Why I am not a vegan

[native]

When you say we use each other, I see it more as being interdependent, we are one Body. We support one another, ideally. Equal exchange and give and take. Some may give more and others less, but as a unit , it works out.

That is how it is with my hens. I feed and nourish them, and they provide me food. Equal exchange, symbiosis. They are cute and funny creatures. When I reach in for the eggs, when a hen is sitting on them, she just gently gets up and makes her eggs available to me. Chickens were bred for this very purpose and have nourished humans for a very long time.

Being thankful for what sustains us is a good way to go, I agree with Katz on that one.

Cool note about your hens. I agree that we are interdependent, but I was using highly contrasted language to make the same point that Monica was making. While we might "use" others to kill animals for us, we also use others to do all sorts of things we don't want to do. But as you said, we don't have to look at it that way..it's interdependence and functioning as a unit.

And Monica, since you agree that one realistic goal is for meat eaters to drastically cut meat consumption, those who have the courage to slaughter (humanely raised/slaughtered) can then be seen as filling a necessary role, and there is no need to demonize them..because eating meat just isn't going to disappear anytime soon. People don't consider the value of new viewpoints if they're made to feel bad about themselves (meat eaters in general). We should then be thankful for those who do the things we're not able to do..positive interpretation, positive energy sent. But I feel I may have overstepped my boundaries in offering that..my apologies. To move forward, we have to learn how to respect each other and each other's needs, recognizing that we're all on different parts of the path in our journey.