat-eaters to do what I propose simply because I think it's correct constitutes an unrealistic request, and it's also one that I would never make as a reasonably tolerant man. All I know is that I'm content with my choice, and I strongly believe that I'm contributing to a secure and more loving community that promotes brotherhood between men and all animals. This world is how we form it, and individual choices make subtle differences that add up when we all stand together for a common cause. It ultimately becomes a collective statement that calls for the end of torture. And I'm ecstatic to play a role in this calling, however inconsequential it may be.

We have enslaved the rest of the animal creation, and have treated our distant cousins in fur and feathers so badly that beyond doubt, if they were able to formulate a religion, they would depict the Devil in human form.

- William Ralph Inge