The Eternal debate: Vegan and PETA

At lunch yesterday a friend asked what my position was on vegetarians. My response was "They don't know what they are missing out on." Yeah vegans mean well by justifying an all veggie diet to protect their health, but that is a result of being poorly educated on the subject. Here and now, I want to state the fact that I do not claim to be fully educated on the nutrient qualities of meat and I will leave the arguments to those in the food science department.

But I have raised and worked with meat animals my entire life and know enough to say that meat is an ESSENTIAL part of any human diet. For those who say we can get all of our nutrients from plants and plant proteins; have you considered the availability of such proteins and the massive amount of plant food you must consume to meet the required amount of nutrients required in a daily diet? It's a enormous amount, to say the least. It cannot be easily done without supplements and major control of one's diet.

Now have you thought of the fact of why animals are placed on this planet? Why would the human digestive system be equipped to digest animal proteins and by-products if humans were not meant to consume these products? Explain that one to me!

Then my friend asked how I felt about PETA. My first, and probably overly exaggerated response was "They can jump off the end of the earth for all I care." I quickly followed that with an explanation of what I really meant.

If you know me, you know that just mentioning PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) or HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) makes me cringe. These organizations started with good intentions, but have been blown out of proportion. I really have no respect for an organization that lobbies to change the life and production systems of a group of people and an industry that they have yet to understand how we live and have yet to take a step in our shoes. If you really want to know how I feel about these organizations leave a comment, or you can see a rant I posted a few days ago. Really PETA ?!?

Daily Quick Beef Fact: There are 29 cuts of beef that meet U.S. Dietary Guidelines for lean. Each one contains less than 10 grams of total fat, 4.5 grams or less of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol per 3.5 oz. serving. For more information, link to the 29 Lean Cuts Wallet Card.