What do you do when you're not dancing?

[SDsalsaguy]

Another question, what about vegatarians (other than for health reasons) who eat fish??? What's up with that? Aren't fish made out of meat as well? :shrug:

Depends on their reasons for being a vegetarian. Many of the moral and environmental concerns that apply to land animals and poultry are not applicable to seafood.

 

[pygmalion]

And nutritional concerns, too, right SD? Meaning fish has all kinds of good fatty acids that meat doesn't. It's also lower in saturated fats and calories, and overall quite good for you. Meat, especially red meat, has the protein, but comes with lots of dietary down sides. Right??? :?

Don't take this to mean that I'm going to change my ways, though. I'm a carnivore to the core. :twisted: :lol:

 

[SDsalsaguy]

All quite true Jenn...but Swing Kitten's question had said "other than for health reasons." :wink:

 

[Swing Kitten]

Alright I see the overall evironmental side... and that people are causing there to be a disproportionately large number of cows in the world which is not to hot for the overall ecosystem.

 

[dancer at heart]

Many of the moral and environmental concerns that apply to land animals and poultry are not applicable to seafood.

Again, that would be an inconsistency on the moral issue if that is the reason besides health.

I'm a vegan myself, for both health and moral reasons, (though growing up I was such a hard core carnivore ) Soy and veggies does a body good!

 

[pygmalion]

Dancer at heart. I'm dying to know what you mean by moral reasons. Please PM me, if you don't feel comfortable talking in a open forum. This thread has me thinking, and I really would love to see another's point of view.

Jenn

 

[SDsalsaguy]

Many of the moral and environmental concerns that apply to land animals and poultry are not applicable to seafood.

Again, that would be an inconsistency on the moral issue if that is the reason besides health.

I disagree dd. Some vegetarians are concerned about the grain to meat ratio (10:1) and the impact this has on food supplies to/in the "poorer" nations. Needless to say grain isn't raised for fish – instead of for people – in the same way as it is for cows, pigs, sheep, chickens, etc.

Similarly, the slash and burn agriculture used to create ever expanding grazing land (especially throughout South America) has environmental ramifications that fishing does not.

For others the issue of undue pain/suffering is of importance and they recognize the less developed neural systems/pain reception of fish as a mitigating factor.

I'm not trying to preach so I do apologize, in advance, if this in any way comes across in that matter...just trying to present some of the under girding considerations that a given individual might take into consideration.

 

[pygmalion]

Now I see what everybody's talking about with moral issues and vegetarian lifestyles. It may sound dumb and perhaps inadequate, but that's why I don't eat veal. The unbelievably inhumane (Yes, I KNOW they're animals, but still) way they are treated turns my stomach. It's not just about the pain they feel, but also about the lives they live. Anybody who's ever been to a large-scale breeding farm can attest to that.

Thanks for sharing, SD. :?

 

[dancer at heart]

Moral issues would include the suffering that animals go thru when slaughtered, the impact on the envornment in terms of grazing and what it takes to produce for example a steak (but I must argue that we cannot simply say because fishy has a less extensive neural path that they do not feel pain therefore it is morally ok for consumption...don't get me wrong, fishy are great if one is vegetarian for health reasons) and since I am a buddhist, I believe in karma on cycles of life.

I typically don't talk about being a vegetarian since it tend to press people's button (not to mention all the lecture I would get on why I should not be a vegetarian :? )

 

[pygmalion]

No lectures here. We all have the right to make our life choices and to be respected when we do so.

I was just wondering what would prompt such a lifestyle change. Now I understand better. And I'll likely have a days and nights of pondering this while I try to wrap my conscience around how I'm living. Then I'll decide. No matter how it goes, I'd rather be informed than uninformed.

Thanks. 8)

Jenn

 

[SwinginBoo]

I'm not a vegan, nor vegetarian - though I do enjoy teryaki tofu & soy delicious ice cream.

In my spare time I like to:

Sing
Run
Sit in coffee shops for hours with friends
practice ASL
Drive back and forth btwn RI and CT
cook
draw
color in coloring books
nap on the couch

lots of other things I'm sure...but I don't have much spare time that I don't use for dancing :lol:

 

[SDsalsaguy]

dd...I'm not saying that fish don't feel pain, just that some argue that its not of the same magnitude as animals with more elaborated neural systems. Personally I don't know enough about this to decide one way or the other...just providing it as an example.

Since some people here seem curious about information, the last numbers I saw had 1 acre of rain forest, per year, per person, being destroyed for new grazing land. Personally that raises a score of associated considerations in my mind including, but not limited to, (1) oxygen production and air filtering requiring large, uninterrupted tracts of forest, (2) extinction of various plant and animal species (keep in mind that over half of the earth's surface biodiversity – there is more in the oceans – is in the rain forests), and (3) possible non-synthesizeble medicinal compounds being wiped out.

 

[dancersdreamland]

SD - Quick question for you, who is dd?

Another point...my apologies for drawing up such a heated discussion thread...all because of ice cream.

And my final point...I think I'll have to hold off on reading this particular board for a while and my stomach is beginning to churn on the whole meat issue and I'm likely to give it up for good... :shock: :mrgreen:

Thanks for all the info though, and I truly admire all of you for believing in something, sticking with it, being knowledgeable about it, and for standing up for what you believe in.

 

[Swing Kitten]

oh is this heated??
:lol:
it didn't strike me as such!

I guess I've spent too much time in the swing forum!!

oh! did I just say that out loud?? :shock:

 

[SDsalsaguy]

SD - Quick question for you, who is dd?

You are silly :tongue: ...dancersdreamland :!: (I actually think Vince was the first one to abbreviate you thus.)

Another point...my apologies for drawing up such a heated discussion thread...all because of ice cream.

I'm with Swing Kitten on this one...I didn't find this heated in the least. And I am very, very sorry if anyone took anything I said in such a light. I have made decisions about how I want to live my life but make no claims that they are any better then anyone else's!