I am a vegetarian and have been for 8 years I think....maybe 9. I have never been a huge fan of fish, although it was hard to give up shell fish (crab, lobster, shrimp). It was also a bit of a challenge giving up chicken but it got easier as the first months went by. KFC was my favorite chicken, but it was really unhealthy anyway so that made it a little easier to give up (maybe just a little tiny bit easier )

Almost a year ago, I converted Graham to a completely raw diet so I had to buy meat for the first time ever. Although it's more expensive, I only buy the meats from a local Whole Foods Market, which sells only free range, organic meats. I am not against people who eat meat at all, but I am so disgusted and ashamed at the way we treat the food animals. I mean, cutting the beaks off baby chickens? Throwing the male chicks into trash cans and only allowing the baby girl chicks to live? Stringing chicken up by their legs on an assembly line to be slaughtered? Stuffing thousands upon thousands of (very terratorial) chickens into huge cages together, giving them less then 4 inches of room to grow up in? Forcing baby cow calfs and baby lambs to leave mom way too early and putting them in boxes so small that they are unable to stand up...so as to keep their meat tender.

I am honestly not against meat eaters at all. I was lucky to find a man to spend the rest of my life with who was also a vegetarian (and he still is) but the rest of my friends eat meat, and some of them even hunt.

When traveling to Canada a few months ago, we were driving along the country side and we saw huge, rollings fields with just a few animals living in them. With every farm I saw, the animals had a HUGE amount of range to run and play in before they had to be slaughtered. At least they were given dignity and they had a decent life before it was ended. If we in America treated our food animals with such respect then I would not be so unwilling to eat meat. I just can't see myself ever eating meat again. Not with the way the poor animals are tortured before they meet their untimely death It simply breaks my heart.