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I am a vegetarian. For those of you who are mid-bite through your Sausage McMuffin, don't roll your eyes or turn the page. I'm not here to proselytize, preach or denounce your vittles. I'm not going to inflate my lungs with a fire-and-brimstone diatribe on how much grain a field used to feed cows would mean to a starving nation. I am not going to say you are excused from any blame, and I'm not going to say I am either. Just like every other human being on the planet earth, I am a walking hypocrite with good intentions.

I'm sure I have leather shoes stashed away in my closet. I've taken showers that are much too long. I have not recycled everything recyclable. I drive to the farmers' market rather than walk, my car eliciting a stream of carbon monoxide all the way to the purveyors of local organic produce. But the point is - I generally try.

And I don't debate my reasons for being a vegetarian because, frankly, there are small holes in most of my arguments. Maybe they're not even known to my opponent, but they're known to me. It's true - fluffy, cute animals pack much more of an emotional punch to me than slithery, amphibious ones. Years ago, before I became a vegetarian, I walked in the daffodil-strewn fields of Grasmore, England, in the spring and watched fields with a hundred tiny lambs gamboling in the midday sun. I stopped eating lamb, but voraciously kept eating pork, beef and chicken for the next few years. Now, I do not live on a higher plane of existence and I get frustrated when other vegetarians - or meat eaters for that matter - give that impression. Now, if people ask me why I am a vegetarian, I just say that I just don't think meat is necessary for me anymore. If anything, I am simply one less person eating meat. It's not necessary to my health, my tastebuds or my diet. I don't want to add more pain to the world, because I'm sure I already add enough in small ways that I don't even realize - I could be wearing a sweatshop shirt and not even realize it. So far, maybe I've spared a couple of chickens. So this is my small difference. This is one of the things I do to contribute. Everyone contributes differently. So who in the world am I to even remotely criticize? That person eating a cheeseburger and driving a SUV could also be curing cancer.

It only made me sick when I heard about vandals attacking Sonoma Saveurs and, on top of that, taking pleasure in threatening people's lives. We're better human beings, their underlying message seemed to proclaim. We're more evolved. We're enlightened. And with a mocking, self-righteous, holier-than-thou attitude, they made their way to the ranks of Jerry Falwell. (To me it's a circle - you go far enough into the extreme left and you wind up running into the extreme right. They've all got blinders on.) On top of it was a power trip, a twisted buzz from the potential violence, justified by the shoddy excuse of animal-rights activism. This is not animal-rights activism. This is cowardly.

To me, activism is education, and peaceful persistent, unrelenting protest. Writing your senators, staging your demonstrations. Getting the bill passed. Activism does not bestow upon you superhuman judgement. Activism does not render you God. Maybe they just wanted the press, and they figured a few signs wouldn't do it. But their carefully crafted dogma has unraveled at the seams. They were hoping to raise awareness, and instead they shut down public receptors. Want to educate people about the horrors of foie gras? Pass out flyers, chat and shake hands. You're no better than the person you're sitting next to on the bus, simply because you have a certain viewpoint. Because everyone fits into the puzzle. Everyone has the potential to be a hero, to alleviate someone else's hurt, to make a difference - somehow. I can hope that some day we move toward a meatless society but in no way do I point fingers at individuals.

Foie gras methods are truly horrible and, as far as I am concerned, are the antithesis of the term humane. But to use that excuse to actually threaten a small child and to instill fear into the hearts of people? These criminals not only reversed their cause but made the battle to outlaw foie gras that much more difficult.

Sarah Berkley

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