#15 Goodbye, bak chor mee

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I spent my Saturday with Microeconomics at the coffee shop beside my place. It was rather productive until I felt quite dizzy and additional cups of coffee seemed to have lost its kick. I then concluded that it must be dinner time already because dizziness probably equates to low blood glucose levels. (I'm very bad at detecting things like these, which results in even worser eating patterns) Anyway, since I've been on an eating hunt- I wanted to go to a nice restaurant to prep myself up with some good food. But, it was -5 degrees Celsius outside and I'm quite sure my blood would be in danger of freezing if I had stayed outside longer. Thus, I decided to fly home to cook a meal of brown rice, pan fried Atlantic cod (which I moulded into a little bowl shape- I must be really bored), drowned in Japanese veggie curry of carrots, brocolli, onions and tofu.

I'm secretly impressed by my culinary skills, but of course this is a very biased and non-objective opinion. Okay, I must stop writing about nonsensical things now and address some solemn issues which have been severely undermined and ignored.

Rethinking the Meat Guzzler by The New York Times condenses into a very sucint article, why we shouldn't eat meat (other than the fact that Vegetarians weigh 20% less than Omnivours). It shows the impact of environmental pollution from meat farming, economic burdens (having to subsidize a very costly meat industry- the US government subsidizes meat production to well, ensure that your Big Mac doesn't cost you half a leg), health effects from the high fat content of forcefully grain fed cows whose stomachs are meant to digest only grass, and lastly, very briefly touches on the uneven grain distribution which is a HUGE culprit in world hunger.

My main argument as a Junior Economist (I can't claim to be anything higher than that rank yet because I'm having trouble using Microsoft Excel in my Economics Statistic class.) is that there has always been more than enough food in the world for everyone! Thus there should not exist a problem of malnourished children or people dying of hunger. African farmers export their abundant supply of grain to wealthy continents such as Europe and North America to feed their livestocks for the wealthy citizens of first world nations. It doesn't make sense to starve the poor (who cannot afford to pay as much as meat farmers for the grains) to feed Americans who are already suffering from obesity related health problems and on a mad binge as a society in the quest for weight loss to look like (anorexic) Angelina Jolie or Tom (shortie) Cruise.

I'm not trying to guilt-trip anybody here, but each time you take a bite into a KFC chicken leg, you are depriving an African child of at least three (3) day's worth of food. This is just another perspective of looking at things not commonly presented in this fashion.

We can eliminate world hunger simply from not eating meat. Collectively, we will reduce the demand for meat and thereby redistribute the grains back to feed the poor instead. Do read Robbing the Poor to feed the Rich, by goveg.com for more specific details if you're interested. I know this is a very normative claim to be making since moral value judgements are subjective and not always welcomed with open arms and a pat on the back by the economic/political society. When we take into account the economic effects on the loss of beef export (decreased GDP), jobs in the farming industry, and prices of grain (which will fall because livestock farmers will not pay as much anymore from the decreased demand of meat), the results are detrimental and I am not denying that fact. However, doesn't this loss towards the first world nations and the gain for the starving people, starkly resemble a redistribution of wealth (in which politicians have been ironically lobbying for)???

As such, although I'm aware that I have been falling ill too frequently nowadays, I cannot and will not start eating meat again. Should I do so, my words and belief will have no weight when I present this case in future on another platform (not a blog). I hope you understand Mummy, I don't think I've ever fully explained my queer actions and Ah Mah thinks I'm very silly- I will eat a fuller range of vegetables, I promise.

But this is a knowledge I hold dear; a cherished hope.