beccagrapevines
Oct 29, 2014
Undergraduate / "vegetarian manner of living would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind" Ignorance = Bliss [3]
Hi! I am submitting this essay to 2 schools: to one it needs to be shortened (maximum 4000 characters) and for one there is no limit. It would be helpful if you all could help me find bits to take out, as well as parts to put in for the other school without a limit.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?[
Ignorance Is Bliss
Albert Einstein once stated, "It is my view that the vegetarian manner of living, by its purely physical effect on the human temperament, would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind." Meat is a staple that most of us expect on our plates on a daily basis, yet typically regret to ponder the process undergone to get there and the outcomes of its production. After considerable reflection, I decided to look past the popular yet mostly uninformed opinion of those around me. By doing this, I was able to form the judgment that eating meat did not fit into my values nor my health expectations and as a result, I made the decision to become a vegetarian.
About five years ago, I came across a video online which exposed the harsh realities of factory farms. This sparked my interest and encouraged me to further research the issue. The results I found were shocking; each year in the United State alone, ten billion animals living in awfully unkempt and crowded conditions are slaughtered. Government regulations initiated for factory farms are often ignored, causing unnecessary suffering and pain for these neglected animals. Studies have shown that domesticated farm animals such as pigs and cows show similar levels of intelligence as animals that people consider pets, such as cats and dogs. They rely on others to do the work for them and are content with ignoring the history of the food on their plate. I, however, choose to accept the fact that these measures are present and choose to not enjoy what I consider to be blissful ignorance. Discovering these unappetizing truths about the production of meat was the main factor toward my decision to disregard the majority and to consume a meat-free diet.
Being a vegetarian does not only fit my personal morals, but also fits the type of healthy lifestyle I would ideally like to live. Another major reason I decided to become a vegetarian was due to all of the health benefits that it brings. Compared to meat eaters, vegetarians have a thirty-two percent lower risk of developing ischemic heart disease, along with healthier blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Vegetarianism is also believed to prevent other diseases. For example, gout, a disease that many wealthy, meat-indulging historical figures have been notorious for, is caused by a build-up of uric acid in the blood which is often caused by uric acid-causing purines in red meats. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is now rumored to have gout as a result of his indulgent lifestyle, which likely includes considerably large amounts of meat. An argument often made in opposition to vegetarianism is that meat provides important nutritional values that cannot be derived from anywhere else, yet there are many protein and vitamin rich vegetables available for our consumption. I personally see no negative consequences regarding my health as a result from engaging in a vegetarian diet.
No matter how drastic measures are made regarding the production of meat, I will continue to hold my stance on maintaining a vegetarian diet. Being a vegetarian not only benefits myself, but also betters others around me and the environment that we share. According to scientists, an area equivalent to seven football fields is bulldozed each minute, with the majority of the land being cleared being to create crops to feed the growing over-population of livestock. Subsequently, every vegetarian saves about 1 acre of trees each year. Along with the land demolished for over-population, these copious amounts of animals, particularly the livestock sector of cows, are responsible for eighteen percent of greenhouse gas emissions around the world. The methane emitted from the livestock is harmful to our ozone layer, and if there was not such a high demand for the meat of these animals, our world could be a healthier place for us all to live in.
The popular choice around the world to eat meat is one that I personally do not agree with, and is a belief that I will continue to testify against for the remainder of my life, which I hope to be one of well-being as a result of my healthy diet choices. If more people were aware of the harsh realities and consequences that result from eating meat, I believe that a large majority would share my contrary opinion. The moral, health and environmental factors that result from being a vegetarian are significant reasons why I believe that a meat-free diet is most beneficial. As Isaac Singer, a great American innovator once put it, "People often say that humans have always eaten animals, as if this is a justification for continuing the practice. According to this logic, we should not try to prevent people from murdering other people, since this has also been done since the earliest of times."
Hi! I am submitting this essay to 2 schools: to one it needs to be shortened (maximum 4000 characters) and for one there is no limit. It would be helpful if you all could help me find bits to take out, as well as parts to put in for the other school without a limit.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?[
Ignorance Is Bliss
Albert Einstein once stated, "It is my view that the vegetarian manner of living, by its purely physical effect on the human temperament, would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind." Meat is a staple that most of us expect on our plates on a daily basis, yet typically regret to ponder the process undergone to get there and the outcomes of its production. After considerable reflection, I decided to look past the popular yet mostly uninformed opinion of those around me. By doing this, I was able to form the judgment that eating meat did not fit into my values nor my health expectations and as a result, I made the decision to become a vegetarian.
About five years ago, I came across a video online which exposed the harsh realities of factory farms. This sparked my interest and encouraged me to further research the issue. The results I found were shocking; each year in the United State alone, ten billion animals living in awfully unkempt and crowded conditions are slaughtered. Government regulations initiated for factory farms are often ignored, causing unnecessary suffering and pain for these neglected animals. Studies have shown that domesticated farm animals such as pigs and cows show similar levels of intelligence as animals that people consider pets, such as cats and dogs. They rely on others to do the work for them and are content with ignoring the history of the food on their plate. I, however, choose to accept the fact that these measures are present and choose to not enjoy what I consider to be blissful ignorance. Discovering these unappetizing truths about the production of meat was the main factor toward my decision to disregard the majority and to consume a meat-free diet.
Being a vegetarian does not only fit my personal morals, but also fits the type of healthy lifestyle I would ideally like to live. Another major reason I decided to become a vegetarian was due to all of the health benefits that it brings. Compared to meat eaters, vegetarians have a thirty-two percent lower risk of developing ischemic heart disease, along with healthier blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Vegetarianism is also believed to prevent other diseases. For example, gout, a disease that many wealthy, meat-indulging historical figures have been notorious for, is caused by a build-up of uric acid in the blood which is often caused by uric acid-causing purines in red meats. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un is now rumored to have gout as a result of his indulgent lifestyle, which likely includes considerably large amounts of meat. An argument often made in opposition to vegetarianism is that meat provides important nutritional values that cannot be derived from anywhere else, yet there are many protein and vitamin rich vegetables available for our consumption. I personally see no negative consequences regarding my health as a result from engaging in a vegetarian diet.
No matter how drastic measures are made regarding the production of meat, I will continue to hold my stance on maintaining a vegetarian diet. Being a vegetarian not only benefits myself, but also betters others around me and the environment that we share. According to scientists, an area equivalent to seven football fields is bulldozed each minute, with the majority of the land being cleared being to create crops to feed the growing over-population of livestock. Subsequently, every vegetarian saves about 1 acre of trees each year. Along with the land demolished for over-population, these copious amounts of animals, particularly the livestock sector of cows, are responsible for eighteen percent of greenhouse gas emissions around the world. The methane emitted from the livestock is harmful to our ozone layer, and if there was not such a high demand for the meat of these animals, our world could be a healthier place for us all to live in.
The popular choice around the world to eat meat is one that I personally do not agree with, and is a belief that I will continue to testify against for the remainder of my life, which I hope to be one of well-being as a result of my healthy diet choices. If more people were aware of the harsh realities and consequences that result from eating meat, I believe that a large majority would share my contrary opinion. The moral, health and environmental factors that result from being a vegetarian are significant reasons why I believe that a meat-free diet is most beneficial. As Isaac Singer, a great American innovator once put it, "People often say that humans have always eaten animals, as if this is a justification for continuing the practice. According to this logic, we should not try to prevent people from murdering other people, since this has also been done since the earliest of times."
