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活动
「我为何吃素」作文比赛优胜作品
(上)
翻译/阿胖
资料授权/美国人道对待动物组织(PETA)
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Did You Go Vegetarian Contest
去年年底，美国人道对待动物组织(PETA)举办了一次「我为何吃素」的作文比赛，消息公佈之后，有超过1100位的素食者投稿，提出他们为何由肉食转变成为一位素食者的心路历程。许多人在文中表示他们无法从逻辑上一面爱着陪伴他们的动物，却又一面吃肉，因此决定成为素食者。除此一最常被提出的原因外，也有讨论到素食所带来的健康益处以及肉、蛋与牛奶工业对环境的破坏。
绝大多数的投稿内容关注在现代化工厂型农场的残忍行为，以及动物不是我们用来监禁与宰杀的观念。有些人提到因为看到生产鸡蛋的业者，在將小鸡塞入非常小的铁农笼子前，將牠们嘴巴烧掉的情形后，决定成为一位吃全素的素食者。也有许多人谈到猪肉制造业者用来装怀孕期母猪的笼子，在这根本无法转身的小笼子当中，母猪被装在里面达五个月之久。许多人引用PETA”被击倒的母牛”的报导内容，这是关于一只受伤的母牛，被牛肉制作业者无情地拖着走并射杀的故事。许多人说被关在农场的动物会感觉痛，且像猫与狗一样有感情，而且如果你还继续吃肉的话，你不配称为是一位”爱动物的人”。
有百分之四十的文章中讨论到吃肉与心脏病，中风，结肠癌，乳房癌及前列腺癌之间关系。另有超过100个人提到，在他们选择吃素之后，不但变得更有力量与活力，还减去了过重的体重。
其中不只80个人说对环境的关心是影响他们吃素的主要原因。一位来自北卡罗来纳州的PETA会员亲眼见到养猪工厂对他们所住社区的污染，从此不再吃肉。一位加州的会员谈到他父亲在一家制造牛奶工厂工作时，在一肥料沼泽中因为吸入有毒气体而沿生出健康的问题。也有许多人引用雨林受破坏、水污染，以及制肉工业使用低效率能源等，作为他们断绝吃肉的原因。
比赛最后由美国人道对待动物组织在1100多位参赛者当中，选出10位参赛者的作品，刊登在他们出版的新闻刊物上，10位作者并且可以享有一顿丰盛的素食大餐。蕃茄小屋在取得PETA同意之后，將分两期在这里介绍给大家，这10位获得优胜奖的朋友，他们是因为什么原因而吃素的。-----强力推荐
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(1)堪萨斯州，David
Potter
有许多原因让我选择吃素。在我很小的时候，我就是一位喜欢动物的人。我喜欢观赏在我家后院遊玩的鸟儿，也喜欢到附近的公园，看鸭、鹅、松鼠及其他小动物们。对于动物的爱，在我童年成长过程中一直滋长着，然而，我还是一面吃着肉。
每当我看到电视上揭露屠宰场负面影像的录影带时，我总会觉得可怕，然而，长时间以来，我只是简单的试着將这些可怕的影像与想法，从我脑海中移除，目的是为了方便继续我”正常”(儘管是没人性且不健康)的饮食。
接着，在我14岁时，整个变了。我逐渐了解肉类与其他动物产品应该为大多数人们的健康问题负责。除此之外，我眼中开始从过去所吃的汉堡、鸡翅、与燻肉中，看得到惧怕与无依的牛、鸡与猪。这些不是食物，而是有父母、有家庭、有感觉与权利的生情生命。
这些认知让我见到餐桌上的肉时，將叉子放下。很快的，不同于大众的认知，我发觉吃素既不困难，也不是一种对味觉的吹嘘。我在我们这里的健康食品店找到相关丰富的素食食品，包括口味很棒的仿肉食品。吃着”仿热狗”，但却不会对环境造成伤害或杀害其他活的动物，这种感觉真好。
几年后，我將注意力转到我所吃的蛋与牛奶制品上。我很高兴选择了吃素，且开始怀疑这些动物性副产品，对一个让动物免于残酷的生活型态是否是可以接受的。于是我决定做些研究，且很快的知道了人道对待动物组织(PETA)。
在本地一个展示会上，我拿了一份PETA的宣传单，并惊吓的发现这些动物副产品的制造环境。鸡的嘴被烤焦，牛被榨取牛奶至死，这些都只是刚开始。在PETA的网站上，我发现更多的讯息，于是我决定吃纯素，且不再回头。
现在我21岁，不但比以前健康快乐，每天吃纯素与运动，让我具有最佳的运动员身材。我的血压与脂肪指数均低，且比以前更有活力，每天晚上睡觉时我知道我过着在一个不再伤害地球上其他同袍的生活。毕竟我们是相系在一起。我希望在像PETA这一类人们的帮助下，能让我们这个星球成为它的子民(包括人类与非人类)一个更仁道、更慈悲的家。
David
Potter, Kansas
I suppose there are several
reasons [why] I became
vegetarian. Even as a
small child, I was an
animal lover. I had always
loved watching the birds
in my backyard and enjoyed
going to nearby parks
to see the ducks, geese,
squirrels, and my other
small friends. My love
for animals continued
to grow throughout my
childhood; however, I
continued eating meat.
