From the desk

The battle between eating meat and going vegetarian has been waging since the first report of mercury in fish found its way into mainstream media. No matter how much poking, prodding and gentle pushing each side gives, the war will continue, despite the findings.

The facts present themselves through numbers, well-worded articles and long-term studies. In spite of the numerous benefits of being a vegetarian, meat eaters still try to back up their logic with statements like, “It’s manly to hunt,” even though the guy bought his 9 oz. T-bone steak from the sketchy butcher at Kroger, or, “God gave us meat to enjoy,” even though God made Adam and Eve vegetarians before they were kicked out of the Garden of Eden — before death entered the world.

The excuses from the meat eaters of the world do not seem to hold up to actual logic. If they were honest and just said that they ate dead carcass because it was cheaper, tastier or because they had no regard for their general health, then maybe more vegetarians would understand why not everyone withheld from eating meat.

Without that honesty, facts pile up against the meat eaters. A longitudinal study released in 2011 by the German Cancer Research Center found that vegetarians do live longer than meat eaters. According to the report, vegetarian men were reported to have a 50 percent lower mortality rate than those who ate meat. Additionally, vegetarian women had a 30 percent lower death rate.

Studies such as the one done by the German Cancer Research Center constantly emerge with various opinions about the results.

“It’s not about not eating meat, it’s about living a healthier lifestyle,” one person will always say.

“No, no, it’s because the study was done by vegetarians, so they found what they wanted to find,” another person will say.

“I’ll eat what I want, when I want. I’d rather die happy and early than live forever miserable,” a final voice will say.

Even though the world is naïve, the responses — and facts — are always shocking.
According to the Vegetarian Resource Group, only five percent of Americans said that they never eat meat, fish, seafood or poultry in 2011, making them true vegetarians.
With a country as powerful as the United States of America, and one that seems to be so concerned about living longer and richer lives than the rest of the world, one would assume that more people would jump on the bandwagon of eating greens and forgoing dead animals.

Until that moment, however, it is safe to assume that vegetarians will try to convert meat eaters, and meat eaters will call vegetarians tree-hugging hippies. Even though the two sides will constantly bicker over who is correct and which life philosophy is better to follow, they can agree on at least one, random thing: Albert Einstein was a genius.

He was also a vegetarian.

“Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet,” Einstein said.