Yeah, so I posted this on a local forum today

LaurieLovesLearning

I will be making some people upset there. Ah...

There was a vegan pushing an agenda to a largely agricultural (grain & livestock) audience today. The main subjects talked about so far on the thread were factory farms & population control. Of course, the last one gets me going as I believe large families (especially rural ones) are often more stable & better adjusted in so many ways. Nobody ever looks at all the facts. They pick one thing & bash everyone else. It gets frustrating.

I am posting this here, not to offend anyone, but because I believe that many here will support what I wrote. A heads up, this post is very opinionated.

"Population control...as was already said that diseases cut the population. So why is society trying so hard to stop this virus? Advanced countries prop up the weak & vulnerable...people who would have died from ____ anyway. It makes for a weakened & burdened population. It isn't pretty or pleasant, but that's how life works. If you look at the animal world, it balances out eventually when those die. Everyone dies at some point. Our society wants everyone to live, even if it is artificially supported. Birth control is doing things backwards and causes more issues. A strong population is not propped up medically/artificially, and eats truly healthy food (not manufactured "foods" which include improperly prepared soy & chemical/additive laden foods. Read those ingredient lists on everything you buy. It amazes me what people are willing to eat in the name of "healthy" whether vegan or not. It is not food!

Also, if citing Kenya, it is a societial issue. It is not family planning that is the problem. First, children die often at all ages. People want children. It is their right to reproduce. It is basic to being. Also, and I believe that this is the bigger issue there, if you look at their men, many are very loose, raping women. Do they care about population control? It is a huge problem there, so I understand. I think this is where a lot of their problem lies.

China's problems with this have already been addressed. Some advanced countries in Europe pay for people to have children, and are obviously doing very well.

Farming... One other thing that has not been mentioned is the most obvious factory farms and the ones who cry loudest about farm practices, which are...cities! They take up the best and most fertile farm land. We lose too many acres to cities every day. The people that live there have no awareness of the life & death cycle that farmers deal with every day. This city land becomes unproductive & pollution causing on land, in water, in the air, noise, & with light. The land is wasted, sometimes contaminated in the name of a city...forever. That is a huge problem.

This said, I am far from a supporter of livestock yards and many practices of conventional farming, including all those greenhouses & solar panels covering valuable farmland in the Netherlands in the name of food production & "green" living. Have you seen those Nat. Geo. pictures? That is a type of modern conventional farming too. It is not good, as they want to tell us.

I think it would be best for all if we could go back to sustainable ways of farming, supporting the little guy who is farming holistically and supporting those who want to start.

Do you want to make a difference instead of complaining? Plant a garden. Keep a little livestock if you can. Learn about life & death. Don't give up because it is work. Keep going. Learn about what true sustainability is. Start small & grow it wisely. Change happens with you. One site that I found years ago is thegrownetwork.com. If you want to learn grow your own food, it is a good place to start."

Megan Venturella

Good for you! It can be really hard to post your honest opinions in such an upside-down world.

shllnzl

@LaurieLovesLearning I cannot disagree with what you say.

I want to expand on your comments about city dwellers and their disdain for farmers. I am a life long city dweller with common sense. City people learn to survive in the "urban jungle" but have lost touch with food/forest life and death issues. I may be so bold to say that many city dwellers have lost touch with some forms of reality, which would explain why they support unrealistic lifestyle/political policies.

My advice to them: Do no harm. Acknowledge that life is struggle and you are better for having overcome each struggle. Find joy and gratitude in each day. Wishing the world were different does not make it so; take steps to improve things but don't lose sight of what is real and unchangeable. Do not presume that you have the right/wisdom to make life choices for others.

Linda Bittle

There are so many agendas right now. I'm always dismayed by how people think they can force others to live as they would choose.

What ever happened to "Live and let live"? As for me, I'm an unrepentant carnivore who, and I'm OK with people making other choices. I'm not interested in being bullied into eating (or living) in any other way.

seeker.nancy - Central Texas

When people ask me why I became vegan, I just give a generalized "I believe it's better for my health and for the planet". That being said, the main reason has to do with the quality of meat and dairy available in the cities. I have a garden. If I am eventually able to have chickens that can be fed more than the store bought stuff I will eat eggs and am willing to cull, butcher, and eat the older hens or extra roosters. If I had room for dairy goats I would drink the milk and harvest as needed for meat. I know that would probably tick a bunch of vegans off but that is MY truth. I'm trying as much as possible to stick to whole foods, not ones with a billion unpronounceable ingredients. My daughter does the grocery shopping and is very diligent in reading the ingredients before buying me something, which I truly appreciate. Am I self-sufficient? Not yet but I'm working on it.

I think we have lost much in the name of progress. Big families are necessary on a farm and it's common to have several different generations under one roof (or at least in some places it still is). I view big families as a huge plus for most people; I wish I had more children. I have two, and married the second time for his kids lol (a story for another time maybe). When I divorced him I've made sure that his birth children know I divorced their dad, not them. I believe we must do the best we can under our circumstances. My goal is not to change the world but rather to improve the little corner I live is by setting the right example.