I'm a vegetarian. All I can say is... if
you only knew what you are really eating... bugs, puss, cancer and other diseases the animal may have-- that's right! Accept it! And if you
saw how inhumanely they are kept and killed to get to your plate. How they suffer through their short life to the slaugher house. You don't think people that work in slaughter houses are humane and care about animals, do you?

We are not supposed to conform
to this world. I will NOT participate
in the cruel and evil pratices of this world.

I suppose , if you took the time to really scrutinize EVERYTHING that we humans do on a daily basis, the ONLY answer it would seem is to put us ALL down............

The key with everything is, I believe, "MODERATION'.. we as a species seem to over indulge in EVERYTHING we do. We seem to look at that as "chic".......but it isnt........

I agree with John C. on everything he said except the "put us down" part.

Sorry John I want to live. But it is something to think about. I never really did. Then again, there are WAY more important things to think about on a daily basis. One is how long are we going to be able to afford "beef"?
Now there is a question to ponder.

Why just cows? Pigs and chickens and my
favorite food of all.. Guess what it is folks??? Duck! I am an avid duck lover.
As JC says..Moderation. However, I do many times think of the cruelty that goes
in to our eating..Fish too. Anything. For that matter. What about veggies. Do
plants feel pain? Maybe Ralph Snodsmith
the plant expert would know. But, I do not know what the solution is, unless we
just drink water and take vitamins.

GLEN

Glen, on one of your previous posts, you mentioned Bernard Meltzer. Now It's Ralph Snodsmith. You must be a WOR Fan!! :) While we're on the topic of WOR, perhaps the late Carlton Fredricks (nutrition guru) could have told us if eating beef was good/bad for us. I remember one of Fredricks' jokes: "Bacteria is the rear entrance of a cafeteria"

I know beef isn't the best thing for me, I'll have a steak or something once a week. I pretty much live on chicken and turkey. As for veggies..I don;t think I would be a pleasant person to be around if all I ate were string beans, peppers, onion, lettuce and spinach. I understand we can get our needed protein from beans and such, but humans are an omnivorous species. Or bodies were designed to process and run on both plant and animal matter, so its not in our design to be vegetarians. It may be healthier on some ways but its denying our bodies essential elements that cannot be replaced by supplements.

Hey Ted,

The decision was made for me. About 10 years
ago, I developed a food allergy to both
beef and pork proteins. So color me green!

Mary

Yep... was conflicted on what to make for dinner tonight and I do believe a nice, juicy steak will be on the grill. YUM!

Just for the record... one can produce a mathmatical formula to proove any crack pot theory so why should this one be given any credence?

WHERE'S THE BEEF Nothing beats a good steak, we all have to die from something, you have to eat everyday so enjoy whatever makes you happy.

I don`t eat beef or Pork,once in a while I will eat beefburgers.Most of the time I gag on anykid of meat.If I could figure out how much protien my daily requirement is suppose to be,I would really Love to find an alternative to all kinds of Meat.I Love Yougart and cottage cheese and cheese,but if it is ruining the atmosphere i will sacrifice not eating it the benifit of clean air sounds like a good pay off.They don`t tell you how much protien you need every day,they label how much protien is in the product.I need things simplifyed because I was taught one way and with all the different corporations selling so fast it`s like I am on auto sometimes.Confusion is not good when you are trying to eat right and take into consideration the environment.There are some foods that grow all winter,if you follow what is ripe in season you will find that in Winter there are not too many choices.The cravings for meat and fat come in Winter for me.It seem`s like panic mode when winter whip itself around for the stage.Summer on stage now everything is like a jungle and the cows if they are out to pasture don`t have to be eating altered cattle corn,that is growing now anyway.I can`t see eating meat unless it is for survival or deficancy until you figure out alternatives.The cow`s must be good for somthing,I know those bull`s don`t like anyone around them when they are out to pasture,that`s why they are fenced in.I think I am a Matador?~Peace Glenna~

I like a good steak or burger, but have cut down on my portions. Only problem I see is, our fruits and veggies seem to have an outbreak of some kind almost every year lately, not to mention the cost of them is getting WAY out of control. I don't mind buying local grown stuff during this time of year, as I really want to know where my stuff is coming from, but that lasts a very short time.

Seems we are damned if we do, and vice versa!!!

We live in a society that believes if something is GOOD for you, charge the people up the nose for it...lol..good ole CAPITALISM...... I remember listening to a Dr not to long ago, the person couldnt understand why people dont eat more that is good for them....... one thing its the price....how much are we supposed to spend on a damn apple or orange???? People bitch about the cost of gas they should start looking into some of the other stuff that is bankrupting us...........