I
was always horrified when
I saw undercover videos
from slaughterhouses (frequently
[videotaped] by our friends
in PETA) in investigative
reports on TV, yet for
a long time I simply tried
to put horrific images
and thoughts such as these
out of my head merely
for the convenience of
maintaining my “normal”
(albeit inhumane and unhealthy)
diet.
Then,
at 14, it became too much.
I came to realize that
meat and other animal
products were to blame
for the vast majority
of humanity’s health concerns.
On top of this, I began
to see frightened, innocent
cows, chickens, and pigs
where I once had seen
hamburgers, wings, and
bacon. I realized these
items were not food—they
were sentient beings with
parents, families, emotions,
and rights.
These
realizations led me to
put down the fork when
meat was on the table.
I quickly learned that,
contrary to popular belief,
conversion to a vegetarian
diet was neither difficult
nor a blow to the taste
buds. I went to my local
health food store and
found a bountiful selection
of delicious vegetarian
foods, including wonderful
imitation products for
the meat dishes I had
abandoned. It felt great
to enjoy a “hot dog” without
harming the environment
or ingesting another living
creature.
A
few years later, I turned
my focus to another element
of my diet: eggs and dairy
[products]. I was very
happy with my decision
to go vegetarian and began
to wonder if these animal
byproducts were really
an acceptable component
to a cruelty-free lifestyle.
I decided to do some research
and soon learned about
PETA.
At a local show, I picked
up a pamphlet from PETA
and was horrified to learn
of the conditions to which
these “byproduct” animals
were exposed. Chickens
with their beaks seared
off and cows milked to
death were just the beginning.
After learning more at
www.peta.org, I made the
decision to go vegan—and
never looked back.
Now,
at the age of 21, I am
as healthy and happy as
ever. My vegan diet, along
with daily exercise, has
put me in the best athletic
shape of my life. My blood
pressure and cholesterol
are low, I have more energy
than ever before, and
I can go to bed each night
knowing that I live my
life without harming my
compatriots here on Earth.
After all, we’re ALL in
this life together. I
hope with the help of
people like those at PETA,
we can all make our planet
a more humane, compassionate
home for all its residents,
both human and nonhuman. |
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(2)德州，Laurette
Timms
多年来我在吃素的路上，进进出出，只因为我不很喜欢吃肉。后来在芝加哥市树屋避难所(Tree
House shelter)当兽医助手照顾病猫时，我远离了吃牛肉、猪肉、鸡肉与火鸡肉。我只是开始想如果猫有感觉的话，那么，牛、猪、鸡与火鸡也应当有感觉，因此就不想再吃牠们了。接着，我看到一条鱼在水霸上跳动，于是我想牠们也不会很舒服才是。2003年4月在德州大学听Garyv
Yourofsky(PETA)的一次演讲后，我从一般素改成纯素，我先生则从一位肉食者成为一位吃纯素的素食者。从播放的影片上，我们真实的看到农场动物为了成为一片鲜美的肉味所遭受到的痛苦。当我们知道牛肉制品业的暴行之后，我们说，够了，够了，把起司抛掉，改买豆浆吧。
我们觉得我们可以与其他上百万的素食者发表一大篇声明，不让一个靠动物受苦来换取利益的工业获得任何一毛钱。市面有可口的仿肉、豆浆、蛋替代品，与便宜的合成鞋。也有不含牛奶成份的冰淇淋，所以我们有足够的东西了。在Wal-Mart或Kroger等超市，我们可以买到许多东西。此外，我们也可以开车到Whole
Foods或Central Market买东西。
素食产品比以往更普遍了，整个大肉类与奶制品工业也在关注当中。Dean
Foods买下了Silk soy milk公司。ConAgra，Kraft，与Kellogg也买下了仿肉制造公司。甚至Burger
King也卖起素汉堡。麦当劳正在加州测试素汉堡的销售市场。Denny有素汉堡，Pizza
Hut也在印地安纳州的Ft. Wayne测试黄豆起司披萨。
钱会说话。而我们准备为动物代言。
Laurette
Timms, Texas
I was a vegetarian on and off
for years, because I just didn’t
like meat that much. I went
off beef, pork, chicken, and
turkey permanently, while working
with sick cats as a vet assistant
at Tree House shelter in Chicago.
