Like most kids, when I was little I went through a stage where I loved animals. It went from following our long-suffering family dog, Dusty, around like a stalker, to hanging pictures of bunny rabbits all over my room, to announcing in the 5th grademuch to my mother’s dismaythat I would no longer be eating meat. Ever. But unlike most stages kids go through, this one stuck. What was initially a combination of having seen lobsters being cooked, reading Charlotte’s Web, and having a titanium-strength stubborn streak, evolved into a life-long refusal to eat the cute critters I love so dearly (though, honestly, my cat Sniffles can make me so crazy that I’m not above telling her that one more 2 a.m. stepping on my face incident, and she’s being served for dinner. Hey, no one’s perfect).
One thing I’ve always worked hard to avoid is being one of those vegetarians. You know, the ones who insist on having their veggie burgers cooked on separate grills at backyard BBQs, the ones who only need the slightest promptingeven if it’s imaginaryto launch into a 40-minute lecture on all the reasons people shouldn’t eat meat. This avoidance is partly due to a trait of fearing-any-and-all-conflict-and-thinking-that-everyone-must-get-along-at-all-times, and also an unwillingness to give the people who look for opportunities to rag on vegetarianism an openingand trust me, I’ve heard it all over the years. But when an opportunity to talk about something I’m so passionate about does arise, I’m not above taking advantage. Case in point:
Today just happens to be the North American Vegetarian Society’s annual celebration of World Vegetarian Day , the kick-off of Vegetarian Awareness Month! People choose a vegetarian diet for a number of reasonsfrom Charlotte’s Web and stubbornness, to health benefits and a desire to help preserve the Earthand the North American Vegetarian Society wants to help non-vegetarians find their own reason to give meatless eating a try.
And what’s a better incentive than cash?
Non-vegetarians who pledge to abstain from all meat, fish and fowl during Vegetarian Awareness Month (October) will be entered in a random drawing for cash prizes. One winner will be chosen in each of the following three categories: One day $250; One week $500; One month $1,000.
Go to worldvegetarianday.org to enter the “Give Vegetarianism a Try” contest. All you have to do is fill out a pledge card, send it in, and poofyou could win a thousand bucks. Oh, and you’d also happen to be helping:
·Reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer, while cutting exposure to foodborne pathogens
·Provide a viable answer to feeding the world’s hungry through more efficient use of grains and other crops
·Save animals from suffering in factory-farm conditions and from the pain and terror of slaughter
·Conserve vital but limited freshwater, fertile topsoil and other precious resources
·Preserve irreplaceable ecosystems such as rainforests and other wildlife habitats
·Decrease greenhouse gases that are accelerating global warming
·Mitigate the ever-expanding environmental pollution of animal agriculture
Not that I’m lecturing, of course. I just like cute critters.
–Amy, KIWI articles editor
by kiwilog
Like most kids, when I was little I went through a stage where I loved animals. It went from following our long-suffering family dog, Dusty, around like a stalker, to hanging pictures of bunny rabbits all over my room, to announcing in the 5th grademuch to my mother’s dismaythat I would no longer be eating meat. Ever. But unlike most stages kids go through, this one stuck. What was initially a combination of having seen lobsters being cooked, reading Charlotte’s Web, and having a titanium-strength stubborn streak, evolved into a life-long refusal to eat the cute critters I love so dearly (though, honestly, my cat Sniffles can make me so crazy that I’m not above telling her that one more 2 a.m. stepping on my face incident, and she’s being served for dinner. Hey, no one’s perfect).
One thing I’ve always worked hard to avoid is being one of those vegetarians. You know, the ones who insist on having their veggie burgers cooked on separate grills at backyard BBQs, the ones who only need the slightest promptingeven if it’s imaginaryto launch into a 40-minute lecture on all the reasons people shouldn’t eat meat. This avoidance is partly due to a trait of fearing-any-and-all-conflict-and-thinking-that-everyone-must-get-along-at-all-times, and also an unwillingness to give the people who look for opportunities to rag on vegetarianism an openingand trust me, I’ve heard it all over the years. But when an opportunity to talk about something I’m so passionate about does arise, I’m not above taking advantage. Case in point:
Today just happens to be the North American Vegetarian Society’s annual celebration of World Vegetarian Day , the kick-off of Vegetarian Awareness Month! People choose a vegetarian diet for a number of reasonsfrom Charlotte’s Web and stubbornness, to health benefits and a desire to help preserve the Earthand the North American Vegetarian Society wants to help non-vegetarians find their own reason to give meatless eating a try.
And what’s a better incentive than cash?
Non-vegetarians who pledge to abstain from all meat, fish and fowl during Vegetarian Awareness Month (October) will be entered in a random drawing for cash prizes. One winner will be chosen in each of the following three categories: One day $250; One week $500; One month $1,000.
Go to worldvegetarianday.org to enter the “Give Vegetarianism a Try” contest. All you have to do is fill out a pledge card, send it in, and poofyou could win a thousand bucks. Oh, and you’d also happen to be helping:
·Reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer, while cutting exposure to foodborne pathogens
·Provide a viable answer to feeding the world’s hungry through more efficient use of grains and other crops
·Save animals from suffering in factory-farm conditions and from the pain and terror of slaughter
·Conserve vital but limited freshwater, fertile topsoil and other precious resources
·Preserve irreplaceable ecosystems such as rainforests and other wildlife habitats
·Decrease greenhouse gases that are accelerating global warming
·Mitigate the ever-expanding environmental pollution of animal agriculture
Not that I’m lecturing, of course. I just like cute critters.
–Amy, KIWI articles editor