Anti Veg*n rant in Seattle Times

[Guest guest]

Today's (Mon 1/5/04) Seattle Times has printed a humorous yet

hateful & stereotyped-full rant against veg*ns.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/northwestlife/2001828484_madcow

05.html

I wanted to call this to people's attention in case anyone else is

motivated to write a letter to the editor.

 

My letter: Re. the 1/5/04 article, Reflections of a mad cowboy: Be

a man, eat that burger

 

Mark Rahner jokes about punching, poisoning, and euthanizing

vegetarians, and compares us to nazis. Substitute the word

" African

American " or " Christian " or " Jew " or

" homosexual " , for vegetarian or

vegan. Would the Seattle Times consider it appropriate to publish

such a hateful rant against another group? The fact that it's

written as a humor piece, still does not make it appropriate. I

think the Seattle Times owes the vegetarian community an apology for

printing Mr. Rahner's hateful rant.

[Guest guest]

Thanks for sharing that. At the end of the article is an e-mail

addres for the author. I have e-mailed him about it. It is a shame

when someone thinks to be a man, they have to eat meat and go around

wanting to beat up vegans, and then think that it is funny.

 

Ron Koenig

Bellevue

 

RawSeattle , " bookarma " <bookarma> wrote:

> Today's (Mon 1/5/04) Seattle Times has printed a humorous yet

> hateful & stereotyped-full rant against veg*ns.

>

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/northwestlife/2001828484_madcow0

5.html

[Guest guest]

I wrote a letter to the editor. The last time I tried to respond directly

to the author of the article, nothing came of it. Let's see if they print

this.

 

Sue

 

To the editor:

 

I'm dismayed that the Times would print an article as full of intolerance,

anger, and hostility toward a growing segment of the population as

" Reflections of a mad cowboy " was. The vegetarian/vegan movement is

growing, and each case of mad cow disease (or other meat-borne illnesses,

such as salmonella and e-coli) encourages more people to turn toward soy and

wheat-based meat alternatives to help them transition toward a healthier,

more natural diet for humans. It's not just mad cow disease and its human

equivalent, variant CJD, that are problems. Those diseases have stricken

relatively few people compared with heart disease and colon cancer. Colon

cancer, the fastest growing cancer in the US, is a problem with meat because

meat does not contain the fiber necessary to move it rapidly through the

intestinal tract. When combined with a Standard American Diet of white

bread, white rice, sweets, pop, chips, fried foods, etc., the meat remains

in the intestinal tract for up to 4 days, allowing the resulting toxins to

be absorbed into the system. If a person is going to eat meat, it needs to

be in small amounts and combined with a high fiber source to move it through

quickly. It also needs to be purchased from a source that " goes the extra

mile " to make sure that the animal was not fed with the cheaper feeds, which

have various animal parts mixed in with it. Cows are vegetarians, as the

author pointed out. They are natural herbivores (grass-eaters). Why are we

making them into carnivores?

 

Regarding the author's disdain toward vegetarians/vegans and the necessary

questioning that we must do when faced with an uncertain food, our bodies

lose the ability to tolerate the meat- and dairy-based products when we do

not eat them for a long period of time. If somebody said that they were

gluten-intolerant, would the author be offended if he/she refused his offer

of a wheat bread sandwich? If somebody gets severe diarrhea whenever they

consume dairy, would the author react similarly to the person's request to

read the label of the offered product? Which is more socially awkward,

asking the necessary questions about food content, or needing to make a

sudden run to the bathroom and/or leaving early because the food that the

host served made one sick? His position that his vanity as a host (or

fellow diner) is more important than the guest's physical comfort and

well-being certainly is not in keeping with today's social realities.

 

Research has repeatedly shown the health benefits of a plant-based diet.

