BEEF DAYS

In which John makes a modest proposal. Let us know what you think our beef days should be, and what they should honor!

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[joehavermann]

Vegans are often called out for "cheating." But I'm a vegan with a less-than-perfect track record, and that lifestyle change has probably resulted in something like a 98% reduction in my consumption of animal products. We should celebrate improvements rather than demanding perfection.

[doomstick]

October 18 should be a beef day to ceebrate the anniversary of None Pizza with Left Beef.

[sandhillfarmer]

There is also an element of norms on the agricultural producer side. I’m a farmer that farms in an area the produces way too much irrigated corn and alfalfa in an area with limited water resources. The reason we grow so much corn and alfalfa is because there are three major markets in the area: feedlots, hogs, and ethanol.

I’ve floated the idea of incentivizing the switch of about half of everyone’s acres to crops such as edible beans and irrigated wheat (as well as introducing perennial grains like Kernza) in order to reduce water usage (by about 1/3 to 1/2, depending, in conjunction with pooling resources to build edible bean processing facilities or bread mills, which would bring jobs to an area on the cusp of decline. The state could incentivize the project by committing to buying their public supplies of beans and bread for hospitals, etc, which would reduce food miles. Everyone I’ve spoken to thinks it’s a good idea. Don’t run out of water, revitalize the area, etc.

The problem is that everyone is stuck in their norms. Growing corn is relatively easy. We know the markets, we know cattle, we know the crops. On the regulation side, the norm of fighting over water has been entrenched for decades, a push-pull of will they or won’t they shut off wells. We’re so used to it, that no one wants to break the mold. On top of that, every incentive currently points back to the default.

So in addition to the question of how do we change consumer norms, I’m very interested in how we change industry and producer norms when everyone that could potentially cause the wind to blow a different direction is invested in maintaining status quo.

[Nao_Craft]

I’m doing my PhD on engineering and sustainability, and I want to show this video to a bunch of my colleagues to help convince them that not every problem requires a technical/ engineering solution. Social drivers of change are so important! Thanks for a great video 😄

[CraigCrossley]

I've been a vegan and a Nerdfighter since 2011. I can't express enough how thrilled I am to finally hear John talk about the impacts of meat consumption and choose to do something about it!
Thank you 🎉💚

[JustinWoo]

I was legit waiting for John to tell me that beef also caused tuberculosis.

[WolfSeril]

My trick for reducing my beef consumption is not being able to afford it :)

[arthurhamlin]

the 33rd World Health Assembly declared the world free of Smallpox on May 8, 1980, so I nominate May 8th, as I see it as the single greatest achievement of the human race.

[MsBlulucky]

August 1st 1920 was the day Henrietta Lacks was born and October 4th 1951 was the day she died. The cells doctors took from her cervical cancer without her knowlege were the first human cells that did not die in the labs. Nowadys HeLa cells can be found in labs all over the world and they enababled immeasurable amounts of scientific discoveries and advances. Henrietta Lacks is one of the most important people that ever lived and continues to be important. For that I think one of the mentioned dates would be the perfect feast day to honour her!

[MiramurOmnia]

Oh hey, a trick I already do! Since I'm Jewish my Beef Days have been Passover and Rosh Hashana for the past few years. And it also means I can monetarily splurge on making sure the beef i do get is as sustainably and humanely farmed as possible.

I like the Spring and Fall timing, coordinated with the beautiful change of the seasons, but for a Nerdfighteria focused beef day I feel like some options could be:

1) September 3: the day of Alexander Fleming's chance observation of penicillin, kick-starting the age of modern antibiotics and saving countless lives

2) May 14: the day Edward Jenner tested the first modern vaccination against Smallpox. And of course the connection of vaccination with cows makes this one especially good.

Great video as usual! And happy future beef days to you! ❤

[ItsRadishTime]

i'm already a vegetarian but i'd consider cheese days celebrated on
March 7, the feast day of Saint Perpetua, patron saint of cows
May 6, The wedding anniversary of my late grandparents, who were dairy farmers
July 20th, the anniversary of the moon landing
and October 1, to coincide with the annual World Dairy Expo, held in my hometown of Madison, Wisconsin.

[EthicalAllele]

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE TO ALL NERDFIGHTERS:
Don’t make your friends and family feel like bad, evil people for eating beef. Don’t make it out like they’re destroying the world by continuing to eat beef. This approach will only make them more averse to a reduced-beef lifestyle. Instead, do the same thing John is doing in this video. Mention the downsides of beef production and how you’re making some changes in your own life. Don’t force them to do the same. Let your actions inspire them to come to the decision on their own.

[JoyWeeseMoll]

Clara Peller was the actress who gave us the phrase, "Where's the beef?" She began her acting career at age 80 -- an excellent reminder that we're never too old to live a new dream. Her birthday is August 4, a worthy Beef Day.

[GhostsOfThings]

I love this. For the last few years I have been vegetarian when I cook for myself at home, and give myself the freedom to eat meat when I go out to eat. Eating at other peoples houses I've decided I will just eat whatever they make. This basically cut down my meat eating by like 90% without making me feel trapped. (It's also way cheaper.) Its all about finding changes that work for each person! ❤

[phoenixfromtheashes]

We didn't agree to just buy pickup trucks and SUVs. It was a policy shift caused by the 2009 light truck loophole which explicitly were left out emissions requirements, leading car manufacturers to try and sell the easier to produce (and less regulated) light trucks

[rnrnrnrnrnrn]

I'd recommend the solstices and equinoxes. Change the seasons with beef.

[prettyprettybirdie]

I got to meet you last week at your tuberculosis talk and just wanted to thank you for being so kind. I was the girl in the red Pizzamas sweater who was near tears and you were extremely patient and generous with your time and kind words. It meant a lot to be able to meet someone I look up to so much. You wrote my favorite quote for me, "your now is not your forever, " and I now have it framed. Thank you so much.

[emilycarr]

Climate consultant here. I support this idea. Social norms can even make it hard for people to make certain GHG-reducing choices, even when it makes financial sense! Beef day proposition - April 7, Rax Day.

[rob_nsn]

Great video! I want to make a note about 1:36, which is that the SUV and truck problem is not exclusively a problem of social norms. It is also a regulatory problem. The free market is not solely responsible for the market preference for SUVs and trucks, because that market is not actually "free" from regulatory influence. "Light Trucks" are a category of vehicle that is exempted from some US emissions and safety standards. So auto manufacturers modified vehicle designs to qualify as "light trucks", marketed them aggressively, and removed their smaller vehicle options from the market. SUVs and pickups qualify as light trucks. The market demand for these products is mostly manufactured by car companies in response to poorly crafted government regulations.

[Penny-]

I nominate the 9th of November. This is Carl Sagan’s birthday. His commitment to telling the world about climate change was inspiring. Getting legislation changed and by giving evidence to our political leaders. He also showed why science and technology education is so important. And pushed to get that message out.
Carls wrote books and did many appearances and tv shows to get these messages out to the general public. He genuinely cared about people and the world. His life should be an example to us all.