why I went vegetarian

or, salad days

I went from being a bacon-loving Southerner to a kosher-keeping vegetarian hipster. Read all about the horrifying transformation here. For a list of what I'm eating lately, look at my current food log. (The old food logs are here and here.)

Reasons I became a vegetarian:

  • It's a hell of a lot easier to keep kosher. Also, I have come to believe that vegetarianism is a more ideal way to eat as a Jew.
  • I do not believe eating animals is inherently wrong, but I do believe a person who eats meat needs to be aware of exactly what has to happen for her to have a steak dinner. Faced with the reality that your hamburger is actually an animal, many people experience cognitive dissonance and try to stop thinking about it. I therefore believe that a meat-eater should be willing to kill the animal him/herself if he wants to eat it, and I am unwilling to do this.
  • The cruelty inherent in the global meat industry is horrific, even the kosher meat industry, and I am no longer willing to put my money into supporting these practices.
  • In addition to the danger to animals, factory farms and slaughterhouses are damned dangerous to the humans working there.
  • The global meat industry contributes something like 18% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, which is more than cars contribute.
  • According to the American Dietetic Association, a vegetarian diet is healthier for humans than one containing meat.
  • Vegetarian food is lighter fare, tastes better and is more interesting to cook, in my opinion. I became vegetarian when eating meat started to taste heavy, fatty, and gross.
  • It's cheaper by a damn sight.
  • It makes it easier to eat locally and organically, and my family can grow much of our own food supply. It doesn't get much more local and organic than that.
  • It's still a counter-culture way to eat and I enjoy sticking it to The Man whenever possible.
  • It eliminates 95% of fast food from my diet by default, which can be nothing but a good thing.
  • I am supporting my two vegetarian children.
  • For a long time I've felt like my diet was standing in the way of my spiritual progress somehow. I don't know how to explain it, but eliminating meat has freed me up in this area, and it just feels better to go veggie.