Reasons why beef should not be banned

1.       A secular state is a concept of secularism, whereby a state orcountry purports to be officially neutral in matters of religion,

By the very definition of secularism, the state cannot ban cow slaughter citing the reason to be: "Banned in Hinduism". The state has no right to ban cow slaughter simply because it is banned in Hinduism just like it has no right to ban idol worship simply because it's banned in Christianity/Islam. (Before you accuse me of pseudo-secularism, know that I support Uniform Civil Code as well)

2.      Coming to economic arguments, what is the economic benefit of keeping bulls or dried up cows? (If the cows are artificially inseminated and the fields are ploughed by machines, it is a burden on the farmer to feed bulls). The cows slaughtered for beef are not the milk-giving ones. India leads the world in beef export and it fetched India Rs.13725.23 crores in 2012. So in purely economic terms, it is an unsound decision to ban cow slaughter.

3.      Now let's come to how the lifestyle of the people is affected.  The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation UN (FAO) report titled Livestock Information, Sector Analysis and Policy Branch says the largest consumed meat in India is beef (Note: meat does not include chicken) . The total consumption of beef in India per year is 26 lakh tonnes[1], as compared to 6 lakh tonnes of mutton and 14 lakh tonnes of pork. Given that this is the case, a nation-wide ban on cow slaughter will have a considerable effect on lifestyle and is an encroachment on the fundamental rights

One can imagine how the price of

4.      If it's about animal rights, why be partial to cows? What about pork or mutton?

Cow slaughter only happens when:

1.       The cow is no longer capable of producing milk - this is usually after it has passed a certain age and can no longer birth calves. Keeping a cow alive in such a circumstance makes it negate its usefulness. Cows were domesticated over a few thousand years to be useful to humans which means that they have no higher function than provide milk to humans. When it cannot produce milk it is of no use to us. Now, one might point out that its dung could still be used as a fertiliser. That's flawed thinking. While it is true they provide fertiliser, it's nutrition value is far less than the resources it consumes. Most of the energy it gets from consumption gets used in keeping itself alive among other things. It would make far more sense to just dump the fodder into the ground and infest it with worms to make it fertile while we just consume the cow out of existence.

2.      The cow is specifically bred for meat. This means that there is no real impact on the milch cows. The cows bred for meat aren't used for milk and the milch cattle are left alone. At best the cows would provide milk to its offspring and be slaughtered after they've borne and birthed a few calves. India is the second largest exporter of beef. The cows had to come from somewhere - that's where they came from.

If there are any deviations from the above mentioned slaughter pre-requisites, its only because there don't exist any proper regulatory measures to look after such a thing.

There isn't coherent argument in existence for why cows specifically shouldn't be slaughtered while others can. Many hindu rituals involve brutal slaughtering of buffalos and goats and they don't even do it for the meat. If cow slaughter is banned, so should the slaughter of all animals.

If you're pro-animal-life then don't stop there. Ban consumption of food altogether. There are far more plants that die in sheer numbers than an animal to feed a person. Make it illegal to eat fruits. The seeds clearly don't all go back into the ground. Just wipe humans out of existence altogether.

Yes, that looks like a slippery slope argument and it is. See, no one should be told what they ought or ought not to do. When you ban beef, you're not really going to prevent it from happening. You'll just cause beef-eaters to innovate and find shadier methods to do whatever the heck they want to do...

---------------------

1.       Banning beef consumption will probably not reduce the number of cows being killed (unless the ban is specifically against cow slaughter and not just against beef consumption). India is one of the largest producers & exporters of cowhides. Cows will still be killed for the leather industry, and their meat will be used in low-value ways instead of as meat.

2.      It will wreak havoc on India's leather industry. The economics of cow slaughter involve getting value from the meat, which will no longer be possible. If you notice, all the states that have banned beef are states with no local leather industry. The overall effect will be in the increase of raw material costs for the industry, making it less competitive.  India is world's 3rd largest producer and exporter - mainly made from cattle hide - byproduct of beef industry

3.      If the ban is against cow slaughter, it will put lakhs of extremely poor people on the street. One factor to consider is that most of the poor people working in this industry are Dalits and Muslims.

