Radio piece on veganism

In a few weeks I'll be recording a script explaining the rationale for going vegan for the "Speak Your Mind" segment on the local public radio station, WFIU. (The delay is because they have a backlog and only broadcast these once a week.) May as well post it here so people who don't listen to WFIU can see it! Here it is:

"This is Jeff Melton. Nothing shapes our beliefs, values and actions more profoundly than our culture, yet we often don't notice its effects. Stealthily, it leads us to believe things without necessarily pondering their implications or why we believe them.

Consider our attitudes toward animals. Many of us call ourselves animal lovers. Many of us consider our pets to be family members, and grow very attached to them. If you took a poll of your friends and relatives, most would say that it is wrong to unnecessarily harm animals.

Yet, we unnecessarily harm animals every day when we eat them or their products, wear their fur or skin, or use them in other ways. In the US, 10 billion animals are killed for food or other uses every year, generally far short of their natural lifespan, and they suffer greatly during their lives. Whether raised for their flesh or because they produce milk or eggs, animals in the livestock industry are essentially treated as our slaves. Animal agriculture also causes many environmental problems; for example, it is one of the leading causes of global warming.

We don't need to consume animal products for our health; in fact, the evidence is overwhelming that a plant-based diet is very healthy and that, conversely, heavy consumption of animal products is very bad for our health. Nor do we need to eat them to enjoy delicious meals, as anyone who has eaten a well-prepared vegan meal can attest.

In short, we don't need to consume meat, dairy or other animal products at all. There is no logical justification for treating some species of animals as loved family members, while treating others as commodities that we use to satisfy our taste for animal flesh or other desires, and both we and our fellow animals would be better off if we didn't. Just as every human, regardless of their intelligence or any other characteristic, has the right not to be treated as others’ property, other animals should be accorded that right as well. So please consider going vegan. It’s not difficult, it’s healthy, and it’s the right thing to do. For Speak Your Mind, this is Jeff Melton."