If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the quote by Paul McCartney, "If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian," exploring the implications of transparency in the meat industry and personal dietary choices. Participants share their views on vegetarianism, the ethics of meat consumption, and personal experiences related to slaughterhouses and animal treatment.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express a willingness to consider vegetarianism if slaughterhouses were more transparent, while others maintain their preference for meat due to dietary needs or personal enjoyment.
  • A participant shares a personal anecdote about their father's experience in a slaughterhouse, indicating a lasting impact on their dietary choices.
  • Concerns are raised about the treatment of animals in the food industry, with references to specific artists and controversial practices that provoke strong emotional reactions.
  • Some argue that the statement oversimplifies the complexities of meat consumption and the realities of hunting and butchering, suggesting that many people are aware of the origins of their food.
  • There are discussions about the health implications of red meat consumption, with some participants suggesting moderation and others sharing personal dietary restrictions.
  • Several participants challenge the notion that transparency would universally lead to vegetarianism, citing personal experiences and differing views on animal treatment and hunting.
  • Some express a belief that the conditions in slaughterhouses are not as unsanitary as implied, while others argue that witnessing these conditions could deter meat consumption.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on whether transparency in slaughterhouses would lead to a widespread shift towards vegetarianism. There are multiple competing views on the ethics of meat consumption, personal dietary choices, and the realities of animal treatment in the food industry.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying assumptions about the nature of slaughterhouses, the ethics of meat consumption, and personal dietary needs, which influence their arguments. Some statements reflect personal experiences that may not be universally applicable.

jobyts
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If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian. -Paul McCartney

would you become one?
 
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I wouldn't have much problem giving up red meat, but I do love chicken and fish :biggrin:
 


jobyts said:
If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian. -Paul McCartney

As a kid, my dad spent a summer working in a slaughterhouse, in South Dakota. He couldn't eat some beef products for years afterwards.

Due to blood sugar and other problems, I need a diet high in protein; and I can't eat nuts. I probably couldn't survive as a vegetarian.
 


Ivan Seeking said:
Due to blood sugar and other problems, I need a diet high in protein, and I can't eat nuts. I probably couldn't survive as a vegetarian.

Can't drink whey protein shakes?
 


Greg Bernhardt said:
Can't drink whey protein shakes?

Hmmmm, never tried one as far as I know, but you can't live on milkshakes.

I probably feel as good as I ever do after a nice big steak... provided I don't eat too much! :biggrin: I do eat a lot of fish and chicken and try to limit red meat to once a week or so. My biggest weakness is cheese - esp super-sharp cheddar.
 


jobyts said:
If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian. -Paul McCartney

would you become one?

Yes. I don't know how some people love to eat half alive fishes .. etc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTUPHExilFk
 


The only thing I miss is grilled chicken. I think it is really strange how people are in denial about the animal industry. There was a Dutch artist (Tinkebell) who had a terminally sick cat (Pinkeltje), she killed it herself in a humane way and made a purse out of it (to show how we commercialize animals). People were enraged and she received many death threats. I can somewhat understand their reaction, but fundamentally they are taking advantage of animals in the same way.

pinkeltjetas.jpg


This is really interesting as well: "The Baby Bunnies series provides an analysis of the consumptive attitude that (post)modern man has taken on in relation to pets." Caution: it features a preserved cat and dog and might be considered offensive: http://www.tinkebell.com/popplesmall.jpg

I don't want to force people to become vegetarian, but I would suggest to limit your consumption of red meat (especially meat that is not done). Red meat is strongly associated with colon cancer.

Butchers and veterinarians suffer from more cancers than the general population, even lung cancer (in non-smokers), it is thought that viruses from the meat are tumorigenic. Butchers typically suffer from HPV-7 virus infections: "Butcher's wart virus".
 
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rootX said:
Yes. I don't know how some people love to eat half alive fishes .. etc

That was really disturbing and saddening to watch...
 


rootX2332803 said:
Yes. I don't know how some people love to eat half alive fishes .. etc

I have seen this with lobster too in Japan. horrible
 
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  • #10


I wonder if they also make handbags out of still alive animals over there
 
  • #11


I severely dislike this moral degradation of the respectable profession of the butcher. There is nothing wrong or evil about killing an animal for food. Unfortunately it seems to take desperate situations for people to realize this, now that all food comes wrapped in shiny plastic concealing the origin.
 
  • #12


We had a show here in the UK that followed various different animals through the slaughter process. I watched most of them and I'm not a vegetarian. It was interesting seeeing what happens to our food however. The show was called "Kill it, Cook it, Eat it".
 
  • #13


Ivan Seeking said:
Hmmmm, never tried one as far as I know, but you can't live on milkshakes.

You can though! I had gastric bypass surgery a year ago, and i drank two to three whey protein milkshakes a day. I tried to get at least 100 grams a day. I did this for three months after the surgery, and ate only baked chicken and bananas. I still drink at least one protein shake a day. I went from 320lbs to 170lbs. :shy:
 
  • #14


jobyts said:
If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian. -Paul McCartney

would you become one?

That's a fallacy. I think the more proper statement would be that people would stop buying their meat from certain slaughterhouses.

In Alaska, we hunt and butcher game plenty, and it's always kind of fun. I like killing things, honestly; Though I don't like things to suffer. I do feel bad when I hear the deer's sheep-like cry ("maaaaahhh-hah-hah!") as a result of crappy, overconfident shooting.

I like to role-play like I'm a beast, sometimes. I chase down my kill and take it out with my bare hands (often dropping from trees) and then I dig into it with my fangs like a Lion, while the heart's still taking it's last beats.

Totally kidding about that last part.
 
