The Carnivore Dilemma

Meat consumption is everywhere. But before you stop reading, thinking this is another vegan argument, rest assured, it's not. 

Countless times I have told stories on how I once killed a pig, and last weekend, a goat. My stories are mostly met with utter disgust, except for the few psychos that want to get into the details. Most individuals respond with arguments such as: "How could you hurt a poor animal?" or "They has feelings too" or "That is animal cruelty." But to be honest, what I practice is anything but animal cruelty. The pigs, cows, chickens, and goats I butcher live in an open-range area, where they frolic in the fields and eat grass, not feed. They live in a community of their same species, where they can experience social and emotional wellbeing. These animals are then slain the way they have been for the past three thousand years: with a knife. 

What I find hypocritical is the amount of meat-eaters that consume vast amounts of burgers, ham, bacon, and sausage, but cannot bear to stand the slaughter of an animal. They turn a blind eye to the consequences of their actions. This displays not only hypocrisy, but also personal ignorance. This ignorance is what ends up supporting the much-hated meat-producing factories that cage, mutilate, feed to the point of obesity, and massacre the poor animals that have never seen the sunlight shining upon a green pasture. Everyone knows this is happening, but with the exception of few ethical vegetarians and vegans, we continue to buy and thus support this inhumane meat production process. 

That is why it is imperative toopen our eyes to reality. To see meat as burned pieces of animal flesh, yet still savor the sweet taste of a good medium-rare steak. To picture the shrieks of a dying piglet, yet bite into a crispy strip of bacon. To carry a headless chicken and pluck its feathers, yet relish in boneless wings overflowing in buffalo sauce. While seeing food for what it truly is might decrease your meat consumption, the significance you place on your food will make you appreciate it even more. So the next time you're enjoying a burger, taco, or plain steak, keep in mind the animal that gave its life for your meal and delight in its savory taste.