To eat or not to eat?.....

[Gaia Dragoncat]

That is the question. Is it okay to eat meat? Just trying to get other viewpoints on this. I always thought that as long as the people were not being inhuman to the animals that it was okay to eat meat. But then I read this article that said that it was against nature religions to eat another animal. I don't kill for sport and I only buy from groups who don't mistreat. But I would like to know what other opinions are on this.

[Kystar]

I have a slightly...skewed...view.

I believe that the Divine created predator and prey. The Divine hardwired various creatures to have various needs, either through their evolution or how the Divine created them, depending on what take you like.

As creatures made with the physical requirments to consume both, I figure the Divine know we are going to eat meat. We are part predator. As long as we do not treat them cruelly, I do not see how it could be evil. Nature is not evil. Nature is nature.

[morgana]

I pretty much side with Kystar. Eating meat isn't evil. Heck, eating meat from an animal that you don't KNOW has been mistreated isn't evil either. I think that people should definitely treat the animals better while they're still alive, but am I gonna suffer cuz I grabbed a Big Mac the other day? Well, my stomach might just cuz Micky D's is so terrible in general, but aside from that, I doubt the gods are gonna reach down from the heavens and smite me for it.

Yes we can and do eat both meat and veggies, and we also have the intelligence to choose to take supplements if we only wanna eat veggies. Really, it's all about personal choice. Personally, I need meat. Especially around that special time of the month. I crave it far worse than most women crave chocolate. But if you can and want to live without it, more power to ya!

[Willow]

I have been vegetarian for four years, but for different reasons. One, it is betterfor the envrionment,a nd two, I can''t kill animals. if I can look the animal in the eye then kill it, then I will eat it.

I needed to feel connected to what I ate. Vegetarianism does that for me.

And growth hormones scare the bejeezes out of me.

[SageWolf]

I'm a meat eater, We started buying a cow, we will do it every year from now on, I know the people who owned the cow, we keep it there until it is mature enough to go to slaughter, we also know that they don't put growth hormones in the feed, Otherwise we wouldn't have bought it,

I was a vegatarian for awhile when I was a teenager, but I decided I like meat,

As long as you thank the animal spirits for their sacrifice as well as the plant spirits, then I don't see the problem.


Good luck with your choice

SageWolf

[Ragnar]

LOVE meat. Big dripping hot juicy slices of pork on buttered bread.

[Jescissa]

I've struggled with this idea too. I kind of meander from vegetarianism back to omnivorism every now and again.

I would like to be able to raise my own animals for food, but where I live it wouldn't go down very well with the neighbours So that's the plan for later on in life!

I do eat meat now, but I have regular meat-free meals. I don't think eating meat is wrong, and I do believe that it is fulfilling the cycle of life, we are designed to eat both meat and veggies...but every now and again I feel guilty that the meat I'm eating was probably killed in an awful, distressing way and I go veggie for a while.

I try to eat organic, local meat...but it's not always possible because I'm not in charge of the shopping!

[Windwalker]

I am an omnivore, and proud to be an omnivore I love animals, I'm against animal cruelty and all that. But I am an omnivore, and to deny that would be, to me, to deny a part of myself. Part of the reason that I'm Pagan is to get closer to the earth and nature. Denying myself meat would distance myself slightly from it - at least that's what I feel.

The predator-prey relationship is a powerful one. I think that nowadays the fact that we don't actually hunt and kill our prey is something that doesn't sit well with many people. It's like if we had to work for it in that way, if we did the animal the justice of killing it ourselves (not with guns because guns is CHEATING) then it would mean more to us, if you see what I mean. If someone said to me "we're going to eat this cow, would you like to kill it?" then I would kill it - or at least I would try. Because if I couldn't kill it, then I couldn't eat it. Oh, I have issues explaining myself...

The whole hunting issue isn't possible anymore - there are too many of us. So I'm okay with farming.
I respect vegetarians for their choice. What I don't like is the few who see everyone who eats meat as The Enemy and tries to alert them to the error of their ways

[Crazy Healer Lady]

I very much respect the predator-prey scenario. I will never condemn anyone who eats meat. Eating meat can be an incredibly spiritual experience (if you have ever felt a merging with your power animal or totem, you will know what I mean).

In my particular spirituality, I do not eat meat, milk, eggs, or anything that comes from an animal. I believe - and I will NEVER try to convince others of this belief - is that our bodies are not designed to digest meat efficiently. I know that once I became Vegan, I've had no troubles - no sickness, no aches, no acne, no body odour, no excess weight, etc.

This being said, my partner is VERY healthy, and had been raised on potatoes and meat. You can smell his health, just as you can smell disease in those who are not healthy. He is fit, energetic, and happy. (He almost turned Vegan when a STRONG point was noted in the bible about not eating meat!! But he's not ready yet )

So... I think it comes down to personal choice and personal religion. You'll have to do some soul-searching to come up with the answer that is right for you.

[Willow]

On the topic of hunting....

The seal hunt is about to begin in Canada, the protestors are on their way.

My firends laugh because I am a vegetarian who isi for the seal hunt.

When I see them standing in front of factory farm barns protesting the cruetly to chickens I might listen to them. And when I see them protesting veal, again I might listen. Some of my professors claim that it is even a form of racism against aboriginal eating practices. Unfortunately, fatty meat is the best meat for the inuit people, it is in their genes.

If I se any good articles I will put them up in the news section.

[Jescissa]

The seal hunt is about to begin in Canada, the protestors are on their way.

Is the seal hunt a cull where the animals are thrown away or is it a proper hunt for the meat and products of meat? I've never been quite sure what goes on, so I guess I don't understand it. I'm not against hunting for food, but hunting for sport goes over my head!

[forgotten oceans]

Willow: I heard they kill any and all they can for fur. Is it true they just skin them and leave the meat and corpse where it lay?

[Willow]

It is the most regulated game hunt in the world. Seal meat makes up a large part of the inuit diet (particularly in the winter). There are government auditors that follow around hunters to make sure they are ethical and that they properly use the food.

The number of seals allowed was reduced by 100,000 this year because of the warming in the ocean (down to just under 200,000).

As for people skinning them alive or not using the meat, I am sure that there are idiots who do that, but I don't think they represent the majority by any means. If they get caught there is a huge fine and posible jail time.

Anyway, I know people are working to make it ethical...I just the same amount of effort went out for pigs, cows and chickens. Watcht he news and decide for yourself. but it is a lot like other debates, unbiased statistics are hard to get because studies are always commissioned either by anti-hunt activists or the hunting groups. I base my decision on what I know about my SO's relatives.

[Crazy Healer Lady]

There are a few groups putting out the same effort for cows, chickens, pigs, etc. I have a site that shows the very ugly side of the American Meat Industry, which I dare NOT post on this site. It turned two of my friends - meat-loving people - into vegetarians somewhat vegans. So far as I know, for most processes, Canadian standard are much higher (except in the case of veal).

If anyone wants the link, PM me. I in no way endorse the organization that presents this movie (in fact, I am anti-PETA), and in no way do I feel everyone should be vegetarian. I do, however, support strong morals.

[Willow]

Ah PETA, they are an interesting group, I am for the ethical treatment of animals, but PETA seems to treat anyone that doesn't have four legs or feathers like crap.

See the "Your Mommy kills animals" campaign.