Quote:
Originally posted by Idatrod:
Of course José means "cannot be found in 'plant' foods" not as he has stated 'animal' foods.


Of course, Mike, thanks for the correction!

Quote:
Why I Am Not a Vegetarian
by Dr. William T. Jarvis


Well, I read the article, and I think the title (and introduction) doesn't reflect the message of his article. Along the article he explains why he's not an *SDA vegetarian*. It's mostly about ideological vegetarianism and their claimed moral superiority and how he refutes "the package".

Vegetarian eating habits have great advantages, as the author recognizes in one of the first paragraphs. Personally, I am not radical about not eating meat. Eating less meat, weekly, makes me feel better, lighter (meat is relatively hard to process in the body), and it is widely accepted that *excessive* red meat consumption increases the probability of some serious health problems in the long term. A good vegetarian meal can be a delicious experience, and I try not to loose an opportunity to try a vegetarian restaurant. Unfortunately, in my country and particularly in my area - a very rural area where the meat has an exceptional quality - I don't get lucky very often!

Reading the article, I got the impression that the author has some kind of trauma with SDAs (Seventh-Day Adventist). I sort of understand why he feels the need to fight this kind of ideological vegetarianism. While living in Germany for a couple if years, some years ago, I (the most agnostic guy) fell in love with a girl from the SDA church, so I know what he is talking about. But discussing the moral questions is something different than discussing the benefits of a nutrition pattern with a higher percentage of foods derived from plants.

The other thing the author does not discuss - and it would be worth debating - is the ecological advantages of a nutrition less based on animal foods (again, I refuse all kinds of radicalism in this issue). However, this doesn't prevent him to try to ridicularize the "friends of mother earth" in the begining. Very interesting reading, Mike! Thanks for sharing these with us.

-- José.

[This message has been edited by matias (edited 10-17-2003).]

[This message has been edited by matias (edited 10-17-2003).]