Hypocrisy

[eumelia]

I'm a hypocrite.
Being at the Natural History Museum made it clear to me.
I'm a hypocrite.
How can I claim to be an Environmentalist when I'm a meat eater.
Okay, so humans are omnivorous and historically we used to hunt our game and grow it.
But you know what, I'm a grrl who has lived her entire life in the western world and has consumed (with great privilege and pleasure) all the west had to offer her.
I eat beef, I like hamburgers (real kind, I've not stepped into a Burger King in three years and a McDonald's in five years), I like kebab, shawarma, pargiyot, shrimp, salmon, lobster and tuna.
Yet I make sure all my face cleaning soaps, moisturizers and such are not tested on animals.
I'm a hypocrite.

I've often considered becoming a vegetarian, but it never seemed worth it because I love meat.
But in the past year my ideology (of which I had none during high school and most of my army service) is quickly solidifying, and in the past I used to think ideological vegetarians were cheating themselves.
I'm becoming aware that I'm actually cheating myself.
How can I be an advocate of animal rights, when I use them in such a disgusting way?
God the hypocrisy!

Comments

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

even if you're not eating meat, other people are. it's still going to be packaged and processed and the methods aren't going to change if only you quit eating meat.

being a hypocrite is part of the human condition. we're ALL hypocrites - though only few of us have the stones to admit it :P

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

True, but wouldn't I have some integrity left if I didn't eat meat despite the fact that others eat meat?

And thank you :)

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

to me, it's about priorities. i would rather be content in knowing that i am eating well-balanced, delicious food (as it has been proven that meats contain many wonderfully nutritive components) rather than depriving myself of something good for me that I enjoy for the sake of making no discernible difference than being able to show other people that i care.

well, i DO care, and if people can't see that, then that's their own problem and i don't have time to deal with their bullshit anyways. i care a great deal about a great many things, and since i have neither the time nor the energy to lead a Great Movement i choose NOT to care about the world's opinion of little me :)

i mean, hell, do what you want - but take care to think about the motivations of your reasonings.

[krazyhippie.livejournal.com]

One person cutting out a lifetime of consumption can make a difference.

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

personally, i don't believe that. i'm not saying this to piss you off or start a debate - it's just how i feel.

[krazyhippie.livejournal.com]

I understand that's how you feel. I guess I just don't get how people going vegetarian doesn't equal fewer animals being killed. Supply has to meet demand--if it exceeds it, they lose money.

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

well, if there was a massive movement - hundreds or thousands of people getting in contact, mobilizing, and taking a stand - it may make a difference. i'm sure people have tried. it's just hard to change the system. as much as i might not like how things work and what society dictates, i do my best to live with it and often ignore it in order to lead a simple, happy life - one not consumed with guilt over things i alone cannot change.

[krazyhippie.livejournal.com]

There are a lot of things I can't change on a massive scale--but it doesn't mean it would be right for me to participate in them. I myself can't end racism, but that doesn't mean I might as well participate in it since I can't do anything about it. Doesn't mean I should ignore it and say "oh well, can't change it."

Don't get me wrong--I'm not a vegetarian myself. So I'm not trying to act like I'm perfect. There are plenty of things I do that I shouldn't. But I can't pretend that just because I'm only one person, my actions don't have consequences, either.

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

oh, actions definitely have consequences - that's why i believe so strongly in morality and standing up for what you believe in. to me, it's just a question of scale.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

Yay, civilized debate!

[kaetien.livejournal.com]

tis so unusual on teh intarwebs ;)

[krazyhippie.livejournal.com]

*nods* I understand that, and it's very subjective as to what matters most to different people.

[fenchurch42.livejournal.com]

Damn, I'm probably too late in the discussion (again), but I just wanted to say I agree with you, I mean, giving up on the idea of making a difference just by changing your own actions, because everybody else is "doing it anyways".. Hell, one person can make a difference! and have throughout history.. (take Rosa Parks for example...)

"You know, if
one person, just one person does it they may think he's really sick and
they won't take him. And if two people, two people do it, in harmony, they may think they're both faggots and they won't take either of them.
And three people do it, three, can you imagine, three people walking in singin a bar of Alice's Restaurant and walking out. They may think it's an organization. And can you, can you imagine fifty people a day,I said fifty people a day walking in singin a bar of Alice's Restaurant and walking out. And friends they may thinks it's a movement..." :)

Sorry, I'm tired..

[ex-yellowsna67.livejournal.com]

and I don't agree with you saying meat contains necessary nutrients. I won't get into it here, but meat has some things I'd prefer not to have in my bod.

[hagar-972.livejournal.com]

*sigh* I'm going to be shouted at for this.

The only "bad things" in meat are antibiotics and the likes, which some farmers give their living stock. Some - you can definitely find meat and other animal produce without them.

Fatty acids, which meat has, aren't bad. If you're eat a large steak each day, maybe. Not with a more moderate consumption.

All the fat-soluble vitamins are digested much, much better when from an animal nutritional source, rather than vegy. Also some of the water-soluble ones, like B12. You do know that all veggies should do a blood screen every three months to make sure your B12 levels aren't too low, right?

And, iron, which is an issue for women. Do you know how much seasame and the likes you need to eat in order to substitute for a regular consumption of meat?

In short, meat is only unhealthy if consumed in excess, or if the source is bad. And if you have the same amout of the same nutrient in meat, and in a veggie dish, the digestive system would absorb more from the meat source - and if it's another mammal, and not just another animal, it's the best absorbance. That's just the way it is.