Today we celebrate the first day of Spring and the Great American
Meatout, an educational campaign focusing on the promotion of a
healthful, plant-based, non-violent diet.
In yesterday’s Blog I mentioned that the Mid-Hudson Vegetarian
Society observes the annual Meatout by bringing an outstanding speaker
to the area, and that this year’s gathering heard Tom Regan, author of
Empty Cages.
It is fitting that the observance of Spring, a time of renewal and
reawakening, and the Meatout, the introduction of a healthful lifestyle,
should coincide. These Meatout programs offer a fresh beginning free of
the suffering of not only farmed animals, but of the humans themselves
who are spared the diseases brought on by animal products.
In reflecting on our personal journeys, Frank and I find that we
enjoy a freedom and a sense of empowerment that comes from knowing that
our lifestyle causes as little suffering as possible to animals, as well
as to ourselves and our fellow human beings.
We are aware of the unnecessary suffering of people who are
manipulated and led into a cycle of dependence on the medical and
pharmaceutical industries. We are also aware of the enormous suffering
of the poverty-stricken around the globe, many of whom go hungry because
their land is used to grow crops for export to the countries that need
more and more feed for the farmed animal industry. Add to that the
critical shortage of clean water in poor countries, as well and the
serious water pollution caused in the United States by huge factory
farms. Please read the well-documented information at:
http://all-creatures.org/articles/env-theimpact.html
