Thank you very much. It has been a long, interesting journey, for sure.

You have been enlightened and choose not to stick your head in the sand. Vegans are not perfect by any stretch. I tend to go on and on about animal cruelty, even though I try constantly not to. It's just that now that I've seen these awful images and realize that the bill of goods I've been sold my entire life is a big lie, I have a difficult time being silent about it.

Heck, I believe that at the age when children start making their own choices about food, they should be shown the documentaries out there about the processing of animals for food and clothing, etc. Then they could make their own choices. Many people don't agree with that and think it is too traumatic. Why should kids only be shown images of laughing cows and silly chickens instead of them being systematically slaughtered? See what I mean? LOL

You're doing just fine. Really.

I showed the movie to my 13 year old son and my husband was FURIOUS. My son became a vegetarian (well, a pescatarian) and has been ever since - more than a year). It is not an easy diet for a growing teenage boy, especially one who likes to work out, and since he hates "healthy" food. But it was the only decision he could live with.

My husband and dd still eat meat. It has not been easy, but it seemed like the right thing to do, and that is what counts.

I agree with you. I feel like I've been lied to on so many levels. The government, for one. They are in bed with the dairy and meat industries. It makes me sick. And if kids did know what their food went through to get to their plates, I'm sure they'd be vegetarian, too. I was very vocal about it all when I first transitioned to vegetarianism, but I've learned there is a time and place for everything. I just feel enlightened and want to shout it from the rooftops. lol.

Did anyone see the footage on ABC this evening about McDonald's dumping their egg supplier? Of course, they probably knew about all of the violations long before Mercy for Animals brought it to the public, but they decided to do nothing about it until they were forced by the court of public opinion. I am glad they are doing something about it, don't get me wrong. However, they buy an enormous amount of eggs. Any supplier they get will have violations. Make no mistake about that.

Also, another good video (well, disturbing, I should say) is only 11 minutes long. It is called meatvideo.com. It's on youtube. There is no beating around the bush, it gets right to brass tacks right off the bat.

Good for your son! It means he has a conscience! There are many famous athletes, even people who continually run ultramarathons, who are vegetarian or vegan. It is the right diet for the human body and they way we are made. You do have to eat more, in general, but what teenage boy isn't an eating machine anyway? ;)

I'm vegetarian, wish I could go vegan too. Only watched the trailer, I already know the kind of stuff that happens anyway, thats why I turned vegetarian in the first place.

I´ve seen the footage of the McD egg "scandal". What I hated about it is the fact, that McD was shown as such a wonderful restaurant because they apparently care and changed their ways immediately blahhh blahh blahh.

In my opinion it was nothing than a commercial for McD. ARRRRGGGHHHH!!!

As a Christian, I believe that animals were put on earth to aid people (whether that means companionship, food, clothing ect.). However, I really hate the way animals are tortured for their meat and fur today. Also, I believe if we're going to eat an animal, it should be treated very well before it ends up on our plate. It should live a nice life, have quality food ect. I am truly considering becoming a vegetarian anyway, just because of how poorly animals are treated, and the bad diets they're given. It makes them not healthy for us to consume.

I hope I didn't offend anyone.

EDIT: I just watched the trailer, and really did find it disturbing. I believe I will attempt to watch the entire film, even if it is truly disturbing. I still stand by what I said earlier, but the reality of how animals are mistreated is truly horrible, and it needs to stop. If we're going to eat an animal or use it for clothing, it really needs to be treated humanely. I'm not sure about science. Maybe there are other ways they could test medicines/products, or maybe we could find natural remedies for things. I'm pretty dense on the subject.

I grew up on a farm, and my dad hunted deer. He always killed our animals quickly and humanely, though. I don't understand why they have to make them suffer. :(

I've been vegan over 7 years. One of the best things I ever did. It's been extremely easy for me also. Granted I'm not very social and I rarely eat in a restaurant.

I think a lot of people eat what they are told, in essence, to eat. What is advertized, marketed. Don't think, just buy and eat. I see this so much at work; The amount of fast food I see people eat is disturbing.

I too will have to pass on the video but I'm glad you brought this up in the OP. I worry enough about the treatment of animals. I do not believe I could get the images out of my mind.

I'm glad I don't believe animals are here to serve me.

Much of the way mass agriculture is handled does kill wildlife either directly or by taking their land. I believe there are just too many people in the world and beyond unfortunately this is what happens to feed these masses. Impact I think could be lessened on a plant based diet. Using less in all areas of life. Everything depletes and takes energy, resources, water. To produce. To transport. Off topic but do people really need that closet full of clothes and all those shoes? Actually going vegan has helped me to simplify other areas of my life. And I'm glad and grateful I never reproduced.

I kind of know what you mean, VegDay. I could also benefit from using/having less things. I'm not one of those women who have a huge amount of clothes and shoes. I live fairly greenly, but I do have a problem with some things like paper and plastic products that I need to work on.

Glad to see a thread about this documentary here! I've been a vegetarian since I was 14, I met a vegetarian when I started high school and since I've always liked animals and was never the biggest fan of meat (I mean, chewing on the muscle tissue of corpses is kind of inherently disgusting to me) I fell into it easily and didn't give my eating habits another thought till my mid-20s when I wanted to lose weight and get healthier. I started dabbling in vegan cooking, and for a couple years I progressively cut out most of the dairy and eggs in my diet, but would occasionally get wishy-washy and make exceptions. I knew it would be hard to watch, but something made me sit and watch "Earthlings" on the computer one day. It was the hardest thing I've ever watched, I cried a LOT, but it really flipped the switch and the light went on, I've been vegan ever since. That was a little over 4 years ago. I've continued to become more educated on various issues and have changed my consumption patterns accordingly (no honey, no wool, no silk, no leather, no feathers, palm oil, fair trade, etc.), but I don't put myself through the torture of watching graphic video anymore. I get it, I don't think it serves any useful purpose for me now.

I haven't seen this video but have heard a lot about it. I'm the only vegetarian in my family and I get their meat from local farms, where the animals are treated humanely. Our eggs come from my father-in-laws pet chickens :) Even if people want to continue eating meat there's better ways to do it then buying it at Walmart or Kroger!