Ted,

I've been aware of the negative impact of beef for close to 20 years, and have been concerned about global warming since, well, forever. My father told me all about it when I was a small child, and I'm 42 now.

That said, I haven't always tried very hard to live green. For the longest time I felt helpless, like there was nothing really that *I* could do to effect change, other than purchasing cars that were the most efficient, and recycling even before it was required.

I say all that because I think it's great that information about the environmental impact of our consumption is now coming more to light. It's why, despite the cynicism of hardcore environmentalists (and of course the non-believers) that I think that Live Earth was a good thing to do, to raise more awareness about what individuals can do to make a real difference.

So, to answer your question, I eat very little beef, mostly because of health concerns, and when I do I only eat organic beef. I'm not sure that organic beef is much better for the environment, but I believe it is better for me. Cattle live much longer than chickens or fish, or even pigs. They consume more food, and thus accumulate more environmental toxins, pound for pound, than many other animals. It makes sense that they cause more pollution, too.

Ted, have you heard of the Freund Farm in East Caanan, CT? It's a dairy farm, but they extract the methane from the manure and burn it for energy and they also make a product called Cow Pots (planters) from the manure. It is both gross and fascinating, but kudos for them for greatly reducing greenhouse gasses and using renewable energy.

Other things I've done:

First, we're doing a huge remodel on our house. We're going to be spending about $40k on solar panels which should meet our electricity needs even at peak times. (Now I'm trying to get the laws changed so that the electric company has to purchase the excess electricity at a higher than wholesale rate.)

Also:

I drive a lot less by carefully planning errands and putting off some errands and shopping for times I'll be in the vicinity.

Most of our lightbulbs are compact flourescent bulbs.

We signed up for renewable energy with United Illuminating. We pay a little extra for this but we feel better about our electricity coming from 1/3 wind, 1/3 small hydro, and 1/3 landfill gasses instead of coal.

We keep our heat around 62F in the winter and AC at around 79F in the summer, and often don't even use the AC. This was a big change for us, and between the temperature, the lightbulbs, and despite paying a surcharge for renewable energy, we are only paying slightly more than we did several years about before oil and electric rates skyrocketed.

I bought reusable grocery bags, they are heavy plastic, but I'm looking for some good canvas/cotton ones that I can machine wash. So far I have only found ones that cannot be thrown in the wash. Even though these bags I use now are plastic, I do keep reusing them.

I also try to buy things with less packaging, but that is very difficult. I find that especially with common things, like produce, the organic products that I buy tend to have the most packaging. That is frustrating. I guess that is one place I will not bend. I won't buy a head of lettuce that is not organic just for the less packaging. I'm going for that organic stuff that is unfortunately in the plastic clamshell. :-(

I'm not sure what else there is that I won't compromise on. I know that I want granite countertops in my new kitchen, and that due to the weight and excavation, it is very un-green to do that, but I still want it. I also want a large soaking tub in my new master bath, but I suppose that is not very green either. We are using green materials and have an architect and builder who are committed to going green. We've gone out of our way to buy appliances that are energy efficient, including a frontloader washing machine.

People contradict themselves all over the place. How could anyone contribute to the pain and suffering of animals and turn around and be so concerned about the human race only?? Doesn't make sense. Pain and suffering is broad, not just among humans. Humans are supposed to battle ALL PAIN AND SUFFERING ON THIS EARTH.

I guess I am out of luck here because, frankly, I like beef. EEK I should just get out of the country now before I get bashed by all the greenbeans in this country.

Never mind that I recycle pretty much everything, and did so before it became a law. Never mind that I buy almost everything I have used.

Even most of my pets are rescued too..

Nope, gotta condemn people like me because we like beef..



Sheesh...

I remember proof reading a report for my
daughter many many years ago regarding
the Ozone Layer. At the time I recall thinking
it was a bunch of baloney.

What I find interesting is aerosol sprays
and Styrofoam were two big offenders to our
environment back then and are still on the
store shelves today.
With this in mind we are being asked to make
changes in our lives but why aren't items
like the above being mentioned banned?
A big pet peeve of mine is public
tranportation. Have you ever been behind
a bus? If you have you know exactly what I
mean.

The best thing we can do as humans is to keep our population down. since we are unable to even come close to that, we will continue to kill ourselves off. Eat what you want, be happy that you are able to eat. Yes I have been behind a bus, on my bicycle. Try breathing that air, its just great. School buses are the best with the lower exhaust pipe. You get a good breath of diesel air.

I agree that raising beef the way corporate
america does has a massive impact on the
enviroment. So I have changed my source of
beef. All I buy is Connecticut grow grass
feed beef. No medicines, and its local so ther
fuel usage is minimum and teh animal has a much better life.