I've seen those faux leather jackets and I'd recomend not getting one. If I'm thinking of the right thing then they look like an over-glossed plastic jacket. Just my opinion though.
I had a mushu tofu thing a few months back at a restaurant and it was to DIE for. I love soy. My mom suffers from Candida, and I'm a candidate for it, as well. So, I'm quite used to eating soy cheese and other soy-based products. A vegetarian friend and I once had, "I can't believe it's not chicken." That was SOO good. Tofu chicken with a spicy mustard sauce, and we put it atop white rice. Delish! I've been doing veggie burgers for ages. I tried my first Vegan Burger, today, and it was a bit garlic-y, but good. It's the chicken that I can't give up... and the tuna sashimi. Oh, the tuna sashimi!! My grandfather owned a chicken restaurant, so that's what Mum grew up on... so that's what I grew up on... Can't get it out of my bones, but I'm more than happy to find meat-alternative recipes. Fried eggplant. Delish! I love vegetables! Spinach, corn, brocolli, brussel sprouts (my fav), lettuce, green beans! I just can't get into lima beans, or black beans... or most beans. Or asparagus... No. Oh! Thanks for the goVeg.com reference!
Thanks for the heads up, Austin! Shane, I love fruits as well! I've always been a big vegetable-fruit-eater. I'll eat any fruit except watermelon (baaaad story about the watermelon :lol: ) and raisins/prunes (my grandma made me try a prune and I spit it out). Alyssa, I absolutely ADORE veggie burgers. Gardenburger have the best, IMO. You don't even have to put ketchup on it because they have so much flavor by themselves. Morningstar are great too, I cut some up the other day and put them in a teriyaki stir-fry over white rice and it was great! I've never been a big fan of fish in general, so fish isn't a loss for me. I ate shrimp from time to time but it's not something I ate ALL the time and not something I couldn't live without. I've just never been a big seafood eater! I've tried many different brands now and I have to say I actually enjoy what I eat a lot more than I did. I get to cook my own meals (because my family all eats meat), experiment with different foods and tastes and feel a lot better about what I eat. And I also have lost a few pounds since going vegetarian (about 4-5)
Our cows go to our biggest slaughterhouse, yes I've seen the place, visited there and it's all mechanic but it has to be like that to they get the work done fast so the cows don't have to wait and wait and wait. They are very strict about that as well. And then every cow goes thru vet. I always greet our cows, that have gone to slaughterhouse, next time when I'm buying meat. I miss most of 'em so I just try to make it easier for me. I've now been twice putting cows to truck and it's so bad because I'm the one who gets them to go more easily and it's so hard. That's why I refuse to do it if it's possible. I am anemic (always been) and god what I'd be if I'd stop eating meat. I understand vegetarians, if they've fully planned how they replace the proteins they'd get from meat. But just "uh, I just change to veggies" won't take you far. As for furs, I live in an area, what is one of the biggest areas for fur-making and of course growing in that enviroment, I don't see it as bad thing. No one really starts it as new business, those are mostly places that are left to sons. Part of me thinks shouldnt' those get bigger place to live but they get food and water and are also taken good care of. Those who set them free, are just criminals and insane people. Yes, let them free to the nature where they die in a day or two because they don't get any food. meh..sorry, bit going to wrong direction.
I've been a vegetarian since I was twelve (so for four years by now), a) because I have always loved animals, b) because it felt wrong to me to eat something that had been as alive as a human is and c) because I didn't (and still don't I guess) like the taste of meat. I don't eat fish and poultry either, but I do eat honey, dairy and eggs of free-range chicken. It makes me feel way healthier and I have never had any trouble not eating meat. There are so many alternatives, you can't possibly miss meat. If you're not a vegetarian and you don't stand behind the principles of vegetarianism you shouldn't become one either, but if you think animals shouldn't be treated as products (like I do) I suggest you reconsider your eating matters.