A case can be made that the upper-caste Hindus who love this cause seem to prioritize the well being of cows over that of their fellow human beings. Increasingly, we are consuming a lot of leather products, not just in the form of footwear and belts, but increasingly in furniture and car interiors as well. If we ban cow slaughter, exactly where will these products come from? Why should we sacrifice an existing Indian industry that employs lakhs of poor people and substitute that with some kind of foreign dependency? And, eventually someone's going to be killing cows to satisfy our growing use of leather products anyway.

Some statistics about India's leather industry: 

·  Employs 2.5 million people

·  Turnover of USD 7.5Billion, growing 8.22% yoy

·  30% of employees are women

·  2 billion sq ft of leather produced by India annually

========================

Contrasting views within Hinduism about cow slaughter
The verse in Hindu scripture which is said to ban cow slaughter is:

Rig Veda 10.87.16: “yaḥ pauruṣeyeṇa kraviṣā samaṅkte yo aśveyena paśunāyātudhānaḥ,yo aghnyāyā bharati kṣīramaghne teṣāṃśīrṣāṇi harasāpi vṛśca"

which specifically mention horse (asva) and not cow, and asks Agni to cut off the heads of those who eat horse and human meat.

But another verse which speaks about slaughtering bulls as food,

Rig Veda 10.86.14:  uksnó hí me páncadasha sakám pácanti vimshatím, utáhám admi píva íd ubhá kuksí prnanti me v’shvasmad índra úttarah

Translation: Fifteen in number, then, for me a score of bullocks they prepare, and I devour the fat thereof: they fill my belly full with food. Supreme is Indra over all. (Indra eating bulls)

and another on sacrificing ox & cow to Agni,

Rig Veda 8.43.11: uksánnaya vashánnaya sómaprsthaya vedháse stómair vidhemagnáye

Translation: Let us serve Agni with our hymns, Disposer, fed on ox and cow, who bears the Soma on his back.

Swami Vivekananda writes in “The complete works of Swami Vivekananda (volume-3 page 174) : 

“There was a time when a Brahmin without eating beef could not remain a Brahmin”. 

(and on page 536)

“You will be astonished if I tell you that, according to the old ceremonials, he is not a good Hindu who does not eat beef. On certain occasions he must sacrifice a bull and eat it.”

Having said all this, it is irrelevant to me whether Hinduism prohibits cow slaughter or not. I am a Hindu who eats beef (it's pretty common over here in Kerala). Hinduism is a pretty inclusive and tolerant religion. My whole family does and I don't think the secular state has any right to tell me not to eat it.

WHAT TERRORIZES THE TERRORISTS?

Let’s look at a scene inside a huge snake park…

In a garden there are many rabbits, goats, roosters and hens happily roaming and playing around. Everything that they want is available there, plenty of food, garden for playing, tree shades for resting. What else would they need?

Suddenly, there comes the hissing sound from a bush nearby, everyone is stunningly silent, the playing stops abruptly.

Yes, the king of garden, the python, is hungry now and has come out of the bush in search of its prey.

Who is going to be the victim today?  Is it me? …. Fear grips every one!

They cannot run and escape as the compound wall surrounds the garden.

Finally the python selects and swallows its prey and returns into the bush.

This is the scene every day!

Well, let us come out of the snake park….

Same is the scene here in our real world but noticed by only a few. 

A band of people gathered power through dishonest means and are terrorizing the entire world. This is the reason behind the fact that 17% of the people own 80% of the world’s wealth and remaining 20% of the wealth is shared among 500 crore people. This is why billions of people all over the world are stripped off their basic needs like food, water and shelter. There in the snake park, the python calms down once the hunger settles; but here, the lust and hunger of the tyrants never subside.

