I wish killing was not acceptable

Sometimes I just get disheartened that it's acceptable to kill animals. Like it's a desireable thing to do to create living beings, then take their lives, then cut their bodies into pieces and eat them. Why would anyone want to eat a dead body? Why do they not realise that it's killing, taking a life? Why is killing accepted without another thought?

Two phrases which really annoy me: "humane slaughter" and "locally-reared meat" (or indeed "humanely-slaughtered meat"). Right, first of all: "Humane: having or showing compassion or benevolence" (Oxford English dictionary). There is nothing compassionate or benevolent about killing a healthy animal. Maybe if we're talking about an animal who is suffering and is not going to get better then sometimes euthanasing it could be considered humane, but not just killing a healthy animal, no matter what method is used. Why do people believe that animals 'don't suffer' when they're killed? Apart from the fact I don't accept they don't notice what's happening to them, you're still KILLING THEM. They do not exist any more, their world is gone for ever. In what way is killing them part of good treatment? Ethical meat my arse. Like it's ok to kill as long as you cuddle first? So as long as the animals are 'treated kindly' during life it's ok to inflict death? Surely bringing about an animal's death counts towards its welfare or its treatment. People seem to think that animals don't mind being killed, that it's just part of the meat harvesting process. Would it be ok if your neighbour shot his dog through the head after a couple of years, as long as the dog had had a happy life up to that point? Course it bloody wouldn't, your neighbour would be all over the local papers held up as a savage and the RSPCA would most likely be on to him pretty sharpish. And rightly so.

"Locally-reared meat". "Locally-slaughtered meat". Can you spell D-I-S-C-O-N-N-E-C-T? MEAT is not reared, MEAT is not slaughtered, ANIMALS are reared and slaugtered. Stop looking at a cow in a field and seeing walking beefburgers. It's a living creature, at least give it a bit of respect and acknowledgement for what it is while it's still alive.

So much violence, so acceptable, even so encouraged. But so unnecessary. What started me off this time was some omnivore on a vegetarian food discussion board saying that if people are vegetarian for ethical/animal welfare reasons they should eat "locally-reared, humanely-butchered meat". The thought of vegetarians or vegans going back to eating meat is quite honestly disgusting to me, so being told to do so on a vegetarian food forum didn't go down well. I tried to explain why it wasn't an option for a lot of us (killing is not separate from the animal's welfare or treatment) and that 'humane slaughter' was a contradiction in terms, and I got a load of patronising bull**** back about how they'd seen animals being killed, it's not as bad as people try and make you think it is, they don't know anything about it, blah blah blah and talking to me as if I knew nothing and was stupid. Yep, delusional omni. I woke up last night thinking about it, about animals being shot in the head and their bodies chopped up into pieces and people gorging themselves on the dead body. Why do people want to kill living beings and eat their bodies? I just don't get it.

I need to take a break from forums and posts like that. Anything where omnivores are likely to be saying stupid, provocative and/or ignorant things. It's depressing me too much. I'll stick to support forums and I might answer questions where someone genuinely wants help with becoming/being veg*n, but if they're just debating stuff I'm not going to try and put anyone right, even if they're talking the biggest pile of offensive, ignorant bollocks. I'm going to concentrate my energy on positive action, doing my website, cooking food for other people, and don't get into debates.