Hwk 7d

Chapter Seventeen – The Ethics of Eating Animals
Precis:
The number of vegetarians is growing rapidly, at the same time many people are becoming aware about animal rights. Every living organism needs to be treated with care; many people argue that animals should be treated the same way humans are. Pollan devotes this entire chapter to the dilemma of eating animals. The meat industry is well aware about the fact that if their customers are educated about the details on how animals turn into meat, the less customers they will have. As meat consumers we need to understand the process of animals turning into meat, hopefully making a change for meat processors to revise their techniques in order for the animals to live a happier life before becoming slaughtered.
Gems:
"The question is not Can they reason? Or Can they talk? But Can they suffer?" (308)
"Humans don't need to kill other creatures in order to survive; carnivorous animals do." (310)
"I have yet to find any serious writer on the subject who still subscribes to Descartes belief that animals cannot feel pain because they lack a soul." (315)
"We'd probably eat a lot less of it, too, but maybe when we did eat animals we'd eat them with the consciousness, ceremony, and respect they deserve." (333)
Thoughts:
What exactly is the right diet to follow when living as a human being? It seems as if there is no correct meal plan out there; no matter what diet we take a part of there will always be pros and cons that linger. After reading this chapter I realized that having a vegetarian diet connects to slaughtering animals; in order to protect certain vegetables, predators need to be killed. Does this means that vegetarians support the slaughter of animals, but don't consume animals because they think it's just too gross of an idea?

What if the consumption of animals by humans being came to a sudden halt; would there be enough land for these animals to live peacefully? Or would we have to think of an alternative to keep the population of certain animals limited? Would they be kept in the wild, or would we make a different use of them?

Chapter Eighteen – Hunting
Precis:
This is my first time hunting and I am accompanied by Angelo; he has been hunting for years now. We are hunting for boars in the “sparsely populated northern reaches of Sonoma County”; we came across a group of pigs and had a chance to aim our rifles at them, unfortunately I was not successful since I was simply not ready. There is something holding me back from taking a part of this hunting activity, but I puss myself to join the “adventure”. During this outing, I witnessed a pig being shot down, and prepared which was not appealing at all. Later on I was able to think about the process of hunting for the pig and killing it, which definitely made me aware about what I eat and where exactly it comes from.
Gems:
“It is a wonder that the cashier didn’t preemptively throw up his hands and offer us the contents of the cash register.” (337)
“It was as if I’d dialed up the gain on all my senses or quieted myself to such an extent that the world itself grew louder and brighter.” (341)
"So much of the human project is concerned with distinguishing ourselves from beasts that we seem strenuously to avoid things that remind us that we are beasts too - animals that urinate, defecate, copulate, bleed, die, stink, and decompose." (357)
Thoughts:
I don’t think Pollan should have taken part in killing any of the pigs. I feel as if he wrote this book to track down where all our food comes from, not take a part of slaughtering animals. At the end of the day he is held responsible for killing a pig. I guess there was a sense of excitement, but I think he should have controlled that. Pollan didn’t really think thoroughly what he will be doing with his gun; instead he seemed to be much more excited about using it, not worrying much about what he will be aiming at.

How has Pollan’s personal diet changed while conducting his research?

Chapter Nineteen – Gathering: The Fungi
Precis: Mushrooms; many of us consume this fruity body of a subterranean network of microscopic hyphae, yet we don’t know much about them. I go out on a search for mushrooms in the wild for this meal; chanterelles and morels in particular. In science today, there are many unsolved questions surrounding mushroom, whether they need to be consumed by humans or not. While I was out in an attempt to gather mushrooms, I suddenly realized how hard it is to collect them. Mushrooms definitely play a role in recycling organic matter. If the wrong types of mushrooms are eaten by humans, the effects can be deadly.
Gems:
“I was the horse who could count, the man who could find a chanterelle using someone else’s eyes.” (369)
“They had a delicate flavor, fruity with a hint of pepper, and a firm but silky texture. “(370)
“You’re looking for the big score, the mother lode. The conditions might be perfect in every way, but you never know what you’re going to find around the next bend-it could be a sea of mushrooms or nothing at all.” (384)
“You can forage in the garden, in the way Adam and Eve presumably did, but there isn’t much to it: no dilemmas, no hunting stories” (386)
Thoughts:
The way this reading was presented, as a reader I felt that gathering mushrooms is a very tough job; it’s definitely no easy walk in the park. As consumers we tend to see food in large quantities when we go out to purchase it; we tend to assume that it got there somehow, as if it just appeared out of nowhere. Let’s take mushrooms for example, even though they are hard to gather, buyers are not aware about this fact. When we go out to purchase mushrooms, we see them in large quantities. What we don’t know is that it probably took a long period of time to search for one single mushroom.

I didn’t know much about mushrooms until I read through this chapter. They don’t really have a reason to be eaten, but we still consume them. I feel like we don’t really care much about what we eat , or what benefits (if there are any) our body will get from eating the product. We simply eat to eat; nothing more, nothing less.

Chapter Twenty – The Perfect Meal
Precis: After all the growing, foraging, hunting and catching was done with, I prepared meals for Angelo, Sue, Anthony, Richard, Judith, Isaac, and myself throughout the whole week. The meal included: Egg Fettuccine, braised leg and grilled loin of Wild Sonoma Pig, Garden Salad grown locally, Fava Bean toasts, and much more. I wouldn't say this was the best meal ever when comparing it to the standards of myself and my guests, but it was the joy and thoughtfulness that made this an awe-inspiring meal. I would definitley take this meal over a meal from a fast food restraunt; this meal proved that genuine meals still exist.
Gems:
"No, little if anything about this meal was what anyone would call 'realistic'. And yet no meal I've ever prepared or eaten has been more real." (392)
"Another thing cooking is, or can be, is a way to honor the things we're eating, the animal and plants and fungi that have been sacrificed to gratify our needs and desires, as well as the place and the people that produced them." (404)
"We eat by the grace of nature, not industry, and what we're eating is never anything more or less than the body of the world." (411)
Thoughts:
This book definitley raises awareness in the reader's mind. While I was reading this book, I was able to apply many of the situations discussed to myself. For example when they discussed topics regarding fast food restaraunts. I rarely consume food from fast food joints; so rarely that I don't remember the last time I had a meal from a fast food restaraunt. I am proud of myself and my family for taking little or no part in fast food consumption. Part of this has to do with my religion, since it tells us to abstain from eating pork, and eating meat that is not properly slaughtered. I can only eat meat that went through the process of proper slaughtering. This is the main reason for why I don't eat from fast food places, simply because I can't consume their meat. A few other things I learned while reading this book was: the process of slaughtering different animals, the mystery behind the consumption of mushrooms, hunting, etc... This book definitley taught many lessons which I wouldn't have been educated about elsewhere.

Many Americans assume that they made a good gesture by purchasing their food from "Whole Foods" or because the product they purchased claims to be organic, or enviornmentally friendly. They are brainwashed into thinking that these food items are good for them and teh enviornment. What they don't know is that everything such as food products have hidden lies...of course the farmers market and stores such as Whole Foods will create a certain label which will draw the attention of many individuals, just so they can make a profit. We as buyers and consumers need to come out of this hypnotized state and try to dig deep into everything we consume...soon many of us will realize that we have been lied all this time...only a few of the sellers tell the truth...very few...such as Joel Salatin...