  • #15


Pythagorean said:
That's a fallacy. I think the more proper statement would be that people would stop buying their meat from certain slaughterhouses.
Thats the point, there is a difference between farm reared and slaughtered beef from the Yorkshire Dales and factory chicken.
 
  • #16


texasblitzem said:
I did this for three months after the surgery, and ate only baked chicken and bananas. I still drink at least one protein shake a day. I went from 320lbs to 170lbs. :shy:

At that rate, you would have 3.4 more months before reaching 0 lbs.
 
  • #17


jobyts said:
If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian. -Paul McCartney

would you become one?

That's a ridiculous statement from several angles. For one thing, most people have never been anywhere near a slaughterhouse. For another, a non-insignificant segment of the population hunts, dresses and butchers their own meat. And some people don't suffer under the illusion that meat comes from the supermarket; I've seen what goes on in a slaughterhouse and you have my red meat when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.

Paul McCartney is a great songwriter but a lousy sociologist.
 
  • #18


negitron said:
That's a ridiculous statement from several angles. For one thing, most people have never been anywhere near a slaughterhouse. For another, a non-insignificant segment of the population hunts, dresses and butchers their own meat. And some people don't suffer under the illusion that meat comes from the supermarket; I've seen what goes on in a slaughterhouse and you have my red meat when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.

Paul McCartney is a great songwriter but a lousy sociologist.

I don't think the statement was referring to people being disgusted with the killing of animals, but rather the lack of sanitation and such that goes on in those facilities.

I love red meat...but I have a feeling if I saw the disgusting conditions that my meat went through before eating it, I might be scared out of eating red meat that I DIDNT hunt and kill myself...
 
  • #19


Most commercial slaughterhouses are, in fact, reasonably sanitary.
 
  • #20


i have no problem killing and eating things. was probably about 10 years old when i first started cleaning and filleting fish. the only thing weird about it is that sometimes catfish will swallow air and it sounds like they're crying as it comes out.

never had any real desire to hunt in the modern sense, but i have considered taking up traditional archery. spending tens of thousands on equipment and clothing and such to bag trophy has little appeal, but the bare bones approach to feeding oneself does.

mmm... i think i will go have some beef (and vegetable) stew now.
 
  • #21


negitron said:
That's a ridiculous statement from several angles. For one thing, most people have never been anywhere near a slaughterhouse. For another, a non-insignificant segment of the population hunts, dresses and butchers their own meat. And some people don't suffer under the illusion that meat comes from the supermarket; I've seen what goes on in a slaughterhouse and you have my red meat when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.

Yes that is a ridiculous statement if you are taking it too literal along with the bias:

Paul McCartney is a great songwriter but a lousy sociologist.

Mine interpretation was that if I see something like the video I posted where they make the animal suffer intentionally, I wouldn't eat from that place at that time.
 
  • #22


who was mccartney married to when he said that?
 
  • #23


Do you know how the animals enter the slaughterhouse? I think that issue is much more important than the slaughtering after the animal is dead.
 
  • #24


It depends where you come from on how the animals are treated Monique.
 
  • #25


negitron said:
That's a ridiculous statement from several angles. For one thing, most people have never been anywhere near a slaughterhouse. For another, a non-insignificant segment of the population hunts, dresses and butchers their own meat. And some people don't suffer under the illusion that meat comes from the supermarket; I've seen what goes on in a slaughterhouse and you have my red meat when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.

Paul McCartney is a great songwriter but a lousy sociologist.

I completely agree. If anything, my extra set of pointy teeth tells me I'm supposed to be more carnivore than herbivore (yes, my one set of incisors are pointy, not flat).

If slaughterhouses had glass walls, there would be a lot of broken glass. :biggrin: Though, I suspect if people could see into them all the time, they wouldn't be so shocked about where their food came from. It wasn't all that long ago that people slaughtered their own animals in their own backyard if they wanted meat.
 
  • #26


Monique said:
Do you know how the animals enter the slaughterhouse? I think that issue is much more important than the slaughtering after the animal is dead.

Point of terminology: you don't slaughter an animal after it's dead because slaughtering is the act of killing it.
 
  • #27


Well, knowing what goes on in a slaughterhouse has never stopped me from eating meat so..

To answer the question "If slaughter houses had glass walls.."

Nope, I'd still eat meat. I have molars and incisors and canines for a reason. Humans are not herbivores.. If we were we'd have teeth entirely like a cow or a horse.

The human body requires the nutrients that meat provides. Why would I deny my body the nutrients it needs? It's been doing humanity pretty good for thousands and thousands of years, and I honestly don't think any more people would be vegetarians because of a glass slaughter house than people would be if they still had to kill their food themselves.

The disgusting part is the humans, not the meat you're eating.
 
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  • #28


Seeing animal being killed indeed makes me sad, at least momentarily. But it's not enough to make me a vegetarian, for taste reason and the biological reasons pointed out by Kronos.

If one feels absolutely no difference between watching cutting a plant and killing a mammal (both for food), I would say he/she's either not normal, or unintentionally lying to justify ones meat eating philosophy.
 
  • #29


jobyts said:
If one feels absolutely no difference between watching cutting a plant and killing a mammal (both for food), I would say he/she's either not normal, or unintentionally lying to justify ones meat eating philosophy.

Why? If it's killing for food and not just some form of entertainment, why would you have any more emotion about one than the other? It's just something you do because you have to do it. I don't know where society has come up with this silly idea that we are supposed to feel guilty about our food source. It's rather counter-productive to survival if we get emotionally attached to our dinner. It may be anthropomorphic, but I really doubt that lions or coyotes get all worked up inside about having to kill their own dinner either.
 
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  • #30


Seeing a pet killed makes me sad. Seeing my dinner killed makes me hungry.
 

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