There are many things that threaten the world, in a terrible way; and we lack credible answers to these things: there are certain diseases that are still without a cure; and moral suffering that is out of reach. And no one really knows how to make sense of sorrow and death.
However, for other terrible dangers that threaten humanity and each of us, there are answers. These answers depend on us to implement them. And yet, we do not. We even boast of not doing it.
We know, for example, that many cancers are caused and aggravated by the consumption of cigarettes. Yet each of us continue to consume these cigarettes or defend the right of others to do it, forgetting that we can also die from second-hand smoke. Governments continue to allow the commercialization of this poison; they are content with the tax revenues that it brings to them, and they fear arousing the anger of those who profit or earn wages from this industry. It is not easy for someone to decide, for himself, to stop smoking; and for the sake of consistency, to collectively prohibit the sale of tobacco. It is therefore urgent to help those who cannot do it alone to achieve it.
We also know that artificial sugar is a poison, deadly for all ages. We know that it is a drug that is addictive as cocaine. We know that diabetes kills more and more people, at an increasingly high rate, who consume too much sugar; we know that we have enough sugar to live, in fruits and vegetables. And yet, more and more of these artificial sugars are being consumed in soft drinks, sweets, cakes, bad chocolates, and all kinds of ready-made dishes in which this fake sugar helps mask the horrible taste of horrible ingredients.
We also know that the consumption of meat is a poison, for us and for others. We know in particular that red meat may pose cancer risks, and that it contains nothing that is irreplaceable. It is common knowledge that in order to produce red meat, it takes ten times, a hundred times, more water than to produce the same quantity of calories provided by plants. We know that water is a rare and precious source of life, and that if everyone consumed as many animals as Americans or Europeans, humanity would be short of fresh water within thirty years. We still know that livestock accounts for more than one-fifth of greenhouse gas emissions. We also know that nothing is a deadlier poison than processed meat products. Finally, we know that nothing is more outrageous than the imposed suffering of animals in these death factories, which can only multiply if the entire humanity joins the Western way of life.
And that, holistically, if humanity were to be entirely vegetarian, a large part of the climate and obesity issues would be solved.
We know all that, and yet we do nothing. Or almost. We do not ban any of these three products, which we know are deadly. We do not encourage anyone to no longer consume these products. We do not help anyone overcome these deadly addictions. Nor do we do anything to prepare those who live off these industries prepare for the inevitable change in their activities. We continue to suffer the dictatorship of the companies that produce them, lobbies that blind those who are living it, and propaganda that pushes consumers to disregard the warnings they receive. We are not creating the conditions that are needed to make healthy foods available to everyone, in dining halls, corporate cafeteria and other supply chains.
And so, we’ve put in motion many disasters: diseases; pollution, shortages, and political shocks.
However, it is possible to take advantage of these dangers in order to pivot to a beautiful world. To achieve this, it will necessary that everyone agrees to devote more resources to what gives life rather than what kills.
Progressively depriving ourselves of tobacco, artificial sugar and meat, at least bovine and porcine, is not just a public health imperative. It is also the condition for a happier and freer life for all. Further, and above all, those who live today will find exceptional compensation.
For example, farmers will have an infinitely more important and rewarding role when they will feed us without polluting the ten billion inhabitants of the planet. Even pastoralists will be able to use their vast know-how to build the forests that we lack today and produce the fruits and vegetables to replace these three poisons and revive abandoned territories.
This is nothing less than a change of civilization, with infinite philosophical, political and cultural consequences. It is exciting.
j@attali.com