The Veg Craze

I am taking a nutrition class this semester. In my class there is a girl who is very proudly vegan. She brings up veganism and vegetarianism as often as she can, and loves the preach the doctrine of humanity to animals and how disgusting it is to eat them. My rant today: There is nothing wrong with eating meat.

In fact, taking a religious stand-point, anyone who reads and believes the Bible ought to know that God has given us meat for our use. In fact, in Timothy it says, "And whoso forbiddeth to abstain from meats, that man should not eat the same, is not ordained of God." And for the LDS readers, the Doctrine and Covenants tell us that meat "hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth."

I will be a little PETA-ish and grant that yes, there are probably more humane ways to slaughter our animals. Animals have fear and nerves just like we do (though the fear is not nearly as complex), and therefore it would be better if we could kill them painlessly. But I say, let's still kill them.

The truth is, if we didn't consume a good amount of meat, the animal population would get out of control. There is a reason mankind is at the top of the food chain.

From a nutrition only, non-religious perspective, there are still reasons to eat meat. True, it is possible to derive all the nutrients one needs from plants, if you are very creative, very rich and have plenty of time to seek out and purchase said plants. But I figure, those essential nutrients are pre-packaged in these convenient little things we call meats, so why not just eat those?

And if you're into conspiracy theories, you'll tell me that meats have all sorts of hormones and bacteria that might make you sick. But I say, I (and millions of others) have had a healthy life so far despite all that hoopla.

Once again, moderation is key. I'm not saying that therefore everyone should go out and butcher their own cow and eat it for dinner tonight. I'm just saying that as long as you are safe with your food (namely you cook it thoroughly and wash your hands, etc) meat is very good for you, and should not be pooh-poohed by the general public. Don't be hatin' on people who enjoy eating meat-- God gave it to them, as well as to you. Eat what you want and pass the bacon!