No, I didn't say you don't consider them as living things, I'm only saying they are considered products in the meat business and that's not a good thing if you'd ask me. I'm not offending anyone here.
we dont have very many meat free dishes in my house, but there is one that is soooo good! its called tortilla pie, i cant find the exact recipe but i can give you the gist of it: sautee onions, peppers, and garlic. add can of tomatoes, chopped cilantro and cumin. mix in drained can of black beans, chick peas, and corn (can be fresh). layer in a springform pan alternating whole wheat tortillas and sauce. put cheese on top (if you eat it) and bake for about 20 minutes. its so good i could eat the whole thing in one sitting :lol: as for the steaks that are half fat half meat, my dad and brother want to eat those and it grosses me out. i can tell you those animals (kobe cattle in japan and waygu in china) are treated better and probably live a better life than most people in those countries. i read that thing about the slaughter house and yeah, what do people expect? of course theres going to be blood and carcasses everywhere. the animals are killed quickly and with as little pain as possible. there is a scientific journal called 'animal welfare', if anyone has access to a university with journal subscriptions you might find it interesting. they investigate welfare of food, research, and even pet animals. if slaughter practises bother you, then fine dont eat it. it doesnt bother me because i know if those animals were in the wild they would be prey and predators arent really concerned about the most painfree way to take them down. plus the fact that we wouldnt even be here if our ancestors didnt start eating meat. but whatever, everyone has different reasons for different choices.
I’m just going to response to some of the statements in the first post… Honestly, I think they’re confusing people who eat meat with people who visit McDonalds three times a week. If I look at my vegetarian friends, I’m sick less than them and I can’t remember the last time I had the flu. I’m 6’3” and I wasn’t the dumbest kid in class and can’t say I ate a lot of vegetables when I was a child. So, I'm still very sceptical about the vegetarians are healthier than meat-eaters-thing.
vegetarians have a higher risk of stroke and blood clots. they also have lower platlete counts, lower lymphocyte counts (the cells responsible for immune defenses) and lower bone mineral density. no diet is perfect, even with supplements. so when choosing a diet based on health reasons one needs to weigh the pros and cons of each choice.
Ah ok. Just got idea that "people who eat meat consider those animals as products" AS for those "vegetarians are healthier"... oh yes, my family has had meat eaters and let's see... my dad's gradmothers both lived 87, same did his mother. My grandpas were both 80+ ummm...my mom has three aunties over 90 (oldest 96, then 94 and 93) and youngest is 80... Genes affect more to your growth than vegetables. I think it's in general HEALTH FOOD and enough sleep (plus genes) that make you grow. No matter how much I'd eaten veggies when I was a kid - I wouldn't be any taller because my parents are not tall. Neither my grandparents. And I wasn't the most stupid kid in the school.. learnt to read in age of 5. So what matters to your "long age" is the enviroment, genes and healthy way of living (tho my grandma smoked over 60 yrs and lived to age 87).
See, I eat very little meat because my body can't handle it. I can eat red meat maybe once a week without getting ill. Chicken has always been my main means of gaining protein, since childhood. So, I don't want to eat chicken every night! Vegetarian dishes give me another option. If any of you are big on veggies, we eat this dish called ratatouille. It's absolutely delish. My Spanish grandmother taught my dad, and I'm still trying to learn how to make it without it getting too tomatoe-y. It has zuchini, yellow squash, onions, crushed tomatoes, eggplant, and green peppers, and it's absolutely incredible. In my household, we eat it with french bread, and we make such a big pot that it lasts days. I don't mind. It's delish! If anyone wants the exact recipe, let me know. I just adore it. When I was younger, it was the only way I'd eat eggplant and peppers.
wow it's great that i found this thread now!! i really consider becoming a vegetarian now .. i chose to make a presentation about animal abuse and vegetarianism in school. my presentation will be in about 3 weeks or something but i'm alredy doing research .. like today i spent 3 hours on the peta site. and what i found out was horrible but it really opened my eyes .. i'm pretty sure i'll become a vegetarian now . i just don't think i can eat meat again without having a bad conscience !!
If you really want to live without a bad conscience, you should eat only what you grow yourself and make your own clothes etc, because almost everything in this world is made at the expense of someone else. There's no end to it, you might as well eat meat.. I was just talking to my friend about donating blood. She can't do it because she is a vegetarian. I can and I have, so what does that say about her health and of all the other vegetarians?
Those vids and pics that PETA has on their site... I just try to point out that those are in US. It doesn't mean every country is like that and I'd tell everyone to do research about conditions in your own country and then buy your country's meat, because you know how it's handled. At least here in Finland we have very different and very strict rules. To slaughterhouses and farmers. Lauw, you are right about that. Everything is made at the expensove of someone else. I'd so hate "OMG! I stop eating meat coz those american cows are treated so badly"