Tim Barrus: The New York Times
The monkey cannot beat the jones.
Sometimes, photography says it all. Sometimes, photography is straightforwardly in your face. Safron Foer’s piece, and the photograph that accompanies it, hits hard at Americans who struggle with addiction, and the Americans who do not struggle with addiction.
To meat.
No one wants to look at meat through the lens of addiction. But that is what it is. Addiction to meat is a culturally ingrained attribute that is assuredly not an attribute. Most addictions get away with But I Need It Because I Like It And It’s Necessary.
Addiction is not necessary.
Death is necessary, and like it or not, society has a compelling, driving, focused attention on the fact we all die, including animals. We can and do rationalize anything.
The moral argument gets expressed, and the addict, always, always, looks away.
Like No One Is Going To Tell Me What To Do. And Eating Meat Is Good For You. Meat is not good for you.
The invention of fire changed the evolution of neurological chemicals of the human brain. Our species moved from gathering to hunting. Hunting packed on the fat which was considered to be a very good thing because starvation and survival were intense realities.
We are not those people.
We have developed supply chains that bring us protein. Protein that is not meat. Providing menus and recipes to addicts is ridiculous. Arguing with meat eaters is exactly the same thing as arguing with a monkey on your back.
You expect the monkey to listen. The monkey cannot beat the jones.