I just started thinking that
if cats had feelings, so [did]
cows, pigs, chickens, and turkeys,
etc., and I just didn’t want
to eat them anymore.Then, I
saw a fish flopping around on
Survivor and thought it just
can’t be too comfortable for
him either. I went from vegetarian
to vegan, and my husband went
from meat-eater to vegan, when
we attended a lecture by Gary
Yourofsky (PETA) at the University
of Texas in March 2003. We actually
saw, on film, the way farm animals
suffer, just for a tasty piece
of meat. When we heard about
the atrocities of the dairy
industry, we said enough is
enough, threw out the cheese,
and bought soy milk.
We
feel we can make a big statement,
along with millions of other
vegetarians, by not giving one
dime to an industry that profits
from animal suffering. There’s
tasty fake meat, soy milk, egg
replacer, and Payless synthetic
shoes. There is also nondairy
ice cream out there, so we’re
all set. We can get a lot of
stuff at Wal-Mart or Kroger.
Otherwise, it’s a trip to Whole
Foods or Central Market.
Vegetarian
products are more commonplace
than ever, and the big meat
and dairy corporations are actually
taking notice. Dean Foods has
bought Silk soy milk. ConAgra,
Kraft, and Kellogg’s have bought
fake meat companies. Even Burger
King has a veggie burger. McDonald’s
is test marketing a veggie burger
in California, Denny’s has a
veggie burger, and Pizza Hut
is test marketing soy cheese
pizza in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.
Money
talks. And we plan on letting
ours talk for animals.
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(3)路易斯安那州，Jacklyn
Tejada
在一次阅读线上新闻时，我选读了一篇关于影星帕米拉•安德森(Pamela
Anderson)反肯德基炸鸡的报导。文章中连结到http://www.kentuckyfriedcruelty.com/一个介绍肯德基残酷对待鸡只的网站，这对我起了作用。从一个网站接着一个网站。在这网站上停留大约三秒之后，我就下了决定。我感到罪过的是，在我可怕又沉重的内心底，我知道我是造成这些鸡只被屠宰的原兇之一。除此之外，我对于因为不知道这些讯息，而没去看待这件事，感到生气。我想一般人很难理解，电视广告上鼓励人们喝牛奶及吃果冻的背后意义究竟是怎么一回事。
现在我对于我自己觉得很满意。现在的我，不但身体更健康，而且不再是造成那些动物被宰杀的祸首。对于我过去所吃的肉，你最好相信肉类与牛奶加工业已受到重创。
谢谢人道对待动物组织(PETA)，以及每一位参与这个惊人且令人开眼界的组织。
Jacklyn
Tejada, Louisiana
I was reading the news online,
and I clicked on the story about
Pamela Anderson being against
KFC. In the story was a link
to KFCCruelty.com, and that
did it for me!! One site led
to the next and the next. It
took maybe three seconds on
KFCCruelty.com for me to make
my decision!! The guilt that
I felt, that awful heavy feeling
inside of me knowing that I
contributed to the slaughtering
of these poor animals. ... On
top of it all, I was angry at
myself for not looking into
this, for not knowing this information.
I think it’s hard to realize
what goes on when TV ads are
urging people to drink milk
and to eat JELL-O.
I
now feel so good about myself.
I am in better health, and I’m
happy knowing that I don’t contribute
to the murdering of animals.
With all the animal products
I was consuming before, you’d
better believe that the meat
and dairy industry has taken
a big hit!!
