I respect your views and agree with much of what you say re-wild animals being healthier than the force fed ones etc.
I think that the main factor that causes ill feeling towards hunters (I'm speaking mainly about Malta here, I don't know the situation elsewhere) is that while a few adhere to the values you mentioned above, a lot more just shoot at anything that moves just for the hell of it, including protected species.
Thanks serene, seeing your views as an open minded vegetarian is refreshing compared to some other fanatics I've seen here
Re-the intensive farming & pollution caused by transportation, I think that that problem would still be there at the end of the day. You still need to grow crops and transport them for processing and consumption. Ok, you're removing a stage where they're going to feed the animals, but you're not eliminating the problem outright.
Re-the environmental impact, it is undoubted that humanity is harming the planet in that sense, but unfortunatelyt the issue has become so politicized (by both industrialists & environmentalists) that it is very difficult to see where the truth is exactly.
I guess, like in many cases it's somewhere in the middle between the 2 extremes, but exactly where, it's anybody's guess
I think that it really has to do with your particular lifestyle. A purely vegetarian or vegan diet is not really suitable for someone who performs sports regularly for example, as protein & iron are less abundant in vegetables than meat.
Speaking about myself, I train sports & martial arts 6 times a week and follow a healthy sports related diet. It mostly involves eating chicken breast, tuna, rice, small amounts of red meat & mixed steamed vegetables.
I'm also a blood donor, and due to the regular physical workouts I do my iron levels tend to be lower than average (iron being one of the first minerals the body consumes during any strenous activity). On one occasion I was prevented from donating blood from my the clinic's doctor as my iron was below the minimum acceptable, and he actually suggested that people with my lifestyle need to eat steak a couple of times a week.
That said, for whoever has the discipline to stick to a purely vegetarian diet, my hat off to them.
Re-the ethics about eating meat, humans are omnivers in nature, so meat is part of our natural diet as well. I don't condone unnecessary cruelty to animals, but I'm not going to deteriorate my health so a chicken can live longer for example.
Nature has evolved with predator & prey species. A lion isn't evil because he kill a gazelle, it's what he needs to survive. So long as humans don't kill more animals than necessary to survive, I don't see any moral dilemma there.
Yes you are right there. Warfare nowadays is not just about winning battles and bodycount, but it's also about controlling the media sympathies.
Many people will only have a cursory knowledge of a particular war, so they are easily swayed one way or another. Same thing happened in Vietnam for example, where in terms of battles, the US won it hands down. The infamous Tet Offensive which is deemed to be the turning point in that war was a disaster in conventional military terms for the North Vietnamese, but they gained so much media support from it that it became a 'victory', causing the US government to really lose the will to win that war.
I don't see the US ever abandoning Israel, too many Jewish businessman in the US for that ever to happen, but Israel is fast becoming a pariah state in the eyes of many European nations (who are either lefties, or else ruled by spineless righties).
I agree partly with what you say here. That the British government is tired of following the US lead wherever it may lead is becoming ever more clear; and yes, it has more to do with changing economics than morality.
I think that that initial reason for creating Israel was stemmed in part from a genuine sense of reparation towards the Jews. Surrounded as it was by hostile states that were coming under Soviet political pressure then led to the natural development of Israel becoming a buffer state for the West against Soviet encroachment in the area. Let's not forget that in the original Arab-Israeli wars it was the Arabs who were the aggressors, not the other way round.
I agree with you however that continued support of Israel is becoming ever more difficult for the US government. With the passage of decades, the sympathy generated by the holocaust has been beaten ad nauseum, and today's younger generation have grown up seeing Israel as the aggressor rather than a helpless people subjugated by tyrants. It is really a case of the sheep turning into wolf, at least in the liberal Western media's eyes.
I don't think it's fair to say that the Taliban & Al Qaeda are just American inventions. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan set the wheels in motion to create these 2 movements.
Not being brainwashed by the Stars & Stripes mentality is all well & good, however being biased on the opposite side will lose you any moral high ground as well mate.
While your vision is admirable, it is also very naive as both the Israelis and Palestinians would never be able to co-habit peacefully together. There's been too much hate & atrocities between them for that to happen anymore.
If it were really so simple, don't you think they'd already have done it?
Both want the same land, and they want the other side out, there can't be peaceful co-habitation while that mentality lasts.
I find your post very insightful mate, and I find myself agreeing with most of it. I sympathize with the Jews during the early parts of the Arab-Israeli wars, at the time they were literally fighting for their survival.
Nowadays they're more like the sheep turned wolf, but realistically, surrounded as they are by enemies, can they afford to be a peaceful lamb? Even if they stop shooting and evacuate Gaza tomorrow, the Arab states will still continue to plot against them, they're mortal enemies now.
Effectively they've entered into a dead end situation.
Trish, the fact that Hamas is less corrupt than the PLO doesn't hide the fact that they're a terrorist organization. Since when terrorists are part of an eligible government?
Hamas may have not used white phosphorus, but they have rained missiles on Israeli civilians, inviting retaliation attacks of their own.
It's a bit like complaining about being bitten by a pit bull after you're gone taunting that same pit bull with a stick.
You're right however in your claim that there is a prevailing attitude that Israel is immune from prosecution and seems to get away with stuff that would see sanctions against any other state.
The reasons for that are simple. First, the West still has the 'guilt complex' about the holocaust, and Israel has always astutely (from their own perspective) beaten the drum on it whenever Western nations have dared to criticize it. This guilt complex has lessened in the past decade or so, but it's still there.
The second is that Israel is backed by the USA. Many of the richest businessmen in the US are Jewish, and they in turn exert a lot of influence of the US government. This is no conspiracy theory mind you, it's pure logic. Jewish businessmen are only doing the logical thing (from their perspective) of shielding Israel from political pressure.
While I agree with you that the use of white phosporus is a big no no, Hamas have been guilty of their own atrocities too. Charging just one party in this matter makes the charge lose credibility as a whole.
Unfortunately the war there has been going for so long that both sides are brutalized and view atrocities as a common everyday occurrence.
Yep, though you're also being unlucky. I saw Pool play Fiorentina & Arsenal last week, they're not playing badly but lady luck is definitely not smiling.
I hope I haven't cursed Roma by saying this when/if we meet you in the Europa League!
I found that since I started posting on the forums I have gotten much more interest and even started receiving mails instead of me doing 'first contact'.
That's my thoughts too. The ones who like us seem to respect Mr. Berlusconi have come up with arguments as to why we admire & respect him. That said I don't consider him a saint either.
Nettie on the other hand has just hurled insults. Ok he dislikes Berlusconi, fine, tell us why.
Apart from that, I cannot understand how anyone cannot consider punching a 73 year old man in the face (or throwing something at him with the intent to hurt him) as anything but a cowardly act.
I can, and have come to blows with others in the past, but they were always guys roughly my age who could hit back. Even if a 73 year old man was my worst enemy, I couldn't bring myself to hit him physically.
The fact that nettie approves of hitting an old man just shows what a moral coward he is.
wulfen Forum Posts (810)
RE: Go Veg, Go Green, Save The Planet
I respect your views and agree with much of what you say re-wild animals being healthier than the force fed ones etc.I think that the main factor that causes ill feeling towards hunters (I'm speaking mainly about Malta here, I don't know the situation elsewhere) is that while a few adhere to the values you mentioned above, a lot more just shoot at anything that moves just for the hell of it, including protected species.