Just imagine….

How can we accept  a gang of wicked men who had mercilessly massacred  the native tribes of a huge continent, enslaved the living ones, looted the resources of the continent,  colonized and established an empire  there as ‘peace makers’? Just because they possess the might of weaponry and practice violence,  should we accept them as our adjudicators/ judges?

Yes, this is what is happening in the world now! The world readily listens to and believes their propaganda as the ultimate truth.  The world has not witnessed a bigger terrorist attack so far other than the dropping of atomic bomb on Nagasaki- Hiroshima inflicting the biggest casualty in the human history. But the doers were never branded as terrorists! That is due to the might of media and imperial power!

 THE HIDDEN COLONIAL RULE OVER THE WORLD!

Colonial powers which were, once, looting the weaker countries and ruling them; are still ruling them, indirectly, with their agents and puppet rulers of the land. They enter into cunning business agreements in order to continue the exploitation of the resources of those nations.

John Perkins, who was a key official in FBI for many years, discloses in his book, titled, CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HITMAN: They persuaded rulers of poor countries to borrow huge amounts of money from World Bank in order to enslave them. Once they were in debt to the US, the US was able to force them to do its bidding: sell oil to the US at favorable prices, allow US investment in the countries concerned, permit US military bases, etc. In the few cases where the poor countries refused to do what the US demanded, the US organized military coups and, as a last resort, assassinated the then president or the prime minister. Perkins gives many examples in his book.

MIGHT OF WEAPON THAT TERRORIZES THE WORLD!

As they possess the most sophisticated aircrafts, missiles, atomic and chemical weapons, these imperialist gangs are able to terrorize, suppress and enslave the world. To market these killer machines, they instigate enmity between small nations and make them fight each other. They also empower rebels of the victim countries and make them revolt against the governments. To exhibit the might of their products, they plan and execute at least one major war in a period of 5 years - somehow. They are least bothered about the millions of innocent lives killed, wounded, displaced or distressed due to their plot. To ensure the retention of their income and power, they use their strongest propaganda machines like TV, Radio, Newspapers, and social media networks. Thus, they justify their unjust actions before the world, and brainwash them. We can quote the attack on the World Trade Centre of September 11. Though the attack was later proved to be an internal job by many US investigations, a vast majority of people still believe that it was done by Osama bin Laden and his confidants!

FAILURE AND FALL OF OPPOSITION

All the forces which stood up and fought against this unstoppable evil were weakened, divided or dissolved cunningly by these tyrants. E.g. Soviet union and their allies.

However, there does exist a unique force on the earth, which is growing stronger by the day and stands as a biggest challenge to these tyrants. It does not yield to their threats, conspiracies, plots and tricks. It stands unyielding against the tyranny and vows to uproot not only this evil, but all the evil persistent on the earth. It is not based on any country or race, but on an ideology, an ideology which reforms the individuals and transforms them to enjoin good and to stop evil on the earth. In other words, it reestablishes dharma by people themselves. Yes, this is what is known by Arabic term ‘Islam’.

What is Islam?

Meaning of the Arabic word ‘Islam’ is obedience, another meaning of it is ‘peace’. The principles proposed by Islam help its followers attain peace in this world and in the hereafter if adhered to.

In practice it implies that we have to do whatever our Creator commands us to do in this world and refrain from whatever He prohibits us from. Thus, peace achieved in life by following Islam disciplinarily, as commanded by our Creator, is called Islam.

Just imagine a state free from injustice, aggression, violence, bloodshed, hostility, robbery, social evils, adultery, fornication, human right violation, discrimination, superstitions etc. wherein harmony, love, mutual respect, equality, brotherhood are prevalent. Will it not offer a place in which people would love to live harmoniously?  Islam aims and endeavors to establish such a peaceful state on earth by implanting three basic tenets in human minds.

