Introduction to "Turtle Soup"
=============================
Copyright by Valerie Haecky. This document may be freely 
distributed for non-profit use, provided this notice is
included.

Quite a few years ago, this page was funny. It is not anymore,
as turtle habitat is increasingly destroyed, and thousands, if not millions
of turtles are exported and imported for the food and pet trade
in many countries, including the United States. 

I have come to the conclusion that turtles and their habitats are in need 
of our absolute and unconditional protection. 
Therefore, I cannot support the eating of turtles for any reason
whatsoever.


Turtle Soup
===========

On 10/10/97 17:03:53 someone wrote:
>
>We love turtles in many ways. We find your instruction sheets most
>interesting and
>competent. We are missing there, however, a good and traditional recipe
>for turtle soup.
>
>Your help would be most appreciated. We would like to publish it in our
>Club Monthly
>
>Greetings from the  president of the
>SAVOR GOURMET CLUB
>


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After getting some hate mail, let me clarify the following:

Do you eat meat?
Then shut up.

There is a distinction between pets and food animals. 
Pets are not for eating. I have pets and I raise pets. They are not for eating.
Food animals, bred and raised for food, are for eating: salmon, turtles, cows, 
sheep, you name it, somebody is probably breeding it for food.
Wild animals, if available in abundance, can also make good food. 

Turtles are rarely abundant anymore and thus wild caught turtles should not be eaten. 
It's a big problem in Asia where turtles are going extinct mostly because of food markets.
If you like to eat turtles, I encourage you to examine your motives and consider
other sources of meat.

Personally, I rarely eat meat because I object to many aspecst of the meat culture.
I also can't look an animal in the eye, and then kill and eat it, unless it's a fish.
But that doesn't give me the right to condemn everybody who does eat meat, even
the meat of the animals that happen to be the closest to my heart.
However, I do think that people who condemn the eating of some animals, because
they are "cute" or whatever, but eat packaged store-bought meat, 
are hypocrites--baby cows are very, very cute.

Valerie