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July 2009

The Future Is Vegan

By M. Butterflies Katz

This July, we welcome back a frequent Viewpoint contributor, vegan poet M. Butterflies Katz. A member of the Gentle World vegan community in New Zealand, published author, and vegan advocate, M. Butterflies' writing is revolutionary, reminding us of the societal ills issued forth from speciesism, and compelling us to seek answers.

 

 
 

Thirty-one years ago, when I moved from the northern state of Ohio to the southern sunshine state of Florida, I felt shocked when I saw white people and black people sitting at different tables. Now we have an African-American first family in the White House, which itself speaks of Change, or more precisely 'evolution' of the human consciousness.

Human mistreatment of non-human animals will end, too. Any kind of subjugation, exploitation, brutality, domination, racism, sexism, speciesism is clearly wrong. It doesn't speak highly for the intelligence of the human race that most people can't see something that’s so plain to see: That it’s wrong to breed and raise animals for food and slaughter, stealing and turning a sentient creature’s life into a commodity.

THE FUTURE IS VEGAN. Animal agriculture is not only cruel, but non-sustainable, and it contributes greatly to the environmental crisis we’re ALL facing. If something is the TRUTH, then it still appears to be Truth from any angle we might look at it. Veganism lives up to this criterion. It’s an answer to the global warming crisis. We could easily decrease our emissions by being vegan and eating more locally-grown food.

It’s also a solution to the problem of deforestation, water pollution, and other environmental degradation. It’s the solution to the world-hunger issue. It would improve overall human health issues, and obesity. It would curb violence and end war. Vegans couldn't and wouldn't kill anyone. This is BIG stuff.

Veganism is the answer to a lack of something spiritual to believe in. All religions paled in the face of veganism in getting me closer to God. Vegans are often ridiculed in society, but when we educate people about veganism, we’re actually doing them a favor by espousing the benefits of a plant-based diet. I have lived in a communal setting with six other vegans for the past 30 years, so veganism obviously sustains human health. Our health is better than the average omnivore our age.

We need to EDUCATE people, and stop the LIES told to the general population. Feed vegan food to violent people and the criminal element in society and they will gradually become non-violent and rehabilitated into a more peaceful society. Feed vegan food to ill people and people with cancer in hospitals, and watch them heal.

THE FUTURE IS VEGAN. Children love animals naturally, until they’re taught – wrongly – not to REALLY love animals by their parents and by society. Those who teach their children that it’s okay to eat meat are, in reality, lying to their children.  It's a LIE, an UNTRUTH. Veganism is a GREAT TRUTH, and nothing less. Someone emailed me the words, "Vegans are intolerant". As a seeker of Truth, am I supposed to 'tolerate' humans financing the cruel abuse of animals and the destruction of Earth?
 
A friend of mine, who has been vegan for about 40 years, and who is an incredible example, has a T-shirt he wears frequently in public. It reads: THE FUTURE IS VEGAN.

Thirty years ago, this same person showed me that we are taking our dogs with us on this evolutionary path, and inspired my great love of vegan dogs! For info on feeding dogs a vegan diet, photos, and advice from a vegan vet, see my article titled, Dogs Can Be Vegan Too!

There are great rewards for anyone who commits to living in TRUTH. Veganism is the first step. It keeps coming back to TRUTH – something ALL people can follow and do for the betterment of the whole.

Veganism is a TRUTH, I believe, for all humans. We’re herbivores. We’re not natural predators, like certain wild animals. Someone had written to me a few years ago that the reason why people are “omnivores or meat-eaters is because humans have evolved on that diet for many thousands of years.” Or perhaps we might say that humans have ‘de-evolved’ on a diet that includes meat, to the point of self-destruction, of our species, of other species, and of our planet.

It seems to me that the only hope for the human race to create peace in the Middle East, on Earth, or to even have an Earth left on which to experience Peace in the future, is by becoming vegan. Some people today like to say that veganism is their “choice.” They use that term a lot. But I don't see that there is a “choice.” Humans have the “right” to choose “what is right”.

The Truth is on our side!  More and more, supporting evidence is proving that vegans are on the side of Truth. After 30 years of being vegan, I am filled with pride knowing that the United Nations report “Livestock's Long Shadow” has revealed that veganism is a “great truth” for our time. I revel in The China Study, which reveals that a plant-based diet is the best diet for humans. T. Colin Campbell wasn't a vegan when conducting the largest study on health and nutrition, but he eats and recommends a vegan diet since the study.

I rejoice when Ph.D's like Dr. Will Tuttle speak so eloquently on the behalf of animals, in his internationally-recognized book, The World Peace Diet, or when people tell me that they've become strict vegans after reading The Pig Who Sang to the Moon: The Emotional World of Farm Animals by New York Times best-selling author Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson.

I know that some vegans living in society today feel ridicule in their daily lives for choosing to be vegan. I hope they will stay strong and feel as I do, proud to be on the side of Truth. Something that propels me through an overwhelming amount of insanity, and something I always keep in mind, THE FUTURE IS VEGAN.

Comment on this article: Send us your comments about this article to Viewpoint at info@salemvegan.org — We'll post your message here to share with readers.

 
 
 

Views and opinions expressed in Viewpoint are solely those of its contributors, and are not necessarily views shared by other Salem Vegan Society members. Readers are encouraged to contribute to the Viewpoint page. Send your responses, original letters, editorials, or essays to Viewpoint. The Viewpoint page editor is: Marc Delaney - SVS. Email: info@salemvegan.org


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