Playing Chicken

Years ago I made a rather selfish decision to eat a strictly plant-based diet.  I say selfish because I was in ill health at the time and changed my diet to become healthy again.  It worked and I have never gone back to eating animal foods.  My diet now actually remains quite simple and I eat low on the food chain. 

My choice to not consume animal foods had nothing to do with animal cruelty and I am not completely opposed to animal foods, as such, I shun the term "vegan", even though in all respects I am one and I suppose, the only thing that separates me from being a true vegan is that my shoes are made of leather and I once had a leather wallet. Oh, and I eat honey sometimes. 

Don't get me wrong...I abhor factory farming for it's cruelty I just don't join in raids to overturn cages or man tables handing out pictures of dead chickens or sick cows being slaughter inhumanely. (Even though I am totally appalled at the practices on these "farms".) 

No...my biggest concern about these factory farms is what they are doing to every creature who lives and breathes on this earth not just the ones being slaughtered at an alarming rate. I still come to the same question too the more I read about how we are essentially raping the earth to fulfill our greed and pleasure seeking.  When we have totally consumed and destroyed the earth in our relentless pursuit of "growing a sound economy" by acquiring even more small green papers which we conveniently convert to blips of electrons in a computer, where do we expect we will live?  Have you checked out the other planets?  They make Arizona look downright cool.

So..back to the chickens. The links to the three articles below, I hope, will give you some pause the next time you hanker for some hot wings or nuggets.  As you read ask yourself; Are we growing chickens or are we playing chicken with nature?  You decide. 

Chickens more toxic than Delaware factories--Ammonia outweighs all other pollutants

And if polluting the air is not bad enough

Poultry Waste in River Still Health Danger

Here is our nation's response:

Poultry pollution
Industry seeks EPA exemption from reporting emissions

I'm sticking with my beans and rice.