NEW YORK, April 21 (Reuters) - Former Beatle Paul McCartney is urging the world to go vegetarian in a bid to fight global warming and is surprised more green groups don't promote it.
In an interview with the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), McCartney said the global meat industry was a major contributor to global warming. A transcript of the PETA interview was given to Reuters.
"The biggest change anyone could make in their own lifestyle would be to become vegetarian," McCartney, a longtime vegetarian and advocate of vegetarianism, said. "I would urge everyone to think about taking this simple step to help our precious environment and save it for the children of the future."
McCartney says the amount of land and water used to maintain the meat industry makes it a major contributor to climate change and complains that most environmental groups do not list vegetarianism as one of their top priorities.
"It's very surprising that most major environmental organizations are leaving the option of going vegetarian off their lists of top ways to curtail global warming," he said.
A 2006 United Nations report found that cattle-rearing generated more greenhouse gases than transportation.
Great topic, Geoff. I'm not sure if it belongs in the Paul forum, though, or in "Different Conversations", since it's sort of enviromental/political. (awaits instructions)
First, everyone should read James Howard Kunstler's excellent and brilliantly written books: "The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century" and, if you're up for more, "Home from Nowhere" or any other urban-planning book of his you can pick up. He addresses the bio-fuel issue Klang brings up and many others, all written in a delightful style. I have become a JHK groupie and can't wait for his new book to come out.
Then, read Barbara Kingsolver's book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" (which I haven't finished, by the way) where her family attempts to eat only locally grown food for an entire year. She discovered that there is a reason you have animals on farms. They serve a vital purpose, and strict vegetarianism really is sort of an artifact of our oil-fueled, factory-farming approach to food production.
This is where Sir Paul just doesn't know. He probably understands all the good reasons to give a big thumbs down to factory farming (any number of books cover this well). What's a little trickier is understanding how people can live sustainably in a natural environment, which we are so far removed from that most of us don't even have a clue how it works. Probably 98% of us wouldn't know an organic farm if we fell across it.
So, anyway, a possible answer to Paul's question why "most major environmental organizations are leaving the option of going vegetarian off their lists of top ways to curtail global warming" could be because they understand that pure veggie doesn't work in a sustainable format, but it's a fiendishly difficult subject to address so they don't even try. Besides, who wants to eat cute little lambs and bunnies? Bunch of hard-hearted jerks we are. But we'll have to recover or reinvent those skills on a widespread basis when our current system of exploitive farming (which has depleted most of the topsoil on the planet) becomes unviable.
All you've got to do is choose love. That's how I live it now. I learned a long time ago, I can feed the birds in my garden. I can't feed them all. -- Ringo Starr, Rolling Stone magazine, May 2007
For all I know, Ringo might be a yogi disguised as a drummer! - George Harrison
I think asking people to change at the drop of a hat. or expecting them to just because it's going to help the planet is not going to change people's eating habits. I eat meat, I try to eat more veggies for healths sake but do we see how much we are hearing in America about being overweight. People aren't helping that situation so unless people open their eyes to what's going on I don't think one man is going to change it.
Oh, that this too, too solid flesh would melt... Zap! My skin's soaked right through to the skin! "The Beatles will exist without us"
When you grow up eating meat it is extremely hard to just stop. Besides, like you said Sandra, sounds like he doesn't have all the facts and is a bit naive. I honestly would love to be a vegetarian, it's just so hard. I have cut back quite a bit though. And to be honest, my choice to do so had nothing to do with the environment. It was mostly for health reasons and I really do feel like this day in age, we do not need to have animal meat to survive. Not like centuries ago when you had to. Nowadays we can supplement our diets to get protein.
Like many celebrities he has been misled by PETA and their ilk and not given all of the information. I think vegetarianism is fine as long as you're not militant about it.
You're so vain, you probably think this post is about you.
I went veggie about six months ago after being an avid meat eater. If you go for the right things it's not so hard at all. They're making great meat substitutes that you can get at the local grocer's. Everything from tofu and veggie based hot dogs and sausages, burgers that taste just like beef, pork, or chicken, etc. I even get 'ribs' in a great BBQ sauce. This stuff really tastes like it's intended to, no kidding. I'm not pushing this on anyone, but I ask you to make your own test some time. I'll bet you'll be surprised.
Why would I do this? My lovely new wife wouldn't marry anyone who eats anything that once had a face.
Motivation.
'...In the name of Preverti, daughter of the mountains, whose embrace with Rani made the whole world tremble...'
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