by Bethany Vanderzand

Created on: April 25, 2008

This article is based on my personal opinion, for one cannot dictate what is moral and what is not to any other person. We all have our own idea of morality, regarless of the society we live in or the religious practices we observe. Any side you take on any issue is going to be disagreed upon by someone, period.

I can identify with the vegan view that the way meat farms and manufacturers raise and slaughter animals is cruel; however, that is the error of modern society's avarice to get things done as quickly and cheaply as possible for immediate material gratification, regarless of whose rights we infringe upon or how ruthless we have to be to get the job done. That is the society we have created for ourselves, but it does not mean that the natural instinct to kill in order to sustain ourselves is immoral. Just because something is worth doing, doesn't mean it can't be done the wrong way. Likewise, just because something is done incorrectly, doesn't mean the initial act or desire to do the thing is wrong. I enjoy eating meat, but I agree that modern production has taken the wrong approach. We do not need to savagely cage and torture animals to feed ourselves; nonetheless, we do need to feed ourselves if we want to live. Animals provide protein and other nurtients essential for health and strength.

Humans are omnivores, meaning our bodies were designed to consume both plant and animal tissue. To say it is morally wrong for a person to eat an animal is like saying it is wrong for a wolf to eat a rabbit - it's the natural food chain, it's the cycle of life - "predator" and "prey" are not foreign concepts to existence.

Are not plants living beings as well? Why aren't we debating the morality of destorying plant life for nourishment? The fact is, every living thing must consume to survive - humans are not an exception, despite any inhumane methods we may be guilty of in order to extract what we need from the earth. I will continue to eat meat; that is my personal choice, just as it is your personal choice to not. After all, no outside source can regulate what should and should not go into your own body.

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