The media has been abuzz in recent months breathlessly detailing the impact that private jets and super yachts have on the environment.
Here’s an ARTICLE from The Guardian.
While I don’t disagree with the data and the argument that ‘the Rich’ dump more than their unfair share of carbon emissions into the atmosphere and consequently contribute to global warming, I do find the focus to be on a little bit of an easy target.
‘The Rich’ do participate in plenty of bad behaviors, some of which harm the rest of society more than others. They avoid taxes in every way legally permitted and sometimes in any way possible, leaving governments and the middle class to shoulder the public debt with reduced revenues. They corrupt the political process with soft-money/dark-money campaign contributions to lawmakers, private jet/luxury getaway vacations and sweetheart real estate and loans to judges, and obviously quid pro quo investments in hedge funds run by former White House officials.
That kind of stuff is happening at present and will probably continue to happen in the future. We can advocate for tougher legislation and regulation, but exactly how much influence we as citizens on these issues is debatable.
What we can do–at least about climate change–is more personal and more challenging than we would care to admit: eliminating the consumption of animal products and adopting a plant-based diet.
Before you roll your eyes and click off the blog, know that your choice on this issue–and you’re making a choice even if you don’t make a choice–will impact the planet your children or grandchildren will inherit. It will be a planet that continues to endure the devastation of our natural resources and suffers as a consequence, or a planet that has a chance to renew itself, survive, and thrive again.
So if you’re okay with saying to your child, “Hey, you know, the whole factory farming business involving cows, chickens, and fish is really destroying the planet, but I just can’t give up the taste of a juicy steak or fried chicken or grilled salmon,” then do that.
It’s easy to disconnect our own daily decisions from the global impact they have. We rationalize: Oh, one person can’t make a difference. Or we sell ourselves short because we’re fearful: I could never adopt a vegan diet.
The truth is often much more unpleasant: we just don’t want to make the effort. We’d rather blame ‘the rich’ or someone else–anyone else–for the way things are than take a small, life-changing step to improve not just the planet’s health, but our health as well.
People sometimes ask me why I don’t eat animals or animal products. I’m tempted to ask them why they still do. (I’m too polite to actually do this.)
Is it good for your health? No, at least not according the the World Health Organization. Is it good for the animals? Obviously not. They are raised in horrible conditions and meet an equally unpleasant death. Is it good for the planet? Absolutely not, says the National Institutes of Health, among other leading research organizations.
The natural resources, packaging, and transportation required to raise, feed, house, slaughter, process, package and transport animals are enormous and costly. It’s a horrible business model to invest so much into a product that is going to be only one ingredient for one meal. If you don’t believe me, read all about from those tree-hugging, left-wing nuts over at Forbes magazine.
If you need more food for thought about the health benefits of a plant based diet, watch these documentary films:
Forks Over Knives https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjTWFoqLy34
What The Health https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obx7cJtk3fE
and Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-WUP5psyuM
as well as the recent Netflix series You Are What You Eat: The Twin Experiment
Please watch all of these documentaries before commenting here that human beings actually need cow’s milk to be healthy (the calcium argument), or that eating meat is necessary to get all the essential vitamins and minerals we need to be healthy, or that humans are naturally supposed to eat animals (I don’t even know what to call this argument.) And even after watching these films, please don’t make those arguments. They just don’t hold water in the scientific community.
Truth be told, eating animal products is the result of culture (how we were raised), convenience (what’s available, easy, and inexpensive to find), and propaganda (what we’ve been told is good for us by those who benefit from our less than thoughtful choices).
Take a risk. Challenge your assumptions. Embrace change. You can live quite well, in every sense of the phrase, without eating animals. And as someone who shares the planet with you, I wish you’d seriously consider it.
Our future depends on it.
- BGT
I’m not currently a vegetarian but I have been in the past and this definitely encourages me to go back. Here’s another video to go with those you listed, https://youtu.be/-k-V3ESHcfA?si=RLXYRhG_wKcLA-IQ it is also worth a watch!
As you surely know, Byron, the Guardian is quite a left-wing enterprise. I would discount their thoughts as essentially worthless.
As far as I have observed, normal people don’t blame the rich for their environmental damage. Rather, most normal people are offended by the bold-faced hypocrisy of the rich who damage the environment, all the while lecturing the little guy abut how he should change his life in order to “save the planet.” For example, consider the case of someone who indulges in intercontinental recreational travel, all the while lecturing some poor slob about the immorality of a few homebound transgressions.
People eat meat because it is a concentrated source of protein, and because it tastes good. The Old Money guys that I know eat plenty of it, and seem to enjoy every bit. The reason that some cultures have plant-based diets is because they are poor. Generally, the richer the country, the more they eat meat.
Moreover, let me quote the Bible (Genesis 9, verse 3, New English translation): “Every creature that live and moves shall be food for you; I give you them all, as once I gave you all green plants.”
