One of the things that I have found in my life is that people will generally make the best choices with the information that they have on hand, and have been exposed to in their lives. However, there is so much information out there; it is very difficult for most people to expose themselves to anything but a small sampling of what is available. If someone does something that I don't agree with, or has a belief that is different than mine, I don't think they are an evil person. I realize they probably just haven't been exposed to the same information that I have, and haven’t had the opportunity to think and reflect on it. Most people have limited time to spend acquiring new information because they have lives to lead and other responsibilities that take priority. So if there is a topic that I am passionate about, and especially one for which there is a minority of current public support for, I have found that it is best to approach people in a non-confrontational way as possible. It's important for them to understand that I'm not criticizing them for holding those beliefs or acting in a particular way, I'm just criticizing the belief or behavior itself. I simply ask them for an opportunity to present the rationale I that have for changing those beliefs. If I'm right, and dealing with an open-minded individual, my point of view will sell itself if I'm allowed to present my case in a non-threatening way.
Vegetarianism has been a recent issue on my mind lately, but it is not the result of any particularly recent event. I have long believed that animals are creatures that are conscious and can experience pain even though they may not think or have the same kind of intelligence that humans do. We know that a dog, for example, can be happy when you return home to see it at the end of the day, or be sad and angry if you accidentally step on it, or go away for a long time. A dog is not substantially different than a pig, or a cow in terms of its consciousness level. Just as I would not roast my dog for a Sunday dinner, I now find it undesirable to want to eat another animal whose life would have to be taken, probably in a painful way, simply to feed myself when there are abundant alternatives.
I believe that it was much more difficult in previous decades to follow a vegetarian diet. That may still be the case in smaller, more rural areas of the United States, and certainly in other parts of the world. However, in large cities, and particularly the city I live in, it is now easy to find an abundant supply of vegetarian food in chain supermarkets. In some cases, the variety offered is the same or more than animal based equivalents. For example, the amount of shelf space at my local supermarket chain that is reserved for soy milk is about the same as what is offered for cow's milk. It comes in the same variety of flavors (plain, chocolate, vanilla), fat content (whole, light), and source (brand, generic) as cow's milk does.
Many people have the belief that a vegetarian diet will not fulfill your nutritional needs in the same way that an animal based diet will, especially in regards to protein. I was, in fact, concerned about this myself and did a bit of research before attempting to make the change. I found an article by going to www.nutrition.gov, which is a web site that the U.S. Department of Agriculture maintains. Under their “Vegetarian Nutrition Information” section, I found a “Eating Wisely, Raising a Vegetarian Child” resource that points to an article from the La Leche league. I remembered the La Leche league from when my wife was pregnant with our first child, and they provided us information regarding breastfeeding, so I consider them a trusted and reliable source. Their article provides a wealth of information and dispels many of the common myths that people have about vegetarianism.
At this point in my life, I’m striving to adhere to a vegetarian diet which allows milk and eggs. It's easy to find free-range eggs these days in supermarkets. However, the vast majority of cheeses contain rennet, which is an enzyme that is obtained by deep freezing the stomachs of young calves (not cows) and then grinding them up for inclusion in the cheese, which is why I'm choosing to give up rennet-based cheeses.
I may one day try to follow a true vegan diet. However, changing to a vegan diet does require some careful planning and I need time to be able to research and study it more, something which is in very short supply for me at the moment.
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I agree with your approach to introducing change and alternatives in a non-threatening way. I had no idea about rennet, and will redouble my efforts to avoid cheese. Actually, the soy cheese I tried recently is not bad.
Posted by: George Garrett | June 05, 2008 at 10:59 AM