Misleading Myth #24 … “But 3rd World peoples need to eat meat to survive” (08/20/14)
Hmmm … While I find it somewhat hard to believe that anyone could seriously use this argument to justify their support of animal exploitation, IF you happen to be one of the meat-eaters who does, then you might want to consider the following points of interest …
*You might want to consider that the Maasai tribe in Kenya, one of the few cultures that does sustain itself on a diet that is primarily animal-based, currently has the worst life expectancy in the world.
*You might want to consider that in Ethiopia, over 40 percent of the population is either hungry or starving — even though that country one of the largest herds of cattle in the world; a massive herd that happens to be unnecessarily consuming large amounts of direly needed food, water and farm-able land. Indeed, instead of inefficiently focusing their resources on livestock, the Ethiopians could easily meet all their dietary needs by using all that land and energy and topsoil and water to grow and harvest teff — an ancient, highly-nutritious, protein-laden & calcium-rich grain that has been regularly grown in that region for the past 25,000 years.
*You might want to consider that already significant shifts in global climate are causing the traditionally cold-weather hunter societies (like the Inuits & the indigenous Mongolians) to form more modern municipalities and obtain their food from source other than hunting.
*And finally, you might want to consider the flagrantly obvious fact (and actually the only fact that is relevant) that you are not living under even remotely similar circumstances to these people — you might want to consider the now flagrantly obvious fact that YOU ARE NOT A 3rd WORLD CITIZEN, and as such, cannot use this excuse to justify your own fully unnecessary consumption of animal flesh &/or animal secretions.
It has been poignantly asked before: does one person’s need excuse another’s greed? If a battered woman shoots her husband to defend her children, are we all allowed to go forth and gun down whomever we please? If we find it acceptable for an impoverished father to steal medication for his sick child, is it then also encouraged that we all go forth each day and take whatever catches our fancy? And if it is OK for a child to tell a lie in order to keep a friend safe from harm, does that make it permissible for us all to go forth and speak falsehoods whenever it benefits us? … Of course not!
Similarly, just because there are extremely rare instances of 3rd World communities that truly do need to eat animals to survive, in NO WAY justifies the vast majority of us living in far more food-rich environments from doing so.
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