After reading two amazing articles this past week, I came to the realization that my vegan-bike riding friend in Seattle is the most patriotic person I know. At the same time, she just might be the most effective and happy anarchist I know, feeling no need to throw pesky bricks into the downtown Starbucks. 

The first article I read was from a Jan. 27 issue of The New York Times, and the second is from the most recent issue of National Geographic. If you happen to be looking for a few good reasons to give up meat, and you care about the environment, The New York Times article could bring you to your knees. The National Geographic is straight from home with a focus on the tree-ring project at the University of Arizona. If you're a fan of the Grapes of Wrath, then guess what? By the middle of this century, we might be living those days all over again with our very own Southwest Dust Bowl, minus Henry Fonda. 

The NYT article doesn't completely lean toward giving up meat, but suggests perhaps that hard-core carnivores reconsider not eating so much of it. It also brings up something I've never read about before--meat without feet--produced in-vitro. Now that would make a great plot for a Charlton Heston movie. 

I was moved to commit to a more vegetarian diet long ago when my father told me it saved his life. (I have a nice family health history.) After three years, I went back to my meat-eating ways. Problem was/is my husband is a meat-and-potatoes guy with no hope of having a sudden Martin Luther moment regarding beef and other edible creatures. It's hard to be the lone veg-head in a family. 

That was my excuse back then. I'm just not sure it is such a good excuse today.