People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals claims that Cambodian farmers are breeding "double-muscled" pigs. "Double-muscled" refers to a mutation in the myostatin gene (MSTN) which normally keeps muscle growth in check. Disruption of MSTN can lead to the abnormal proliferation of muscle cells in an organism:
Mutant pigs bred to grow to an enormous size just to be slaughtered and eaten? No, we aren't talking about the plot of the eye-opening Netflix sensation Okja—rather, this is the very real horror that seems to be unfolding on a Cambodian farm, where genetically altered pigs are being bred to develop heaping knots of muscle mass. Disturbing video footage and images captured on the farm have exploded around the web, sparking discussions about the many ways that animals suffer and are abused when they're treated as nothing more than "food."
[...] When South Korean and Chinese scientists created 32 double-muscled piglets in 2015, according to reports, only one was considered even marginally healthy. But pigs suffer even without this "Frankenscience"—on typical pig farms, their tails are cut off, their sensitive teeth are ground down, and the males are castrated, all without so much as an aspirin. Then, even though we have a wealth of nutritious plant-based foods to eat, these intelligent, playful, sociable animals' throats are slit and their bodies are turned into pork chops or sausages.
Breeders have exploited natural double-muscling, which occurs in Belgian Blue cattle, to create behemoth animals who suffer from a slew of health problems—just to yield slightly larger profits.
[Note: On Google News, only corroborating sources seem to be British tabloids right now]
Previously: "Double-Muscled" Pigs Created Using Simple Gene Modification
Scientists Create Extra-Muscular Beagles
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Monday October 02 2017, @06:18PM (9 children)
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday October 02 2017, @08:15PM (8 children)
I'm going to ignore your earlier screed and reply to this, more reasonable, post.
Firstly, I'm no fan of a variety of industrial agriculture (both meat *and* plant-based [npr.org]) practices. By your logic, eating soybeans and corn and wheat are also destroying the planet. You better stop eating plants or you'll kill us all!
Industrial agriculture absolutely does cause environmental issues. But that's not limited to meat. Not by a long shot.
Secondly, in my original post I said, "given our current knowledge of nutrition, a vegetarian diet can provide all the nutrients needed to be healthy," did you miss that? Or were you just so outraged that someone believes differently than you do that you missed or ignored that?
My primary point WRT to eating meat is that without it, we most likely would not be intelligent beings. We would likely have been one more evolutionary dead end, and wouldn't be around (and even if we were, we wouldn't have the technology) to have this pleasant conversation.
Meat, in and of itself, isn't the issue. Industrial agriculture and sedentary lifestyles are the issue. Blaming meat is (as Zinho [soylentnews.org] pointed out) is misguided at best, and disingenuous at worst.
As for the argument that sentience is a reason not to consume animal products, I can certainly see your point. However, as I pointed out in my initial post, we are the apex predator on this planet. If we weren't (as we've seen in the paleontological record), we would be dinner and leftovers for breakfast too [wustl.edu]. If that were the case, I suppose we could write our congressperson to complain.
All that said, I have no issue with you (or anyone else) shunning meat as a source of nutrition. I do have a problem with PETA, as their tactics and rhetoric are dishonest, unprincipled, and most of all, not rooted in well understood science.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Monday October 02 2017, @11:57PM (7 children)
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Tuesday October 03 2017, @06:19PM (6 children)
Who built the cage? Not the cat.
Ahh, but we are. It's irrelevant *how* we became that way, but we became the apex predator because we had an evolutionary advantage (in this case, intelligence and the ability to communicate and cooperate with each other).
Nature doesn't care what those advantages might be, only results matter. And the proof is, as they say, in the pudding.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Tuesday October 03 2017, @10:52PM (5 children)
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Wednesday October 04 2017, @03:59AM (1 child)
From the page you linked:
I'd say we were at the top of a food chain, wouldn't you? Who exactly is it that hunts humans for food except for some *human* groups that practice cannibalism?
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Wednesday October 04 2017, @11:45AM
I think if you put yourself out in the true wild (what's left of it), you'll find the answer. Especially alone at night, that primordial fear will come to you with every little noise..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man-eater [wikipedia.org]
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Wednesday October 04 2017, @04:04AM (2 children)
My apologies. I meant to include the following in my previous reply, but got antsy with the submit button:
Sure. We can agree to disagree. I have no axe to grind with you. What's more, I respect your opinion and appreciate the opportunity to discuss this topic with you, regardless of any difference of opinion.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2) by CoolHand on Wednesday October 04 2017, @11:49AM (1 child)
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job-Douglas Adams
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Wednesday October 04 2017, @12:56PM
I appreciate the pointer, but no time for that. There's steak to be eaten!
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr