Rebuking Common Excuses for Meat Eating

I've been a vegetarian for over 17 years now and I've heard it all through my long career as a non meat eater. People can be so defensive about eating meat and anytime you try to express why you think it's unacceptable they have a million (often ridiculous) reasons for why human beings eat meat. If you go on the internet and type in "Reasons humans should eat meat", you'll likely find millions of supposedly credible sources explaining why we should consume but one could also find millions more why you should not. Frankly, there's no justification for it and if this movement of vegetarianism and veganism is any indication, more and more people are realizing that eating meat is not only ethically wrong, but not even necessarily good for us.

Let's look at some of the craziest things I've heard when discussing why people should stop eating meat and why I think it's utter tripe!

GOD PUT ANIMALS ON THE EARTH FOR US TO EAT

This one always triggers me especially as someone who is not religious. It immediately feels like an unfair playing field because not only do I not believe in their reasoning, I don't believe in the reason for their reasoning. If my experiences growing up in Catholic school taught me anything, it's that God had intended for us to love all of his creations which would include animals no? Secondly, when this ark was built that saved two of every animal from extinction prior to the flood that wiped out everything, it seems oddly suspicious that the only reason these animals were saved was so that they could endure millions of years of torture and suffering at the hands of humans.

As mentioned, I grew up in Catholic school and I really don't recall ever being taught the role animals for food were to play in my religious beliefs, so this argument is completely without merit and is used as a way to justify someone's actions without having to further explain themselves because this is their belief. In that same token were lions and tigers put on the planet for us to hunt to extinction? Were dolphins and killer whales put on the planet so we could house them in bathtubs and force them to perform tricks for their entire miserable lives? I don't think so which is why this argument is complete hogwash.

HUMANS ARE OMNIVORES

Human's are supposed to eat meat, we are omnivores and can't survive healthily without it. It's in our genetic makeup to eat meat etc., this one is one that I find most difficult to argue because I think even right down to our food guides, we are taught that human's require meat, grains, dairy, vegetables and fruits to be healthy. We literally have it ingrained in our brains from childhood that meat is part of a healthy diet but if one chooses to investigate further, you will find so many articles from accredited scientists that have linked meat to some of the worst diseases human's can get including heart disease and cancers. One cannot find the same links from eating vegetables or fruits because those links simply do not exist without touching on the pesticide thing which is an entirely different post.  

When you look at true carnivorous mammals in the wild, they consume meat raw and usually after hunting and ripping this meat from the bones of an herbivore. For example, almost all big cats are truly carnivorous animals and they all hunt their prey and devour them in their purest, rawest forms. That is absolutely nothing like human's who eat meat. In fact, human's who eat excess amounts of raw meat will probably die, simple as that.

We must cook our meat to safe temperatures before it is safe for us to consume otherwise we are asking for a plethora of food borne illnesses that can lead to premature death. If we were truly omnivorous mammals, we would be able to consume this meat the same way any other omnivorous mammal in the wild consumes it but that is not the case. Argument debunked!

WITHOUT MEAT, YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH PROTEIN

If I received a dollar for every time someone said this to me in the early stages of my vegetarian career, I'd be unbelievably wealthy by this point. Protein is the biggest argument meat eaters have for their eating meat and for why veggie lifestyles are not healthy. Meat eaters become doctors, nutritionists, and scientists when discussing eating meat because suddenly they know everything about being healthy and all of the reasons why I'm probably going to drop dead from lack of essential nutrients. Once again, complete nonsense that simply helps them justify their own decisions but it's completely without factual backing because as I've proven many times on this blog, we can get just as much if not more.

Without even touching on the wave of plant based meats hitting the market every day, there has always been more than enough options when it comes to proteins. Quinoa for example is one of the best examples of a complete protein food but there are so many options out there which is why a varied diet is extremely important. Along with quinoa, one can find excellent sources of protein in beans, legumes, pulses, nuts, and seeds, and they're also typically going to provide you a bunch of other nutrients and antioxidants that meat is sorely lacking. There's absolutely no merit behind this one, these people simply refuse to go online and search up, "Plant based proteins" at which point they would STFU.

THEY'RE JUST FARM ANIMALS

One of my favourites out there, the always empathetic approach that farm animals are far inferior to other animals which is why they're destined for nothing more than just being produced to be slaughtered. This is another example of someone who refuses to acknowledge the sentience of animals and also hides behind this lackluster excuse because in my opinion, they feel some level of guilt.

Every single animal on this planet feels things, kick your dog in the face or kick a chicken in the face and the result is the same, they're both hurt and afraid. It's absolutely ridiculous to think that these animals are so worthless that they are somehow deserving of the fear, pain, and torture they endure for their severely shortened lives in the meat industry. As someone who did a lot of research to help myself stay on track, these animals are far more complex than we give them credit for but it's easier to convince ourselves that they're dumb, useless, and belong on our plates.

I always dare these people to go online and watch a video of a mother cow chasing after a baby that's being taken away from her or watch a video of pigs solving puzzles or playing, these are not animals that have no intelligence or emotion. They are no different than the pets we hold dear aside from our perception of them.

AND FINALLY, THE "BUT THEY TASTE GOOD"

This person is just an asshole, plain and simple. I mean, what other word is there to describe someone who listens to your stories of compassion and proposals of a more empathetic life and responds with some neanderthalesque comment like this? This person is complete nimrod who has absolutely no intention to ever change their ways regardless of what evidence is presented to them. Greenhouse emissions and climate change? But they taste good. Animals are mistreated and cruelly beaten and tortured..but they taste good. Although it may feel like a waste of breath trying to speak with these people, it's completely the opposite. These are the people we need to be vocal with the most because compassion is contagious regardless of how resistant someone appears to be.

These people also will never step foot in a vegetarian restaurant because they refuse to support an industry that doesn't capitalize on the suffering of animals but even further than that, they won't throw their support behind the idea that food could ever be good without meat involved in some way or another. It saddens me immensely that people cannot have a debate or discussion without throwing out one of these comments because it's this childlike mentality that will hurt them in the long run, guaranteed.

The moral of this post is to kind of motivate you to continue the good fight. You will hear everything and anything to justify why eating animals is o.k but in almost every case, it's simply something to hide behind because the truth hurts. Keep spreading the word, keep fighting the fight, keep exposing the injustices because even one person who gives up meat even once a week is a success!

Have you guys ever heard some crazy excuses for why eating meat is ok? I want to hear them

HAPPY VEG