When we consume more fresh fruits and vegetables, and replace refined grain

products with whole grain products, we enjoy greater energy, weight loss,

and reduced risk of chronic illness. As health care and medical insurance

costs increase more and more, wouldn't it be prudent if more people were to

switch from the heavy meat-and-potato diet of our parents and grandparents,

and the " junk food " diet of our current generation, and adopt the much

healthier diet that was followed by a multitude of prior generations?

 

Sue Aberle, MS, RD

 

(note I included my credentials...)

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing that. At the end of the article is an e-mail

addres for the author. I have e-mailed him about it. It is a shame

when someone thinks to be a man, they have to eat meat and go around

wanting to beat up vegans, and then think that it is funny.

 

Ron Koenig

[Guest guest]

Sue,

Well put. I sent a letter too. I hope this has some effect. The article was

horribly un-funny.

 

Nickolas Hein

Morgantown WV

-

Sue Aberle

RawSeattle

Monday, January 05, 2004 6:52 PM

RE: [RawSeattle] Re: Anti Veg*n rant in Seattle Times

 

 

I wrote a letter to the editor. The last time I tried to respond directly

to the author of the article, nothing came of it. Let's see if they print

this.

 

Sue

 

To the editor:

 

I'm dismayed that the Times would print an article as full of intolerance,

anger, and hostility toward a growing segment of the population as

" Reflections of a mad cowboy " was. The vegetarian/vegan movement is

growing, and each case of mad cow disease (or other meat-borne illnesses,

such as salmonella and e-coli) encourages more people to turn toward soy and

wheat-based meat alternatives to help them transition toward a healthier,

more natural diet for humans. It's not just mad cow disease and its human

equivalent, variant CJD, that are problems. Those diseases have stricken

relatively few people compared with heart disease and colon cancer. Colon

cancer, the fastest growing cancer in the US, is a problem with meat because

meat does not contain the fiber necessary to move it rapidly through the

intestinal tract. When combined with a Standard American Diet of white

bread, white rice, sweets, pop, chips, fried foods, etc., the meat remains

in the intestinal tract for up to 4 days, allowing the resulting toxins to

be absorbed into the system. If a person is going to eat meat, it needs to

be in small amounts and combined with a high fiber source to move it through

quickly. It also needs to be purchased from a source that " goes the extra

mile " to make sure that the animal was not fed with the cheaper feeds, which

have various animal parts mixed in with it. Cows are vegetarians, as the

author pointed out. They are natural herbivores (grass-eaters). Why are we

making them into carnivores?

 

Regarding the author's disdain toward vegetarians/vegans and the necessary

questioning that we must do when faced with an uncertain food, our bodies

lose the ability to tolerate the meat- and dairy-based products when we do

not eat them for a long period of time. If somebody said that they were

gluten-intolerant, would the author be offended if he/she refused his offer

of a wheat bread sandwich? If somebody gets severe diarrhea whenever they

consume dairy, would the author react similarly to the person's request to

read the label of the offered product? Which is more socially awkward,

asking the necessary questions about food content, or needing to make a

sudden run to the bathroom and/or leaving early because the food that the

host served made one sick? His position that his vanity as a host (or

fellow diner) is more important than the guest's physical comfort and

well-being certainly is not in keeping with today's social realities.

 

Research has repeatedly shown the health benefits of a plant-based diet.

When we consume more fresh fruits and vegetables, and replace refined grain

products with whole grain products, we enjoy greater energy, weight loss,

and reduced risk of chronic illness. As health care and medical insurance

costs increase more and more, wouldn't it be prudent if more people were to

switch from the heavy meat-and-potato diet of our parents and grandparents,

and the " junk food " diet of our current generation, and adopt the much

healthier diet that was followed by a multitude of prior generations?

 

Sue Aberle, MS, RD

 

(note I included my credentials...)

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing that. At the end of the article is an e-mail

addres for the author. I have e-mailed him about it. It is a shame

when someone thinks to be a man, they have to eat meat and go around

wanting to beat up vegans, and then think that it is funny.

 

Ron Koenig