It's been awhile since I have been on the blog and I come back and learn we are actually discussing such esoteric ideas as vegan, vegetarian or meatatarian...never heard that word before. Well, just so you know, my gastroenterologist prescribed a meat and potatoes diet for me since I seem to no longer be able to tolerate fresh fruits and vegetables. I thought he was crazy but he seems to be right. So, there you go....for my world of experience. Did I pay him to say that...yes, he sent me a bill.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Litwiller Blog
If you have not done so lately, you may be interested in the personal blog of Wilbur and Mary at http://litwillertravels.blogspot.com/ .
They have very interesting pictures from Sweden
They have very interesting pictures from Sweden
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Ironies and Oxymorons
The older I get, the more I am fascinated by ironies (some kind of discordance between what one says or does and actually is) and oxymorons (two normally incompatible ideas or things). Many times other people don't share my views or see the ironies and oxymorons that I do. In any case, I find this kind of thinking entertaining and, sometimes, disturbing.
The recent very interesting posting by Jim Bare brings the concept of irony to mind. As you will have noticed, Jim raises questions about healthy eating especially in regard to eating red meat and being a vegetarian. The many pros and cons about being vegetarian is an interesting debate. However, am I the only person that sees a touch of irony in the fact that of all the members of the Class of 60, Jim is the only one who spent 38 years dealing with some aspect of manufacturing and selling drugs for human consumption. So Jim, how does this work? After 38 years working for Miles Labs (Bayer), you now raise questions about what one should introduce into one's body?
The concept of oxymoron has been raised in my mind in the political arena in the last several months. The "talking heads" of the political right (and religious right) have had plenty to say about torture and especially water boarding. Does anyone else have a problem with Hannity, Beck, and O'Riley saying flat out that "I am a Christian and I believe in torture (water boarding)? On what planet would this be true???
The recent very interesting posting by Jim Bare brings the concept of irony to mind. As you will have noticed, Jim raises questions about healthy eating especially in regard to eating red meat and being a vegetarian. The many pros and cons about being vegetarian is an interesting debate. However, am I the only person that sees a touch of irony in the fact that of all the members of the Class of 60, Jim is the only one who spent 38 years dealing with some aspect of manufacturing and selling drugs for human consumption. So Jim, how does this work? After 38 years working for Miles Labs (Bayer), you now raise questions about what one should introduce into one's body?
The concept of oxymoron has been raised in my mind in the political arena in the last several months. The "talking heads" of the political right (and religious right) have had plenty to say about torture and especially water boarding. Does anyone else have a problem with Hannity, Beck, and O'Riley saying flat out that "I am a Christian and I believe in torture (water boarding)? On what planet would this be true???
Friday, May 1, 2009
Vegetarian or vegan?
Vegetarian or Vegan? Subject for discussion.
When our family sat down to Easter dinner our 40 year old son surprised us by saying “Ham? I don’t eat ham”. He went on to say that hogs are the most “sentient” of animals, that is, “experiencing feeling or sensation”. “The living knew themselves as just sentient puppets on God’s stage” is a dictionary quote from T.E. Lawrence.
This was a new one for me. When we lived in England we usually cooked vegetarian style when we cooked for seminars because in any group of 20, there would always be 2 or 3 vegetarians. We also had 4 vegetarians and one vegan living in our household so we had lots of discussions. The reasons were “Oh, those poor animals”, or, because of the inefficiency of conversion of plant protein to animal protein in a world of more and more limited resources. No one there cited health reasons for their choice.
However, when we returned to rural America we discovered 5, yes 5 of our friends had read the book called THE CHINA STUDY by T. Colin Campbell and had become not just vegetarian but vegan! An article this week in the New York Times seems to confirm the wisdom of not eating red meat at least. What’s going on here?
Long ago Lois and I reduced our meat intake mainly because of cost. I could easily be a vegetarian I believe, but I’d have a difficult time doing without milk on my cereal (soy milk doesn’t do it for me), butter on my toast, or cheese with my crackers and wine. Our vegan friends do admit that it takes more planning to prepare meals from only plant derived materials. But the evidence is in – people who consume the most red meat and processed meat are likely to die sooner than people who consume much smaller amounts of these foods (NYT 4/28/09).
So I suffer from The Omnivore’s Dilemma (which is the title of a book by Michael Pollan that I recommend). When I dig into a steak or pork chop I may say “I’m supporting my farmer friends”, but am I slowly killing myself? Nowadays,if we have meat with a meal, it is usually chicken or fish; a steak or pork chop is a special treat. But is even that too much? The big push now is to “buy locally” (in other words, become a “locotarian!”) which is easy to do in a rural farming community. That may partially solve the use of resources issue, but still leaves the health issue open.
What would the farmers do if we all became vegetarians? I suggest they plant vineyards!
We have a guest coming over for supper. What’s on the menu? Lois said it’s called “spinach and mushroom puff pastry plait”. It’s quite good, actually. No meat!
So, class of ’60, what are you? Vegan, vegetarian, “meatetarian” or some combination. Why have you made the choice you made? Let’s get some discussion going on this blog.
When our family sat down to Easter dinner our 40 year old son surprised us by saying “Ham? I don’t eat ham”. He went on to say that hogs are the most “sentient” of animals, that is, “experiencing feeling or sensation”. “The living knew themselves as just sentient puppets on God’s stage” is a dictionary quote from T.E. Lawrence.
This was a new one for me. When we lived in England we usually cooked vegetarian style when we cooked for seminars because in any group of 20, there would always be 2 or 3 vegetarians. We also had 4 vegetarians and one vegan living in our household so we had lots of discussions. The reasons were “Oh, those poor animals”, or, because of the inefficiency of conversion of plant protein to animal protein in a world of more and more limited resources. No one there cited health reasons for their choice.
However, when we returned to rural America we discovered 5, yes 5 of our friends had read the book called THE CHINA STUDY by T. Colin Campbell and had become not just vegetarian but vegan! An article this week in the New York Times seems to confirm the wisdom of not eating red meat at least. What’s going on here?
Long ago Lois and I reduced our meat intake mainly because of cost. I could easily be a vegetarian I believe, but I’d have a difficult time doing without milk on my cereal (soy milk doesn’t do it for me), butter on my toast, or cheese with my crackers and wine. Our vegan friends do admit that it takes more planning to prepare meals from only plant derived materials. But the evidence is in – people who consume the most red meat and processed meat are likely to die sooner than people who consume much smaller amounts of these foods (NYT 4/28/09).
So I suffer from The Omnivore’s Dilemma (which is the title of a book by Michael Pollan that I recommend). When I dig into a steak or pork chop I may say “I’m supporting my farmer friends”, but am I slowly killing myself? Nowadays,if we have meat with a meal, it is usually chicken or fish; a steak or pork chop is a special treat. But is even that too much? The big push now is to “buy locally” (in other words, become a “locotarian!”) which is easy to do in a rural farming community. That may partially solve the use of resources issue, but still leaves the health issue open.
What would the farmers do if we all became vegetarians? I suggest they plant vineyards!
We have a guest coming over for supper. What’s on the menu? Lois said it’s called “spinach and mushroom puff pastry plait”. It’s quite good, actually. No meat!
So, class of ’60, what are you? Vegan, vegetarian, “meatetarian” or some combination. Why have you made the choice you made? Let’s get some discussion going on this blog.
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