O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it -its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah , through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer. (Quran 4:1)

1. Entire mankind has originated from the first pair of male and female and hence they all belong to a same family.

2. There is only one God for all of humanity.

3. We are being watched by Him and are answerable to Him for our deeds. Our deeds will be judged on the Day of Judgment and we will be rewarded either with Paradise or Hell based on our deeds.

Now you can understand yourself why Islam faces so much opposition.

= As Islam stresses upon equality of mankind and universal brotherhood, this movement is not be liked by those who have been exploiting weaker section of the community in the name of superiority of color, race, creed etc.

= As Islam says that man can approach and worship God directly, it displeases the intermediaries who have been exploiting people in the name of God by spreading superstitions in the society hitherto.

= As Islam commands us to do good and forbid evil, those who exploit the masses with selling of evil means are afraid of the growth of this faith.
   Thus, this reformation movement spoils the sleep of defenders of Adharma all over the world. Hence they stand united to suppress the growth of Islam.

To restore peace in the world, it is essential that the acts of injustice, oppression and evil should be stopped. Unlike other faiths and ideologies which do just lip – service, Islam persuades its followers to work for it practically. Islam, by its nature, teaches enjoining good and forbidding evil as an important part of the very faith itself.

Prophet Muhammad(pbuh) said, “ If any of you sees an evil, let him stop it by his hand. If it is not possible, let him stop it by his tongue. If it is not possible either, let him feel bad about it in his heart at least, and this is considered the lowest level of Eemaan (faith) one has.”

You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah ….. (Quran 3:110)

As Islam creates awareness and motivates its people to fight against evil, they turn against the oppressors. As a result, they start fighting against the colonial and oppressive rulers and the puppet rulers appointed by them to liberate their countries and safeguard their national wealth from them.

SIGNIFICANT GROWTH OF ISLAM

Today, Islam with its clear concept of God, purpose of life, simplicity , meaningful code of life, solutions to social evils, tenets like  equality of mankind , universal brotherhood etc. attracts more and more people from all over the world, including America and Europe. The world is continuously joining this great movement!

The tyrants who are getting disturbed by this development are trying to stop this by following tactics:

1.   Brand all those Muslims as terrorists, extremists or rebels  who voice or fight against the oppression of them and their puppet rulers through their strong overpowering media like TV, radio, newspapers and social media etc. and torture them in jails. By this, they try to project Islam in bad light before the public, punish and suppress the rebels, caution the others who are likely to join the uprising against them. 

2.      Create rebels and empower them with weapon and military aid, to create trouble and chaos in countries populated predominantly by Muslims. Thus, execute killing and massacre of Muslims through their agents by bomb blasts, attacks etc. and finally put the blame on Islam and Muslims through their media might.

3.      Make false movies and videos on Islam and Muslims to project Islam in bad light and spread them intensively through media and social networks, to create hatred towards Islam and stop people from embracing this faith.

In spite of such intensive tactics applied by the tyrants, the statistics show that Islam is bound to grow steadily and uninterruptedly. (www.pewresearch.org)

STAND OF ISLAM ON KILLING OF INNOCENT

Islam, in fact, bans unjust killing of not only human beings, but of all lives. It talks about grave punishment to the guilty on the Day of Judgment and warns them that no one can escape it:

That Day, the people will depart separated [into categories] to be shown [the result of] their deeds. So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it, And who ever does an atom's weight of evil will see it.(Quran 99:6-8)

The purpose of Islam is not to uplift any race or country by destroying or belittling the others. In the sight of Islam, man is not an enemy of other man. Instead it is the shytan (satan) who is the real enemy of mankind who causes clash and conflict between men. Islam aims at reforming the man, by reminding him of the truth about the unity of mankind, unity of God and his accountability to God. Thus, it endeavors to build a morally strong society which can destroy adharma or evil by its own hands and establish Dharma or peaceful world. If this is understood by those who oppose this movement today, they may become the torch-bearers of this great movement tomorrow. History bears witness to this!

ONE GOD ONE MANKIND ONE FAITH