Strollerderby Playdate: Ethical Eating

Amy S.F. Lutz — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:31:00 GMT

I love the science blog The Frontal Cortex. Not only is the author named Jonah, as is my firstborn, but he writes about so many interesting topics that I haven't seen covered anywhere else. I'm especially in love with Jonah Lehrer this week because he raises a philosophical argument that has guided my husband's and my eating for the last decade: is it wrong to eat smart animals?

Jonah muses over this quandry while eating octopus, explaining that researchers have demonstrated that octopi play with toys, use rudimentary tools, have both short and long-term memory and exhibit unique personalities - which makes them at least as intelligent as dogs and cats, if not more so. If we refuse to eat those animals, shouldn't we refuse to eat other smart animals as well?

My husband and I gave up eating pig more than ten years ago, precisely for that reason. Pigs are also very intelligent animals. Research at Penn State in the late 1990s showed that pigs could be taught to use a modified joystick to move a cursor on a video monitor and distinguish between different designs on the screen. They've also been taught, among other things, to push a soccer ball into a goal.

So, that's where we draw the line. Because if we love our dogs and cats for their human qualities - for their cognition and emotion and personality - and these are the reasons why we despise the practice of eating these animals in other cultures, then pigs and yes, octopi, deserve the same respect.

I have to admit, we haven't had many converts to our philosophy - at least, not yet. But it was nice to see the issue raised in a public forum.

How to be a Cool Vegan Parent

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:57:00 GMT

I’m not the most likely candidate to be plugging a video on raising children vegan. I don’t meat, but I’m the kind of vegetarian who bakes my vegetables inside a buttery, cheddary pastry—and then has a chocolate cream pie for dessert. So when I say that this video got me to thinking about using fewer animal products in my cooking, that’s a real endorsement. I share the video with you all in hopes of shifting the thinking of some hardcore carnivores (and dairy-loving vegetarians) who have dismissed the vegan lifestyle as a self-righteous form of anorexia. Face it, we’ve all known vegans like that—but they’re in the minority and they’re giving the rest of you ethical eaters a bad name.

From interviews with parents, children, and physicians, the video debunks myths about the health risks associated with veganism (for instance, veggies provide just as much calcium as milk) and the lack of fun or “coolness” associated with being vegan. One mother said that she makes sure to ask her daughter what foods she wants that are not typically considered vegan, even going so far as to procure vegan doughnuts. Most persuasive of all, the parents and children interviewed are happy, loving people who naturally connect their food consumption with its effect on the planet. As one father says of his child, “Even if she doesn’t choose to be a vegan [when she grows up], she’ll still be a compassionate person.”

And even if all you omnivorous parents don’t decide to make vegan cupcakes for your child’s next birthday, you just may consider making a tofu scramble instead of a cheese omelet next Sunday morning. No, seriously—tofu scrambles are delicious.

Photo: www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr

Strollerderby : ethical eating

Strollerderby Playdate: Ethical Eating

How to be a Cool Vegan Parent