I have some really important news and given that it is late, only very limited possibility of a receptive audience.

I have this evening decided that I am going to attempt to live as what I will describe at the moment as a practical vegetarian. This means I will avoid mammal meat where possible, initially at least. This choice may penetrate further into avoiding mammalian meat totally or may relax into preferring to eat other foods but consuming said meat on a choice basis. I do not feel the need to stop eating fish or animal products like cheese or eggs. I also feel that it may be ok to eat animals which have been treated ethically and with respect throughout their lives and not as consumer goods to be moved from shed to checkout as quickly as possible.

My reasons stem from three important events today:

1. A vivid description of how a Halal meat factory operated given by a former worker in said facility and in particular his description of what constituted "a laugh" for particular staff members. I do not believe humans have the right to treat animals in this way and object to this form of butchery very strongly.

2. On my way home from visiting a friend this evening I passed the sad corpse of a small dog dead by the side of a footpath in a village. What has our world come to that initially a driver can mow down someone's little pet and carry on driving in their personal tank, and subsequently that no one who passed by, on foot in particular but also in car, chose to respect the poor animal's existence by doing something about him lying there. I stopped, but could not summon the stomach to get out and even try to do anything to help. I have particular feelings about blood and injuries which would have left me unable to carry out any positive actions so I admit that I just left well enough alone.

3. I noted today that Steve Jobs of Apple fame is having health difficulties again and I wish him the best and a speedy recovery (being very much impressed by Jobs and in particular the ethos he infused upon his return to the company with the creation of Mac OS X and the iPod, two of the most important technological happenings of my time). I noted that he used to live as a fruitarian - consuming only fruits, fruit-like vegetables (tomatoes, olives etc.) and seeds. If someone who lives on such a pure and simple diet can encounter enormous health problems, what magnitude of greater hazards and risks are the rest of us exposed to through our choices of nutrition?

I am enthused by my quest, hopefully for the right reasons, and will see how it goes. If you have been, thanks for listening.