Thank
you, PETA, and everyone involved
in this amazing, eye-opening
organization!! |
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(4)田纳西州，Rebekah
Bowen
在自小对吃肉一直有罪恶感以来，我看到一件让我永远停止吃肉的事情。
2003年5月一个多云的下午，在我沿着I-24开往田纳西州的Antioch路上，我发现我开在一辆庞大的卡车之后，当时车两旁有一堆白色的东西飞飘出来，一、二秒间，看似下雪，但当我加速开到卡车旁时，我知道是怎么回事了。
那些白白的东西不是雪，而是从上千只活生生困在一个叠着一个的条板箱内的鸡只身上，所掉出来的羽毛。可悲的是，这些可怜的小动物即將被宰杀。牠们用可怜的眼睛看着我，彷彿试着对我说，”我们究竟做了什么事要遭受如此得对待，你为什么让这样的待遇加诸我们身上呢？”
惭愧的回到家后，我感觉自己像是个世上最可憎的人，我进入房子，然后坐在沙发上沉思，….，我是怎样的一个人呢，我想成为一个什么样的人呢？我自言自语的说，我怎能支持这种残酷对待其他生命的行为呢？我决定是我结束我罪恶行为，并且从新开始的时候。我接着上网看能否找到与素食主张相关的资讯，我发现PETA「你吃的是什么样的肉(Meet
Your Meat)」的录影带。看完影片后，我哭了一整天。
从此之后，我再也不吃肉了。
Meet Your Meet：http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=mym2002
Rebekah
Bowen, Tennessee
After always feeling guilty
about eating meat throughout
my life, ever since I was a
small child, I saw something
that made me want to stop eating
animal flesh for good.
One
cloudy afternoon in May 2003,
I was driving down I-24 going
toward Antioch, Tennessee, when
I noticed that I was driving
behind a giant truck with a
bunch of white things flying
out of the sides. For a second
or two it almost looked like
it was snowing, but then, when
I drove up by the left side
of the big truck, I figured
out what was going on.
The
white things were feathers,
and they were coming off of
the few hundred, live, uncomfortable-looking
chickens that were stuffed in
crates on top of one another.
Sadly, those poor little animals
were about to be slaughtered.
They all looked at me with their
pitiful eyes as if they were
trying to say, “What did we
do to deserve this, and why
are you letting this happen
to us?”
After
driving home shamefully and
feeling like the most horrible
person who ever lived, I went
into the house, sat down on
my couch, and contemplated …
what kind of person I was and
what kind of person I wanted
to be. I thought to myself,
“How could I support this kind
of cruelty toward another living
creature?” I decided that it
was time to end my evil ways
and start over. I then got on
my computer to see if I could
find any useful information
on vegetarianism, and I came
across PETA’s “Meet Your Meat”
video. After seeing that footage,
I cried for the rest of the
day.
I
haven’t eaten another animal
since then and never will again.
Meet
Your Meet：http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=mym2002 |
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(5)宾西法尼亚州，Jill
Linta
我已有多年没吃红肉了，但却一直无法成为真正的素食者。1997年的劳工节那天，我参加位于宾州Hegins市反对射杀鸽子的活动。那是我一生当中最糟糕的一天。射杀活动中的”观众”是由当地居民所组成，每当一只鸽子被射中但没有死时，人们就会快乐的欢呼。这表示会有一位10至12岁的小孩必须跑到现场去折断那只鸽子的脖子。我们的工作是跑在那些小孩子前去抓起受伤的鸽子，然后將牠带到兽医的旅行车上治疗。这些”观众”当中有许多人也许是喝醉了，竟威胁要伤害我与我妹妹。其中有许多人还拥有来福枪。开车回家后，我决定如果我愿意冒生命的危险来救那些鸽子，但如果还继续吃其他鸟类的肉的话，这是不合乎道理的。从此之后我成为一位真正的素食者。
Jill
Linta, Pennsylvania
I hadn’t eaten red meat for
years but had still not gone
completely vegetarian. On Labor
Day 1997, I took part in a protest
against pigeon shoots in Hegins,
Pennsylvania. It was one of
the worst days of my life. The
“audience” was made up of [locals],
who cheered in delight when
a bird was shot but not killed.
That meant that one of the children,
about 10 to 12 years old, had
to run out to the field and
snap its neck. Our job as protesters
was to run onto the field and
grab the injured birds before
the little boys did and take
them to a veterinary trailer
to be healed. Several men, probably
intoxicated, threatened to hurt
me and my sister. Many had rifles.
Driving home that day, I decided
that if I was willing to risk
my life to save pigeons, it
didn’t make sense to eat any
other birds. I have been a vegetarian
ever since. |
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