Mind : Blown Eyes : Open

I have been looking into vegetarianism and veganism (is that the right word?) lately... and it all started with a documentary I saw online. One video led to another, and I was floored. I had no idea that - well, scratch that... I suppose I had an idea.. but I never thought about it... and I like to be naive... but in the subject of the meat industry, ignorance is bliss.

I can never look at a pork chop the same again.

Or my rib eye steak I have in the fridge...

Or my eggs.

Or cheese.

The pig... They drowned it in scalding water WHILE IT WAS ALIVE (obviously, to drown you have to be alive...) Then it got worse.

The cow... they drag it by its foot.... then it gets too grusome for me to talk about.

The mommy cows are kept in small stalls where they can't walk. They are strapped to these milk machines, and constantly kept pregnant with artificial insemination AND THEY DON'T EVEN GET TO NURSE THEIR BABIES!!! THE BABIES ARE TAKEN AWAY! (Sorry, that one really got me... I happen to be a nursing mom... the mommy cow wanted her baby... it was so sad).

The chickens are just terrible.

I could go on and on about what I saw, but the bottom line is that now that I have seen it, my eyes are open. My mcdonalds cheeseburger isn't as innocent as I thought it was.

For some reason, I dunno.... I actually thought that the food meat industry wasn't cruel.

And in reality they are not cruel, it is way past that. What happens in slaughterhouses should be a crime. I'm not gonna run around and say that to eat meat is a sin and don't kill animals... but for goodness sake can we at least have respect? Let them LIVE while they are alive. Let them die with a little dignity, not on a conveyer belt. Not kept in boxes. Not separated from their babies. Not as unnatural as it has become.

The native americans had it right. When they killed, they did so to feed their family. They used 100% of the animal. Nothing was wasted. They also thanked the animal for its sacrifice. They looked it in the eyes as it died.

If everyone had to look their hamburger in the eyes as it died, and pull out its intestines... there would be a lot less hamburgers.

There is a saying, "if slaughterhouses had glass walls, we would all be vegans."

I kind of agree. I'll never look at meat and dairy the same. I also think though, that if slaughterhouses had glass walls, they would become much more humane real quick.