Phantasy Star: Fringes of Algo

I saw some of an interview on tv yesterday with former Beatle Paul McCartney who was talking about wanting everyone to skip or stop eating Meat, atleast for one day a week to probably help the envirnonment or some other such cause. I didn't hear the whole interview, so I'm not exactly sure. I think McCartney is a vegetarian, though.

Do you think it would actually help the world, or various causes (environment, health issues, etc.) if people would stop eating meat, or any other such foods, for one day a week or more time than this? Or, do you think this is just a wild idea or something like that?

Do we have any vegetarians here who don't eat meat, or rarely eat meat, and if so, how do you think this has affected your life, health, etc., if in any way at all?

I think this is an interesting subject. I've thought of cutting out meat before, but don't know if I could do without the occassional hamburger or pizza or such. I do love most vegetables so I'm okay with eating just veggies. I just don't think I could go for the tofu and bean sprout stuff, and other type foods though.

Comments or Opinions?????

No, that wouldn't help anything. One day or week isn't going to matter too much. The most it might do is damage the meat industry, put a few people out of work, and cause a lot of supermarkets to throw away meat that spoiled instead of being sold. Even that would probably require a much longer period than even a week.

Stopping the consumption of meat cold turkey also isn't going to be good for the environment. Let's say it did happen - that would mean all the animals that would normal be killed for meat would likely be left alive. Eventually, that's going to mean overpopulation for the animals and a greater impact on the environment from them.

Food, Inc. screwed up my life =/. They showed a huge chicken coop overpopulated with chickens walking over their never-cleaned manure. The chickens then have demented * and they're so fat they can't support themselves anymore. They then claimed the biggest food companies use illegal immigrants for workers and get away with it.

Anyways, my dad forced us to convert to organic meat only. As for me, I can't go fully vegetarian, because I have allergies to almost every other meat alternative there is.

i've been vegetarian for coming up on 7 years, and i was vegan (no dairy or other animal products) for 5 of those. giving up meat really isn't that hard, you just have to want to do it. there are a lot of "meat alternatives" that are quite good, but you have to remember that they're alternatives, not replacements. they're obviously going to taste different, so don't go into it thinking veggie burgers are going to taste like cheeseburgers.

if you look at how many resources are used to raise animals for meat compared to the resources for non-meat food, it's pretty astonishing how much less taxing it is. i don't think mccartney is necessarily asking for a call to arms against eating meat, but is asking people to consider not relying on meat so much. obviously, if the entire world went cold turkey on meat (possible intention on pun), there would be a massive amount of waste like thoul said. if it was slowly phased into being a less dominant food option, i think it would have a lot of positive effects.

luke wrote:i've been vegetarian for coming up on 7 years, and i was vegan (no dairy or other animal products) for 5 of those. giving up meat really isn't that hard, you just have to want to do it. there are a lot of "meat alternatives" that are quite good, but you have to remember that they're alternatives, not replacements. they're obviously going to taste different, so don't go into it thinking veggie burgers are going to taste like cheeseburgers.

luke, it was interesting reading your post and hearing from someone who is a vegetarian. Can you tell us what some of the "meat alternatives" are that you mentioned. I might like to try them sometimes and maybe someone else here would also. (Thanks!). Yeah, somehow I don't think a veggie burger would taste like a cheeseburger. They sound different also.

luke wrote:i don't think mccartney is necessarily asking for a call to arms against eating meat, but is asking people to consider not relying on meat so much. obviously, if the entire world went cold turkey on meat (possible intention on pun), there would be a massive amount of waste like thoul said. if it was slowly phased into being a less dominant food option, i think it would have a lot of positive effects.

