Thought for Food
Tragedies brought on by extremism invariably bring out the finger-waggers. The recent conviction of vegan parents for the death of their six-week-old infant provides easy fodder for red meat-and-lard pusher Nina Planck to hammer home one of her favorite topics -- why veganism sucks.
Actually, the real lesson here is why stupid people shouldn't be parents. The baby was fed largely soy milk and apple juice, which any sensible person, vegan or not, knows won't keep a kid healthy.
But Ms. Planck has an agenda and she's not going to let mere facts get in her way. First, she wants you to know that she too used to be a vegan -- or someone who doesn't eat animals or animal-derived foods -- so you should believe everything she is about to tell you. Then she offers a number of dubious claims and sweeping generalizations to shoot down all manner of vegan parents, not just the dumb ones. Because babies, she says,
are built from protein, calcium, cholesterol and fish oil.
All of which are available from plants, supplements, or better yet, breast milk. Even the "fish oil" (by which Ms. Planck means essential fatty acids).
Ms. Planck describes herself on her website as "the antidote to the faddists & kooks." This is someone whose favorite foods are red meat, egg yolks, butter, lard and raw milk. And who brags that her three-month-old son is using a potty. Unlike Ms. Planck, I've never been a vegan, but after reading her op-ed, I'm tempted to give it a whirl.
Death by Veganism [New York Times]
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