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highly recommended |
Wonderful Book! 
Don't read it unless you're ready to give up eating animals! It's an easy to read, informative look at the dark side of the meat eating US culture and the effects upon our bodies as well as the environment. I would highly recommend it for anyone who is already vegetarian or thinking about becoming one, or for anyone concerned about our environment.
This is a MUST READ for people who want the truth.
My wife (dairy farmer family background) read and confirmed a small portion from the book, and I became an instant vegetarian. I cheat a little, yet rarely and carefully.
Most meat producers should be forced into bankruptcy and thrown into prison. What the meat industry is doing is criminal.
We've given out many copies of this book.
THE book for vegetarians to argue their case
Vegetarians I encounter are of two types. Cultural Veggies like me who grew up in vegetarian households. Then Veggies by choice, who deserve greater respect for following their convictions. Howard Lyman deserves the highest respect for his Ashoka (famous Indian Emperor who renounced Violence) like transformation to the vegetarian cause from being a cattle rancher.
Vegetarians often get queried about their reason behind being one. As Howard points out, there are three ways to go about explaining it. Moral reason, Self/Health Reason and lastly Ecological/Environmental reason. Howard realising that moral reasoning is the most vulnerable one, not easily defendable, ignores it and goes about brilliantly presenting how meat eating habits in America has led to deterioration in health and devastation of the environment, backing up with first-hand experiences and scientific references.
Personally I feel it is not just the meat-eaters who may have to make hard choices. Meat-Eaters may argue that Rice cultivation is also a major cause of Methane (Global Warming) gas and creates strain on resources in terms of land/water. One can argue that the Chinese and Indian demand for Rice may create severe problems in future. But it is hard to deny the Author's assertion: meat-eating diet and hence cattle ranching's negative effects are multi-fold, in terms of health, spread of pandemics, environmental , depriving land of nutrients and are of much more severe and immediate concern to us.
very interesting and educational 
While overly emotional and more than a little biased at times, I found this book a very interesting read. It makes you look differently at the environmental and sociological as well as medical impact of our society's increasing use of beef. I think this book has a lot of information that people should be told, but that doesn't make it into most mass-media
A Powerful Tool
Earlier this year I borrowed this book from my chiropractor, thinking that I should try to incorporate some non-fiction into my reading. I got way more than I was expecting out of this book. It changed my life; in fact, just yesterday I celebrated my 6 month anniversary of being a vegetarian. However, when I first started reading, I thought I would have to force myself through millions of dull facts, but I actually finished the book in a few days. I couldn't put it down, because every second that I wasn't reading, was another second that I was potentially poisoning my body with some animal product that I hadn't previously known could cause so many health problems. Basically what I'm trying to say is that this book was a little bit scary and intense, but it was more helpful than anything. It gave me that extra push I needed to make the lifestyle change I'd been considering for a while, but never actually had the motivation to pursue.
I believe the author does an exquisite job of telling his story at the same time as he brings awareness to a subject that much of America's population is oblivious to. Mr. Lyman's writing style does come off a little dramatic, which could be a turn off, especially concerning such a controversial subject. However the facts are included to back up every statement show that Mr. Lyman is just very passionate and well-versed in this subject. Also, Mr. Lyman's background as a rancher makes this book all the more powerful and easier to relate to. In short this book is an extremely useful tool, and is a must read for anyone with a vested interest in their wellness and the future of our earth and our society's health.
reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
When former cattle rancher Howard Lyman appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1996 to share his insider view of the danger of Mad Cow Disease, his revelations about the beef industry prompted a group of Texas cattlemen to file a lawsuit charging Lyman and the show with "food disparagement". However, this did not deter Lyman's efforts, and in this stirring account of his journey from meat-loving cowboy to vegetarian environmental activist, he tells the whole truth about the catastrophic consequences of an animal-based diet. Well acquainted with what goes into our livestock-high doses of pesticides and remains of other animals, Lyman began to question meat eating after he narrowly escaped paralysis from a spinal tumor. Persuasive, factual and inspirational, "Mad Cowboy" is a highly moving story of personal transformation and a convincing call to action for a plan-based diet-for the good of the planet and the health of us all.
mad cowboy, cowboy
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based on 109 reviews
