On Why be Vegetarian- Non religious Reasons

[Guest guest]

"SAIRAM,ASHWIN M,MR" <BUFG

a couple of questions

Sat, 21 Sep 1996 03:47:52 EDT

 

Secondly, as a university student with many local friends and

acquaintances, I consider it an important duty of mine to try and promot

vegetarianism amongst them. I am able to defend my point of view fairly

easily with plausible arguments. It is with my Hindu friends that I run

into problems trying to convince.

 

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Here is an old posting I captured few years ago.

 

Article: 9922 of rec.food.veg

ded (David Edwards /DP)

Newsgroups: rec.food.veg

>From The New York Times, Tuesday, June 20, 1989

__________

 

Human beings in America: 243 million.

 

Number of people who could be fed with grain and soybeans now eaten byU.S.

livestock: 1.3 billion.

 

Percentage of corn grown in U.S. eaten by people: 20%

 

Percentage of corn grown in U.S. eaten by livestock: 80%

 

Percentage of oats grown in U.S. eaten by livestock: 95%

 

Percentage of protein waste by cycling grain through livestock: 99%

 

Pounds of potatoes that can be grown on an acre: 20,000

 

Pounds of beef produced on an acre: 165.

 

Percentage of U.S. farmland devoted to beef production: 56%

 

Pounds of grain and soybeans needed to produce a pound of beef: 16.

___________

 

Cause of global warming: greenhouse effect.

 

Primary cause of greenhouse effect: carbon dioxide emissions from fossilfuels.

Fossil fuels needed to produce a meat-centered diet vs. a meat-free diet: 50

times more.

 

Percentage of U.S. topsoil lost to date: 75%

 

Percentage of U.S. topsoil loss directly related to livestock raising: 85%

 

Number of acres of U.S. forest cleared for cropland to produce meat-centered

diet: 260 million.

 

Amount of meat U.S. imports annually from Costa Rica, El Salvador,Guatemala,

Honduras and Panama: 200 million pounds.

 

Average per capita meat consumption in Costa Rica, El Salvador,Guatemala,

Honduras and Panama: less than eaten by average U.S housecat.

 

Area of tropical rainforest consumed in every quarter-pound hamburger: 55 sq.

ft.

 

Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests

for meat grazing and other uses: 1000 per year.

___________

 

Increased risk of breast cancer for women who eat meat 4 times a week vs. less

than once a week: 4 times more.

 

For women who eat eggs daily vs. less than once a week: 3 times more.

 

Increased risk of fatal ovarian cancer for women who eat eggs 3 or more times a

week vs. less than once a week: 3 times more.

 

Increased risk of fatal prostate cancer for men who eat meat daily vs. sparingly

or not at all: 3.6 times more.

___________

 

Use of more than half of all water used for all purposes in the U.S: livestock

portion.

 

Amount of water used in production of the average steer: sufficient to float a

destroyer.

 

Gallons to produce a pound of wheat: 25

 

Gallons to produce a pound of meat: 2,500

 

Cost of common hamburger if water used by meat industry was not subsidized by

the U.S. taxpayer: $35 a pound.

 

Current cost of pound of protein from beefsteak, if water was no longer

subsidized: $89

 

Years the world's known oil reserves would last if every human ate a

meat-centered diet: 13

 

Years they would last if human beings no longer ate meat: 260

 

Barrels of oil imported into U.S. daily: 6.8 million.

 

Percentage of fossil fuel returned as food energy by most efficient factory

farming of meat: 34.5%

 

Percentage returned from least efficient plant food: 32.8%

 

Percentage of raw materials consumed by U.S. to produce meat-centered diet: 33%

___________

 

Number of U.S. medical schools: 125

 

Number requiring a course in nutrition: 30

 

Nutrition received by average U.S. physician during four years in medical

school: 25 hours.

 

Most common cause of death in U.S: heart attack.

 

How frequently heart attack kills in U.S: every 45 seconds.

 

Average U.S. man's risk of death from heart attack: 50%

 

Risk for average U.S. man who avoids the meat-centered diet: 15%

 

Meat industry claims you should not be concerned about your blood cholesterol if

it is: "normal"

 

Your risk of dying of a disease caused by clogged arteries if your blood

cholesterol is "normal": over 50%

___________

 

Percentage of U.S. antibiotics fed to livestock: 55%

 

Percentage of staphylococci infections resistant to penicillin in 1960: 13%

 

Percentage resistant in 1988: 91%

 

Response of European Economic Community to routine feeding of antibiotics to

livestock: ban.

 

Response of U.S. meat and pharmaceutical industries to routine feeding of

antibiotics to livestock: full and complete support.

___________

 

Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by grains: 1%

 

Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by fruits: 4%

 

Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by dairy products:

23%

 

Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by meat: 55%

 

Pesticide contamination of breast milk from meat-eating mothers vs. non-meat

eating mothers: 35 times higher.

 

What USDA tells us: meat is inspected.

 

Percentage of slaughtered animals inspected for residues of toxic chemicals

including dioxin and DDT: less than 0.00004%

___________

 

Number of animals killed for meat per hour in U.S: 500,000

 

Occupation with highest turnover rate in U.S: slaughterhouse worker.

 

Occupation with highest rate of on-the-job injury in U.S: slaughterhouse worker.

 

Cost to render animal unconscious with "captive bolt pistol" before

slaughter: 1 cent.

 

Reason given by meat industry for not using "captive bolt pistol": too

expensive.

___________

 

Athlete to win Ironman Triathlon more than twice: Dave Scott (6 time winner)

 

Food choices of Dave Scott: Vegetarian

 

Largest meat-eater that ever lived: Tyrannosaurus Rex.

 

Last sighting of Tyrannosaurus Rex: 100,000,000 B.C.

 

------

David Edwards