A vegan/vegetarian/plant based diet is undoubtedly healthier than the Western Pattern Diet (sometimes called the Standard American Diet or S.A.D) but if you don’t eat any animal products it’s almost impossible to get enough vitamin B12 and somewhat difficult to get enough vitamin D from food. This problem is easily solved, however. The best source of vitamin D is direct exposure to sunlight and B12 supplements are safe, effective and cheap.
Having said that, I am unwilling to give up clams, oysters and mussels. But other than that, I’m fully on board with a whole foods plant based diet. I wish my motives were as noble as Byron’s but they’re not. I do it because it makes me feel better and look better and I just don’t enjoy refined, processed foods that are high in salt, sugar and saturated fat. But at least I do it.
When considering what one can do for the environment, simply adhere to the following maxim:
THINK GLOBAL
ACT LOCAL
Hear, hear to Hudson Forbes. It is not the rich who are causing the problem, but the hypocrisy of those on the Left is nauseating. “We can fly to European climate conferences in our private jets (or government behemoths) but you cannot have a gas stove or a car that goes for more than a few hours w/out stopping to wait in line and partially juice-up. Give me a break.
By the way, my guess is that on a world stage comparison, everyone reading this blog is rich, b/c we have a roof over our heads, food in our refrigerator (regardless of its origin) and clothes on our back. The definition of “rich” could use some tailoring, I think.
I too follow the Bible and, of course, when God told us to eat meat, it does not indicate that the Almighty endorses the horrible treatment many pre-food animals suffer. A civil society should be able to stop those practices that happen on turkey farms, for instance. But it is not only food that is the problem. Watch the documentary on how an NFL football is made, how they bludgeon the cow and workers slip and slide on a blood filled floor as they remove the leather.
Of course, similar if not worse things happen to humans (child trafficking and molestation, human slavery, child sacrifice, abortion, what the Chinese are dong to the Uyghurs) but we have not eradicated those either.
I conclude that meat is not bad, and is meant by the Creator for us to eat — in moderation. My grandfather went to an early grave due to his love of breakfasts featuring ham and other savory gravy. Having written all that, for health reasons, I eat a salad every evening for dinner.
JDV
I’ve been pescatarian since my early teen years. Once you get in the habit it’s not difficult in most circumstances. Potlucks and certain restaurants can pose a challenge, however. It’s much easier if you live in a city as opposed to a rural area.
Regarding health concerns, I can’t speak for every vegetarian-adjacent person, but anecdotally my blood work has been consistently superb. My doctor says my vitamin B and iron levels are all well within normal range despite eating a mostly plant-based diet, and without supplements, even. It is possible!
I would say that if you definitely feel you can’t give up on animal products all together (even I still eat eggs, dairy, and seafood occasionally), cutting down on them at all can make a big difference.
As the person who cooks in my household, and being married to a devout meat eater, I felt overwhelmed by the idea of becoming a vegan even though I’d like to, mainly because I have a busy job and the idea of completely changing my shopping habits and learning new recipes at the moment seems overwhelming. Fortuitiously, my husband and I ate at a Middle Eastern restaurant for lunch right after I read this post, and after we’d ordered the baba ganoush/hummus/felafel/stuffed grape leaves platter to share, I pointed out that everything on the plate was vegan. I asked if he’d be willing for us to have one vegan day a week, and he surprised me by saying yes. So, manageable changes for me re: cooking/shopping, and not too sweeping a change for him. Baby steps!
Thanks for sharing, Byron and commenters – it’s good that we’re all thinking about the impact of what we eat and buy. I wholeheartedly agree that CAFOs and other large-scale, industrial animal production systems are bad for the Earth, the animals, and us. One thing that I’m working on – and that might be an achievable option for someone interested in lowering their carbon footprint but not quite ready to go fully vegan – is to eat plant-based when I’m out of the house (restaurants, traveling, etc) and support local, sustainable producers utilizing regenerative agricultural practices when I purchase meat/eggs/dairy to use at home. Cutting back the CAFOs, and directing those dollars to the ranchers and farmers helping to restore grasslands and recapture carbon in the soil feels good to me. Hope that suggestion resonates with others.
By the way, I’m a registered dietitian – I’d encourage anyone who’s interested in following a plant-based diet to connect with/get a referral to your friendly, local dietitian, who would surely be delighted to guide a nutrition transition. Also, consider adding sea vegetables to your diet for an added nutrient boost that’s sustainable to boot. 🙂
Thank you, Erin. If you wish, please feel free to reply with your business contact information. I think our community would appreciate having someone they could speak with if they’re considering a change in diet. – BGT
That’s very generous, Byron – thank you.
For those interested in professional guidance, they can contact me at erin [dot] vangenderen [at] gmail [dot] com. I provide telelheath (phone or video) nutrition counseling, focusing on practical, personalized solutions and sustainable habit change.
Wishing good health to all! – Erin Van Genderen, RD