Comments MattPrescott has made

  • Loopholes galore:

    Come one -- "What if i hunt a wild boar in Tuscany?" That's one of the most, um, creative loopholes I've seen. The majority of people aren't hunting wild boars--or anyone else--for their food. And the majority of people aren't in a position to do that (nor should they, for environmental reasons if none other, since hunting takes a big toll on wildlife conservation--despite the claims of a few people who like to hunt). But that's a separate issue.

    And remember -- energy production is an industry, yes, but its product (energy) goes to feed other industries, like (drum roll, please...) the meat industry. In fact, the meat industry uses about two-thirds of all the fossil fuels consumed by the US.

    Lastly, I don't see how choosing vegetarian foods every time we eat is "extreme." They're available at almost every grocery store (tofu, vegetables, veggie burgers and dogs, faux chicken nuggets, even vegan BBQ ribs!) and most restaurants carry them. I've been vegan for nearly 10 years and have never had a problem finding great vegan food--whether I'm in Croatia or Kansas (and everywhere in between).

    But then, its easy to cast something off as "extreme" if you've never tried it and just don't want to do it. The same goes for people who think switching to a Prius is extreme, or even more extreme, biking to work (gasp!). "I mean, I'm against global warming, but biking a mile to work? Now that's a bit extreme." Of course we know it's not, but that's because we've taken the step and see how simple it is. The same goes for just not eating meat. Give it a whirl. You might be surprised.
    On PETA VP argues vegetarianism is the best way to help the planet posted 2 years, 2 months ago 77 Responses

  • The semantics are killing me.

    It doesn't matter how one personally defines "environmentalist" (or think others should define) it. It doesn't matter that PETA is an animal rights group. It doesn't matter if someone likes PETA or hates it. Nor does it matter if one thinks PETA is effective at getting the message out. The fact is:

    Neither the messenger nor the tactics used to convey the message have anything to do with the validity of the message itself.

    Using these side-issues to divert attention from this accurate and valid message is just wrong. As environmentalists and progressives, we should be more open-minded to the fact that we may not all be perfect and could stand to change some simple things about how we personally live to make the world a better, kinder and more environmentally-healthy place to live.

    If you don't like rainforest destruction, go vegetarian.
    If you don't like wasting energy, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about global poverty, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about your health, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about ocean and river pollution, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about land degradation, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about animals, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned about wasting water, go vegetarian.
    If you are concerned with the state of the world and want to take a simple step that will make it better in many regards...go vegetarian.On On PETA's latest campaign posted 2 years, 2 months ago 256 Responses

  • Totally Agree....

    Amen. Its worth pointing out that the "I only purchase locally-grown, "humane" meat" argument doesn't hold water. Those animals, like the ones on factory farms, still need to be fed crops to grow (and it takes about 16 lbs of crops to product 1 lb of meat). All of those crops require land to grow, many of them involve pesticides, they all require fossil fuels and water, etc. No matter if its a factory or family farm, the biological reality is that producing meat will always be an inefficient, resource-intensive process.

    Plus, how many people who "only" eat meat from these "family farms" truly never eat meat otherwise? If you're at a friend's house and they serve meat, do you ask where it came from and refuse it if its not on your approved list of farms? If you're at a work potluck, do you ask each person to write the name of the farm their meat came from in front of the dish, and only eat the dishes made of meat from the smaller ones? I find this argument is used as a crutch to allow people to continue eating meat despite its major environmental, animal welfare and health problems.

    As this author points out, going vegetarian is no inconvenience. sure, for the first few months or so you've got to try some new products to figure out which ones you like, and learn some new recipes....but for anyone who likes eating as much as I do, that's a GOOD thing.

    the web site www.vegcooking.com is really helpful, and has thousands of free vegetarian recipes (for anyone interested). On On PETA's latest campaign posted 2 years, 2 months ago 256 Responses

  • A reply from Matt Prescott

    Wow! As a long time fan of Grist I feel so honored to have this lengthy piece about me on the web site. Of course, I'm a little dissapointed in the picture it paints of me, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

    It might interest some folks to know that my background as an activist is with environmentalism. You name an environmental group and I've probably worked with (or for) them.

    In fact, it was my passion for fighting environmental abuses that I became vegan and began working for PETA to promote veganism and vegetarianism full time.

    I suspect the author of this story was a little on-edge and perhaps feeling guilty about his meaty ways (hence the shrill tone, which, as a side note, he correctly but ironically says perpetuates negative stereotypes about activists). The fact is, meat IS the number one cause of global warming. The UN found that it contributes more greenhouse gasses than all the cars, trucks, planes, SUVs, Hummers, ships and tanks in the world combined. The UN also found that its a major factor in the "top two or three most significant [environmental] problems, at every level from local to global." The University of Chicago just produced a report saying that switching from a standard car to a hyrbid is less effective at countering global warming than switching from eating meat to being vegetarian.

    Moreover, NRDC and Environmental Defense have recently posted information on their web sites about how bad meat is for the environment. Also, did you know that producing one pound of meat is the same (greenhouse gas-wise) as driving a Hummer 40 miles? Or that the meat industry consumes about 1/3 of the fossil fuels and 1/2 the water we use in the US?

    Regarding the industrialized soy beans I ate in my veggie hot dog today, which Alex mentions in his article: Its important to note that it takes about 20 pounds (roughly) of those soy beans to produce just one pound of meat. Funneling crops through animals like this is just a highly inefficient way of producing food--no matter where your meat comes from. (On that note, did you know that more than 90% of the Amazon rainforest cleared since 1970 is used for global meat production--whether for grazing or for growing the massive amount of crops that need to be fed to farmed animals?)

    Sure, my stir-fried tofu may contribute to global warming, but I choose to stir-fry tofu instead of chicken because let's face it, it does a FRACTION of the environmental damage that meat does (not to mention being better for my health and for animals).

    So Alex, like you, I believe that "being an environmentalist simply means supporting policies AND PRACTICES that promote a healthy environment." Which is exactly why I'm vegetarian. If you -- or anyone reading this -- wants more information (including loads of free vegetarian recipes), just check out www.GoVeg.com.

    If we, ourselves, can't make changes to help the environment, how can we expect others to?

    Thanks.

    -Matt Prescott
    PETA
     On Animal-rights group makes the stupid claim that enviros must be vegetarians posted 2 years, 2 months ago 208 Responses