Here I am chiming in late again. I'm essentially a vegetarian because the way animals have been abused, and unappreciated in our society got to me, and I don't want to contribute to it. I do eat fish, because it seems to me that the fish industry is not as cruel as other meat industries. I feel that in times past, eating meat was not a moral problem because people raised their own, or hunted in the wild, and those animals generally had a good life and were appreciated.

But I feel that changes in our modern society have made abuses much more common. For one thing, most people have no real concept of where their food comes from (not just meat - vegetables come from living things also), so they don't have a real appreciation for it, and they overuse it and waste it. I like the rule from Dinotopia, "Eat to live - don't live to eat." The other thing is that the food industries have become so industrialized, that it's reduced to nothing but a factory. Big industry makes meat cheap, and they do that by cutting corners that affect the animals' quality of life. They grow them up to killing size as quickly and cheaply as possible, and hire workers who are underpaid and don't care, and are overworked and desensitized.

Buying food produced on small farms is an improvement, because on small farms people are more likely to care. Visiting the farm is a good thing. Abuses do occur on small farms too, but not as much as in the big industrialized factory farms. Organic products usually come from small farms. These products usually cost more and don't look as pretty. This is because small farms can't compete with the big industry. Unfortunately, a lot of us can't afford the higher prices.

Raising your own is a still better option if you can, but it also isn't an option for most people.

I don't have a problem with milk and cheese and eggs, but I prefer to produce my own. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to lately, but I did for a number of years. One of my biggest problems with cheese is animal rennet, which is made from the stomach lining of pre-ruminant calves (calves killed before they are old enough to digest grass). There is also vegetable rennet, however, and it works just as well. Unfortunately, the cheese in stores is not labled as to which type of rennet is used.

To start out as a vegetarian, I think you will do better if you cut back gradually on meat. That is what I did. I never did eat a lot of meat, and I eliminated red meat first, then white meat. For a while I didn't make a fuss if I was served somthing that only had a little bit of meat in it, although I didn't eat meat at home. My philosophy about being a vegetarian is posted on my website if any of you would like to know more about my decision process. my weblog If you want to make sure that you don't eat anything with meat in it, start reading labels. Don't stress about it too much at first, but there are things like gelatin, which is made from meat by-products (although there is vegetarian gelatin), and marshmallows, which are made using gelatin (and I don't think that anybody makes vegetarian marshmallows). But most things will be more obvious than that on the labels. You don't have to do it all at once though.

I also want to say something about PETA. They are a militant, extreme group, and I have communicated with PETA members. They do encourage violent methods of making their point, as well as things that just don't make sense, such as stealing animals from farms (including small farms, which usually have lower security and are easier targets), or just turning animals loose that don't have much chance of surviving on their own. Their goal is misguided. Ultimately, they don't believe that people should benefit from animals in any way. Even having a pet dog or cat, they see as keeping animals in captivity. I'm not sure what they see as animals' place in the world, as they are in favor of absolute separitism between people and all animals. Livestock groups that I have been a member of have been attacked by PETA members who try to tell us that we should not have animals, period. I asked what they wanted us to do with the animals that we have been providing good homes for, just turn them loose? When I explained that these animals wouldn't survive without being cared for by humans, they had to think about it before telling me that we should just not make more of them - don't let them breed - let them die out.

I wasn't going to watch that video, but I did, and parts of it were disturbing. Some of the things they showed are standard practices, but the way they were presented make them seem much worse than they are. Some things shown I'm sure are exceptions. Even with exaggeration, though, it is true that abuses occur and are more common than we would like to think. My husband worked at a beef packing plant, and had nightmares about it for years after he quit. I hear similar stories from people who have worked in other related industries.

It's an individual choice, but one that I wish more people would put some thought into. And another wish I have is that people wouldn't try to make us feel bad when we have chosen vegitarianism, and would respect that decision. It really bugged me at work last weekend when another staff member would not let the girls give me a plate for dinner without the meat. I don't try to make anyone feel bad for eating meat, but forcing me to take a plate with meat on it and telling me I can just throw it away completely defeats the purpose. Throwing it away and letting it be wasted is much sadder to me than having it be eaten and at least that animal's life has done somebody some good.

I'm glad you started this thread. It's interesting to hear people's views, even if it can be a sensitive topic. I think that as long as there is respect for other people's reasoning and beliefs, we can handle talking about some sensitive issues.

Wendy

p.s. feel free to ask me any questions you like - you know where to find me.