So I, a carnivorous vegetable hater, became a so-called vegetarian. Imagine the skepticism I received when I begrudgingly told people of my decision.
“Dennis, all you ever eat is meat and potatoes,” they said. “I bet you won’t last one week,” proclaimed others. But the number one question is always “why?”
I believe you can tell someone you are a communist, an atheist or came from outer space and people will accept that. But the concept that you don’t eat meat is so objectively foreign to them that they treat you like you were a communist space-alien that doesn’t believe in God. The first question I almost always get asked is “why?”
So here is the ‘why’.
I had visited my parents on Sunday evening. I ate a leftover steak they had and lounged around watching television. That evening when I had got home, I decided to catch up on a little light reading. The book of choice: Daredevil 271.
That’s right, a comic book.
A comic book that would change my life.
Daredevil 271 doesn’t have a jaw-dropping cover. In fact it’s very plain with a nondescript leaping Daredevil on a pale yellow backdrop. It doesn’t have a notable villain/villainess of which movies will be based. The writer Ann Noncenti isn’t exactly a household name. The artist John Romita Jr. is still a prolific comic book artist, but the work here is not spectacular.
In fact the story is rather silly. An animal liberation activist destroys her father’s animal factory, which in reality is a cover up for science lab where they are genetically altering women to be “perfect.” Silly is an understatement.
So why the life changing moment?
It was caused by these two panels, in which the aforementioned farm owning father (who resembles John Holmes) is talking to his farm/lab manager about wire mesh cages:
The callousness of what he said stopped me. Could that statement have any truth behind it? Think about it, if an animal never got out of a cage, why would they need their legs?
Later in the book, on page 22, the following appeared:
“... an animal raised for food deserves a happy life.”
That statement sealed the deal. At that point I had no idea about the treatment of animals for food consumption. There is another quote in the comic “most people think a farm is a “picture-book” place. A happy place where cows graze, pigs wallow in happy pigpens, chickens sun themselves and peck around.”
That’s what I thought.
Now here is where the clouds roll in. Somehow somewhere I came across a recommended reading list and the book Diet for a New America by John Robbins was at the top. I thought that it was in Daredevil 271 but I can find no such reference. Perhaps it was in a later issue (I had the tendency to buy three or four months worth of comic books and read them in succession.) Regardless I picked up a copy of the book and was horrified by the contents. If one tenth of that book is true, it is still be more than enough to solidify my decision to stop eating animals.
That was twenty one years ago today.
Do I still feel the same way? Yes. It is a conscientious decision. I cannot save the whole world but I can do what I feel is my part. Nothing anyone can say will make me change my mind. Is every animal mistreated? Nope, in fact I would say the cows my son-in-law raises are treated pretty damn well. But I don't eat them either.
I’m not a militant non-meat eater. Most people don’t even notice I don’t eat meat. I certainly don’t advertise it. If people ask me “Are you a vegetarian?”, I might answer “Yes”, but most times I just say “I feel like eating light today.” I have had co-workers, who have known me for years, be absolutely shocked in disbelief when they find out. There is a reason I keep pretty low key about it. I can't stand to hear...
“Why?”
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