This Thanksgiving, President Bush will pardon a turkey as a promotional gimmick for the turkey industry. This Thanksgiving, each of us has the same power to pardon a turkey, but as an act of kindness, compassion and giving thanks for life, health and happiness.
The 300 million turkeys slaughtered in the U.S. each year have nothing to give thanks for. They breathe toxic fumes in crowded sheds. Their beaks and toes are severed. At the slaughterhouse, workers cut their throats and dump them into boiling water, sometimes still conscious.
The turkeys do get their revenge. Their flesh is laced with cholesterol and saturated fats that elevate the risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer. Careful adherence to government warning labels is re-quired to avoid food poisoning.
My holiday meal may include a mock “turkey” made from soy, lentil or nut roast, stuffed squash, corn chowder or chestnut soup, candied yams, cranberry sauce, pumpkin or pecan pie, and carrot cake. An internet search on Vegetarian Thanksgiving will provide more mail-order items and recipes than I’ll ever need.
Spence Chassiller
St. Louis