Assertion Journal "Bellying up to environmentalism"

James E. McWilliams states in his article that vegetarians in today’s society are known as an inconvenient while meat eaters are commonly accepted. I don’t disagree, when you eat out with a vegetarian, they have to order something off the menu without meat, and sometimes they only have one option on the menu. Vegetarians don’t have many options at restaurants or school lunches, but I end up not really thinking about it because I DO eat meat. There’s plenty of options for me- steak sandwiches, turkey and potatoes, taco bar, chicken noodle soup. Vegetarians are usually only offered a PB&J and yogurt or cheese; which could get old I imagine.

McWilliams argues further that meat eaters should be the ones that should apologize for ordering inconveniently. He says they cause more than just animals being killed- its animal abuse. Cows are forced to make 15 times the amount of milk they are supposed to, chickens are cooped in close-packed, fenced walls, and calves are taken away from their mothers (who suffer without their babies). But its not just that, the livestock industry’s mass production affects the environment as well. Gasoline is guzzled up in production, and so much feed is used for the large masses of animals in the industry that that same amount could be used to feed China and India. By choosing to be vegetarian, McWilliams believes he is making a political stance against all the harm to the planet the livestock industry is causing. I think that although it is great he’s standing up for what he believes in; there are ways to support the cause without completely boycotting meat. Protein and fat are needed for our bodies to function and meat gives these to us. Although this may work for some people, maybe supporting small family farms and their meat or smaller businesses rather than large corporations would help the cause. He is right; corporations need to change their policies, and taking a stance is the right way to do it. Although I support him, I’d rather make other efforts to change my participation in funding those companies and keep my body healthy and strong with protein.

These industries raising chickens for meat coop them up in chicken concentration camps or life-long prison terms.