Comments on: Suddenly Green has a Whole New Meaning.

By: Shanti

Shanti — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:03:08 +0000

I’m vegan and an animal rights activist, and I admit the IPCC (intergovernmental panel on climate change) has listed meat eating as the most destructive thing we do in terms of the environment, and I think it’d be great if we reduced meat eating, but this isn’t done for taxes.

This wouldn’t work as a tax break (what do you do, tick a box “I’m a vegetarian”), and you get a tax break? So many people would lie. Not to mention the fact that meat is subsidized, so currently taxes actually pay for meat consumption.

No, this is a clever action to raise awareness on the environmental effects of eating meat. Kudos to PETA for a job well done. That said, maybe PETA should join the cancer society of the United States in trying to end meat subsidiaries.

Finally, to the original writer of the article, that was a nice article, even if you’re not vegetarian.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 14:55:20 +0000

Shizzle,
Thanks for the comments. I think it was a really measured response to a quite controversial question, thanks for stopping by!

By: shizzle

shizzle — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 15:06:37 +0000

O.k. I am green in the fact that I take mass transit to work every day, hell I don’t even own a car. I do love a steak cooked to perfection.. quite frankly I might have it tonight. I have family that are vegetarian and if thats what they enjoy eating kudos to them. I don’t think a shark feels remorse for laying his teeth into a human, nor do I think a bear is going to feel bad about taking a bite out of me. I doubt killer whales fell bad when they devour a seal, even play a quick match of volley ball with the carcass before dinner. Does a dolphin feel bad about eating a fish? I do not feel bad about eating beef other than the fact that I did not kill and clean the animal. I think that if you are going to eat meat, you should be made to kill the animal (at least once without a firearm) yourself and clean it so you have respect of what you are doing. We are all animals, some of us like to try and say we are not but we are. Get stranded on an island where the scenario is to eat a fish, bird or other animal or die because you have no idea of what is and is not edible plant wise and make that decision. Since the beginning of time animals have eaten other animals and that will never change. I do feel that alot of people who eat meat could have more respect of what they are doing. Also I do not agree with the statement that meat in and of itself is unhealthy, fish is very healthy, and beef can be as well in a balanced diet and has no place being compared to alcohol or cigarettes. I do my part to try and help the environment but just because I like a good steak does not mean I drive a SUV nor practice a contempt for the earth. I will say though that that is some great looking rump and round in the peta pic above.

By: william gordon

william gordon — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 04:54:18 +0000

you must be joking! do you hear yourselves talk? first because i drive an SUV im making ice in antarctica melt, and now because I eat a hot dog the ice is dissappearing as well? I’ve got news for you, actually its not news to any educated human being, there have been many ice ages in the past, and all the ice has melted, tell me how the last ice age ended if there were no suv’s, or power plants 10,000 years ago? Hmm? It’s a natural part of mother nature. Humans must adapt to the surrounds this earth gives you, not change them, all you people are to comfortable in you houses where you controll the climate, you’ve got airconditioning if your too hot, and a heater if it gets chilly. You must realize that deep down we are just animals, and we are at the mercy of mother nature, and her cycles, and we have to adapt. The world will get warmer deguardless of if I eat some meat or not. And why should the government give vegetrians a tax break? they do not control the temperature, in no way is the enviroment the governments responsibility, they “own” the land, do not control it.

By: Jul

Jul — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 21:58:14 +0000

I’m not generally a fan of PETA, but I think the idea of taxing meat and other bad-for-you foods makes perfect sense (or conversely, offering tax breaks on healthy foods like fruits and veg). Heavy meat eaters cost the public more money in terms of environmental damage as well as healthcare expenditures.

By: What’s It Worth to You?

What’s It Worth to You? — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 23:19:08 +0000

[...] response to my post about PETA’s proposed meat tax, Sally over at Living Without Meat had this to say: What she doesn’t share with us is if the tax [...]

By: Andrea

Andrea — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 19:55:22 +0000

I actually think it’s really good idea. People in the U.S. (any western country really) definitely need to eat less meat for a variety of reasons, and climate change is probably among the most important of those reasons. The meat industry harms the environment in so many ways from habitat destruction, water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions from cows. It’s not fair to pass the associated costs along to the government and the tax payers. If the true cost of meat was reflected in the price, I’m sure people would cut back on meat consumption to a significant degree. Maybe farmers who had free range animals and responsible animal welfare and eco practices could have a slightly lower tax.