eat mor chikin

In 2000 9.7 billion animals were killed for food (credit). An average of 18,032 cows are killed each day for food, the U.S. Department of Agriculture found in 2013 (credit). The Meat Institute found that in 2014 poultry and meat sales totaled $186 billion in the U.S. These staggering results exist because Americans love their food. We see meat advertised, the theme of summer get together with friends, and pushed on children when first in Kindergarten "eat your meat honey, its good for you!" Meat is pushed just as is dairy because it has "a lot" of calcium and fluoride because it makes your teeth stronger. We don't really think much of what we consume usually, just chow down that tasty burger we see Kendall Jenner rave about, or can't get our act together enough to actually cook something healthy.

I was a hideously sympathetic preteen, as I took it upon myself to influence the the numbers of animals killed by becoming vegan... and I kept it up for two years. Now, I don't recommend this for the faint of heart, and YouTubers like Onision certainly mean it when they say it'll help you lose weight. I don't think I'll be able to eat another chickpea vegan patty again after their daily occurrence on my plate.

 Now, I choose to not eat any sort of sea animal even now, especially the lobster; partially because these "giant sea-insects" - as David Foster Wallace so eloquently puts it - look exactly what their name means, and partially cause I am an aspiring sea life collector with wild aspirations to own all the sea pancakes in the ocean. TBH also a lobsters antenna and beady eyes gives me more of a moral conflict than lying to my mom about cleaning my room does.

Americans just mindlessly chow down food mindlessly "as an à la carte entrée, lobster can be baked, broiled, steamed, grilled, sautéed, stir-fried, or microwaved. The most common method, though, is boiling. If you’re someone who enjoys having lobster at home, this is probably the way you do it, since boiling is so easy. " We have recipes, books, videos, and TV channels dedicated to teaching us how to consume meat. I don't think we are fully aware of how much we just eat. We make consuming these dead creatures and easier, cheaper and cheaper, faster and faster.  I mean, isn't eating dead creatures gross? Be aware, realize tofu is actually amazing (I mean seriously, like alternative food is lit, have you tried So Delicious ice cream? It is heavenly).

I don't think either extremes are great. I think we should be healthy, eat meat to make our bodies stronger and better equipped for handling the stresses of life. Also, I think we need to be self aware, and realize that animals need to be handled responsibly and that our consumerist behavior is going to mess up the environment even more than it already has. Humans naturally consume, but if we can fight back and stop eating the chicken from WalMart and try Whole Foods or something, I think we can influence how animals are treated.