Mooooo: It sure has been a meaty week.

As expected, living abroad has enlightened me to many things. Since I tend to fixate my observations on the way we (humans) live our lives and what that means for everything else in existence, a great many of my overseas observations have centered on this subject. The most obvious revelation being; the developed world eats meat--it's a current fact of life. Stepping outside the subject of diet, it is safe to say that developed countries in this day and age consume more than the world can produce. For example, propaganda states; if everyone in the world lived like Americans, we would require 5 or more earths worth of resources to sustain such demand. If you look at even the most environmentally conscientious developed countries, even their people consume more than their individual right to this world. The reality is, as China and India continue developing, at some point the threshold will be reached. Furthermore, we shouldn't wait until the resources require us to face supply and demand limitations.

Back to the topic of meat consumption and diet. From spending time in Korea, I've learned a lot about the influence food has on a culture. Experiencing food is the first and easiest way for a tourist to experience a culture. For every country in the world, food provides a sense of national and community pride, brings people together, and is a bare bones necessity of life. Even in America, the world's "melting pot" of cultures, unique takes and combinations on cuisine have made regions famous. For this reason alone, I struggle to find peace with meat consumption. Eating meat every day, in every meal is one conclusion I haven't struggled to face.

In the years prior to my exodus, I became known as the raucous one in the family on the subject of all lifestyle choices, especially on the topic of eating meat. Wading through all the information out there, I found--and still find--it impossible to come to a satisfactory conclusion as to what meat variety is acceptable to consume. There are people who classify themselves as vegetarian, but still eat fish. There are people who eat only chicken and fish; a.k.a. white meat. There are people who only eat things that have fallen out of trees. Whether in the name of religion, the environment, good looks, or morals, there are many brands of selective eaters in this world. Over the past few years, I've transcended through multiple genres of selective eating myself. So much so, I'm pretty sure my family became afraid to invite me over for a meal in fear of offending my current fad. To this end, I think my move to South Korea was good for everyone. My family has had a chance to relax, and I have been able to take a sabbatical and recalibrate my emotions.

T-minus 4 months and some change.

As I prepare for my return stateside, I can't help but feel I've left a stone unturned back home. In the gathering of family and friends, we will come together to celebrate a successful 18 months of Korea bailing us out of our American debts. While I do expect plenty of happy faces, questions, and a little admiration; one thing I'm certain to face is the meat question. "Oh, were you eating meat in Korea? Huh, I guess I just figured you'd still be on that not eating meat thing..." Picture this statement with a face of disappointment much like a priest after learning you just had an abortion. Except in this situation, the priest was secretly hoping you would go along with it, just so he could feel better about himself.

For me, this will feel sort of like a return to the trenches. Coming back, like the Terminator, to continue the never ending battle. So why not throw a few thoughts out there? For starters, I can admit to my own guilt and hypocrisy for living a double standard in Korea. Unfortunately, this admission would only be useful in a vacuum. In society, SOME people--not all people--like to smother failures of this nature like a finished cigarette. My most adamant pundits will take my flip-flopping as proof that I was out of line to question their habits in the beginning. I can't blame them, it's the nature of defense.

At any rate, I have prepared a short list of excuses I will be doling out for those folks I don't feel like arguing with.

1. "When in Korea", Japan, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc.

2. Portland is a city full of vegetarian options, Korea is not. I think it use to be in the Buddhist heyday, but my people turned that around with their door to door bible sales.

3. Building on #2, if one were to resist meat by eating....nothing from a restaurant; they would also have to have a significant grasp on the Korean language to channel their wishes. Even then, you still wouldn't REALLY know for sure whether or not it was meat you were eating.

4. Korea contains a culture of, "#1 world best ______." Try facing your principle, who scares the daylights out of your vice principle, and saying, "No, thanks. I don't eat that because..."

I think the length of this document, in words and preparation time, speaks to the difficult nature of this topic for me. At this point, I've deleted more than I've left. I'm pretty sure anyone who reads this will be more confused than I feel. For that I'm sorry. I do, however, have a few concluding thoughts:

People who promote environmentally conscious behavior tend to get a response from the general public similar to that of the promoters of fundamentalist religion. Even more so are those who promote vegan, vegetarian, and reducing meat consumption. Just as the non believers of religion defend their rights to abortion, premarital sex, gambling, drinking, gluttony, etc.; people defend their right to destroy our habitat through their own specious arguments. Though environmentalists and fundamentalists might sound the same in their rhetoric, I'm here to defend the basic facts supporting that alarm the hippies are sounding. THIS IS NOT ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING. You can prove scientists have realized the unsustainable reality of our current situation. You don't even need a scientist to do the math, just go outside. The environmentalists aren't trying to change your living habits because of their belief in a supreme being; these influences come from basic facts, actual knowledge and proof.

If you've ever been graced by my presence, influence, negativity, etc.; please do forgive me for causing you discomfort. I know it's a burden to turn off the regular 3 hours of nightly TV programming, but ignoring the existence of an issue is not commendable. Take the time to form your own educated opinion beyond, "Meat taste good, god gave meat." If you want someone to honor your opinion on this, or any subject, take time to challenge your belief and actually think about the topic critically. Prove me wrong. Tell me why feedlots are good; prove the corn subsidies are helping the Mississippi Delta; justify the need to waste farm land feeding cattle, instead of producing vegetables; show me where you NEED a piece of meat in every meal (or every day) to get all that protein you NEED; furthermore, find me a doctor that will argue the benefits of steak to your digestive system, your cardiac system, or your fat storing system. Your lifestyle choices can be guided by every mom's favorite wisdom; if everyone else jumped off a bridge, would you follow? All I ask is for a reply that signifies more brain activity than making the sound, "Huh."

If you're looking for interesting reads on the topic, two authors have made very interesting reads out of their struggles:

Eating Animals -Jonathan Safran Foer

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. -Michael Pollan

If you have any interesting reads on the topic, preferably pro-meat consumption, please comment.

Thanks for reading.