Yeah, I think you are probably right about what Paul McCartney said or was aiming for. It would almost be too much to ask people to stop eating meat all at once but a little at a time might work a lot better. LOL, on the "going cold turkey".

a good vegetarian option for spicy chicken patties is quorn. i'm pretty sure they make theirs with some sort of wheat gluten like seitan so that it is somewhat "stringy". obviously, the breading isn't as good, and it's not as crispy like what you could get from wendy's. quorn products are available at almost all major supermarkets.

another favorite of mine is the morning star chicken strips, also available almost everywhere. these strips are so great in salad, sandwiches, curry, and anything else you can think of. i used to mix these with mayo and a little bit of lemon juice for an awesome chicken salad sandwich.

A vegetarian or semi-vegetarian diet is healthier for your body. This is based on a number of facts, including that vegetarians generally are not obese or overweight. Some more info:

http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv ... ian_eating

That said, it's easier to become vegetarian now more than ever with all the soy products available, but it's also important to consider your blood type (think of the book, Eating Right for Your Type). It's really, really important to make sure you are getting your nutrients. If you'd like to try it, Silver, try to first cut back on certain meats. Go without eating red meat and pork for a while and see if you like it. Eat fish and fowl only and if that works out, reduce even that. I think it's hard on the body to just go vegan or vegetarian cold turkey (no pun intended).

Going vegetarian (even semi or lacto-ovo) is the best way to truly "go green". It's better for the planet, it's better for you (depending), and it's better for the beasts. There's lots of reading on the subject, but what really got me going was reading John Robbin's book, Diet for a New America. Really, after reading it, you'll think twice about eating meat from factory farms.

There's nothing wrong with eating meat, but if you're going to do it, at least go organic.

Hope that helps...

luke wrote:
another favorite of mine is the morning star chicken strips, also available almost everywhere. these strips are so great in salad, sandwiches, curry, and anything else you can think of. i used to mix these with mayo and a little bit of lemon juice for an awesome chicken salad sandwich.

Totally. I love Morning Star products. They make a great spaghetti, too.

luke wrote:a good vegetarian option for spicy chicken patties is quorn. i'm pretty sure they make theirs with some sort of wheat gluten like seitan so that it is somewhat "stringy". obviously, the breading isn't as good, and it's not as crispy like what you could get from wendy's. quorn products are available at almost all major supermarkets.

another favorite of mine is the morning star chicken strips, also available almost everywhere. these strips are so great in salad, sandwiches, curry, and anything else you can think of. i used to mix these with mayo and a little bit of lemon juice for an awesome chicken salad sandwich.

Hmmm, I've never heard of quorn. I'll have to do some investigating on that one. How does it taste? Does it taste good? I'll try and remember to check and see if this is available at our supermarket next time I go shopping. Let you know what I find out. The chicken strips sound good....I'll look for those also. Thanks for the tips, luke!

Thanks for the link, Rune_Walsh, I'll check that out.

Rune_Walsh wrote:That said, it's easier to become vegetarian now more than ever with all the soy products available, but it's also important to consider your blood type (think of the book, Eating Right for Your Type). It's really, really important to make sure you are getting your nutrients.

I hadn't thought about blood type, but I guess that makes sense. I think my blood type is 0+, if I'm not mistaken. Thanks for pointing that out Rune_Walsh! I never would have thought about that aspect of it all.

Rune_Walsh wrote:If you'd like to try it, Silver, try to first cut back on certain meats. Go without eating red meat and pork for a while and see if you like it. Eat fish and fowl only and if that works out, reduce even that. I think it's hard on the body to just go vegan or vegetarian cold turkey (no pun intended).

Actually, I think I have already started cutting back on some meats. I don't eat meat nearly as often as I used to, but there are times when I still must have a burger or chicken, etc., or atleast I think I do. I do eat a lot more fish than I used to. Can you eat Turkey or is that off limits too? With Thanksgiving coming up right around the corner in the next few months I don't think I could do without Turkey right now, lol.

Rune_Walsh wrote:Totally. I love Morning Star products. They make a great spaghetti, too.

I love spaghetti. Maybe I could try this too. Do they make sauce to go with it...is it meatless...????