*Vegetarianism

Vegetarianism: Strict diet or Noble life?

By Kelvin Pham from V.O.C

Developing with the progressions of science and technique, vegetarianism became one of the most stylish and noble life style of today’s world. Beside the religious reasons, the scientists have studied that there are many logical reasons have shown that people should and must be vegetarian.

“ I realized that vegetarianism saves the lives of animals,” said Von Vu-the president of the biggest Vegetarian Club in Ohio. Being vegetarian for a half of her lifetime, Ms Von Vu has been working so hard for spreading the vegetarianism idea and convincing people to follow that compassionate life style. PhD Jenkins said in an interview of 1995, “To reduce your risk of heart disease, you may want to eat more beans, peas, oats”, because their “sticky” soluble helps lower your blood cholesterol. The vegetarianism is not a new philosophy. A study of The New York Times newspaper on Friday, October 1974 stated, “if the people in West America can eat vegetarian once a week, they would save 60 million people every year”.

Vegetarianism basically bases on the compassion for the animals. In other word, vegetarians can feel the animals’ sufferings. “Our vegetarian life started when we were having a party at Sunday Church. Glancing down at our plates, we suddenly realized that we were eating the leg of the sheep who had until recently been playing in a field herself. We looked at each other and said, "Wait a minute, we love these sheep – they're such gentle creatures. So why are we eating them?” confided Paul and Linda McCartney. In the real life, we are consuming the scrumptious, well done meat that provided by KFC or any food company. Therefore, the meat-consumers couldn’t see the slaughters behind every piece of meat that they are providing for their organisms.

“The scientific base is very strong suggesting that fruits and vegetables are protective elements for all gastrointestinal cancers and all smoking-related cancers,” said Tim Byers, professor of Preventive Medicine at University of Colorado Health Science Center in Denver. Another research of The New York Times stated “the nations of America have the higher proportion of cancer cases, heart diseases and young deaths than the other countries because we eat a lot of meats”. The communist countries, they don’t have a lot of meats so their solutions are vegetables and tofu. Therefore they have less cancer cases and heart diseases. “Japan is known as the country that has the highest ratio of people who live over hundred years” said Ms Von Vu again, “because they eat a lot of tofu and soy”. Nobel prize winning playwright-George Bernard Shaw-was told by doctor that he would die if he refuses to eat meat. His response, today, is used as the slogan of several vegetarian organizations, “ Death is better than cannibalism”.

“Take a little while and think about the source of your meal before you eat,” answered Ms Von Vu when she was asked about her advice for everybody, “every morning, when you wake up, thousands of animals have been killed to serve you,” she continued. The study showed that everyday, more than 1000 animals included chickens, pigs, fishes… are killed to provide the KFC, Food Max, McDonald, Taco Bell. “There are only you can decide to change your life healthier and save the world from the heartless slaughters,” Ms Von Vu asserted, “every piece of meat that you eat is a dead body of an innocent animals”.

The society minutely develops, human is the smartest living being that was created to dominate the animals and nature. Human has enough right and intelligence to decide to be the animals’s dominator or the murderer.

* Thanks Supreme Master Ching Hai and my foster mom Jane Goodall

who provided me a lot of information for my article.