Speaker praises vegan diet
Speaker praises vegan diet
Professor says people should not eat meat because of suffering
Alyssa Miller | Chief Reporter
October 15, 2004 www.bsudailynews.com
People should make their own choices about the immorality of eating meat, a Northern Illinois professor said Thursday night.
"It doesn't matter what I think, and it doesn't matter what the experts think," Mylan Engel Jr. said. "You have to make your own decisions."
In his lecture lecture, "Beyond Fast Food: Is Vegetarianism Morally Required? You Decide," Engel described the horrors or factory farming.
"Virtually all commercial animal agriculture causes animals intense pain and suffering," Engel said. "Two hundred and ninety-three animals are brutally slaughtered every second so that we can enjoy Happy Meals."
Factory farmers also add cement dust to cattle feed to promote fast, unnatural weight gain. Slaughterhouses perform castrations and amputations on animals' beaks, toes and horns without anesthesia, Engle said.
Engle, the nephew of hog farmers, grew up in Alabama learning to hunt. He said that, as a child visiting his uncle's factory farm, he witnessed a piglet castration up close and decided he wasn't going to support an industry he felt encouraged suffering.
"I looked inside and asked myself if I want to support unnecessary pain," Engle said. "I don't support sweatshops - I don't buy clothes made there - I'm not going to support this industry. It's impossible to eat meat without supporting factory farms."
The health risks of eating meat are evident and far outweigh the pleasure of taste, Engle said.
"We all know no one needs to eat meat to survive or be healthy," Engle said. "One out of every two meat-eaters have heart attacks. One of every 100 vegans have heart attacks."
Engle argued that if humans have the right to life, animals should too.
He also said that it's impossible to be completely consistent. For example, Engle has used film and rubber car tires, which are made from cows' stomach lining.
"Just because you can't do everything, doesn't mean you shouldn't do anything." Engle said. "If we take conscious steps, we can reduce unnecessary suffering."
Engle's lecture was cosponsored by Freshman Connections and the Department of Philosophy.
Melinda Messineo, assistant director of Freshman Connections, said she was glad to see a good turnout for the event.
"I just wish we had more time for question and answer," Messineo said. "The program is strongest when people have the opportunity to debate the issues. I'm glad students were thinking about their own views and challenging the speaker."
Reply With Quote
Engle
Wow! I had no idea the difference was so large!
Bookmarks