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Summary: Neglegent news media forced the author's hand
Review: I've just read _Slaughterhouse_, by Gail Eisnitz (Prometheus Books, December 1997). It's the story of the author's investigation and collection of overwhelming evidence of the egregious abuse of animals without any regard for the Humane Slaughter Act, utter contempt for the safety and well being of workers, and outrageous disregard for the Federal Meat Inspection Act and public health. It is the story of how the US government is shirking it's responsibility to ensure that meat and other animal products are not diseased or contaminated, but is placing that responsibility in the hands of consumers. The government now teaches consumers how to cook their meat in order to kill the germs even though it's obvious that cooking cannot solve the problem, since infected meat will contaminate your hands, kitchen surfaces, and anything else either you or it touches. It exhaustively documents the routine skinning, scalding, and butchering of live, fully conscious and sentient animals. Equally disturbing is the author's story of the refusal of the major television network news magazines to let the masses know about what is actually happening in the slaughterhouses of America. Using excuses such as 'too disgusting' or 'too graphic', which loose all credibility in light of the daily torrent of graphic and disgusting television violence with which we are all too familiar, TV news executives are responsible for obstructing the dissemination of the information which must reach the masses if we are to have any chance of developing the political will which is necessary to put and end to these atrocities and outrages. The national news media, with their skewed priorities based on arbitrary and unjustifiable taste preferences, apparently won't consider the consequences of their decisions. I strongly urge you to read this book, which was written because of the news media's negligence.
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Summary: A necessary read for every meat-eating American
Review: This well-researched, well-written book is the most appalling expose I've ever read. Even if the author is biased (and how could she NOT be?), if half of what she reports is true, then we truly have a crisis on our hands. As a meat-eater and a parent, the information contained has convinced me that I need to either eat Kosher meats or stop eating meat all together! The information in Slaughterhouse should be made widely public, and there needs to be reform before more people die. She did a remarkable job covering all applicable areas of meat-packing: the inhumane treatment of animals, the dangers posed to the employees of the packing industry, the unsanitary...FILTHY...conditions, as well as the political mess surrounding the meat industry. Well done!
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Summary: All To Real
Review: In 1989, Gail Eisnitz recieved a letter from Timothy Walker, a well known whistleblower. His letter stated that he has first hand knowledge that a slaughterhouse (Kaplan Industries) was skinning live cattle. At first, she didn't know what to believe so she called the USDA. A USDA inspector called her back with the findings: no cattle were being skinned alive at Kaplan.
She decides to contact Walker by phone. When asked how he knew that Kaplan was skinning live cows, he stated that he was a USDA employee. He begins to tell Eisnitz a few more details.
In the US alone, over one hundred and one million pigs are slaughtered each year. Thirty seven million cattle and calves, more than four million horses, goats and sheep and over eight BILLION chickens and turkeys are killed. Millions of chickens leaking yellow pus, stained green feces, contaminated by harmful bacteria and tumors are shipped for sale to customers. At a Perdue plant, there is so much fecal contamination on the floor from chickens that it leaked into a workers boots and burned his feet so badly that his toenails had to be amputated. The company won't even allow workers to leave the line to go to the bathroom so they relieve themselves on the floor. Sometimes the chickens that are hung, fall to the floor that is covered with roaches, feces and blood. The chickens that fall aren't even washed off before being hung back up on the line. One worked said that he "saw flies on the chicken as it went down the line and maggots in boxes which contained bags that the chickens would be wrapped in." Occasionally, maggots were ground up with everything else and remained in the final product. This is disturbing, and it should be. I hope that those who read this book will do something. Write to your senator or member of parliament, stop eating meat or even distribute this book among friends. Just do something. These are animals. They feel pain just like you do. Would you allow this to happen to a dog or cat? They why allow it to happen to farm animals.
This is a book that everyone needs to read. A lot of people believe or like to believe that their dinner arrived on their plate humanely. People need to know about wrongdoings like this. It's inhumane and it's wrong, plain and simple.
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Summary: You'll Never Eat Meat Again!
Review: Whether you care about the humane treatment of your fellow creatures, or just about your own health, if you read this book, you'll never eat meat again! Gail Eisnitz tells it like it is in the slaughterhouses. She is to be commended for her dedication to this project, as she perserveres even durng her own battle with the "Big C".What shocks me most is that the slaughterhouse workers, past and present, could admit to such horrific treatment of the poor animals that are murdered for Man's consumption."USDA Approved" no longer holds any merit when applied to the quality or health of the food being put on America's tables. Ms. Eisnitz shows the blatant cover-ups carried out by the "Big Chiefs" from Washington on down the line, all in the interest of $$$$$.Read this and never eat meat again! I give or loan copies to everyone I can get to read it.
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Summary: Must Read Account of the Danger of Eating Meat
Review: Here is a book so shocking and unbelievable I had to corroborate some of the extensive research for myself. I found myself shaking my head in disbelief on every page. While I was able to corroborate the statistics on disease and the "after hours" slaughter activity, the animal treatment issues were more difficult. In fact, when you search for "inhumane" on the USDA website, you'll get NO hits - a further testimony to Ms. Eisnitz story of the coverup and corruption that exists in the agency. The story exposes what is true in so many industries - collusion between businessmen and politicians for the benefit of the personal gain of a few at the expense of many people and in this case, animals as well. With all of the reasons not to eat animal products, this books clinches the case. Certainly, anyone who learns about the dangers of doing so from this book would have to reconsider their diet. And any parent would never let their children eat meat again.
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Summary: Literally - clean your plate!
Review: Ms.Eisnitz has convinved me that the principals that drive successful businesses are at work in our food supply to nefarious ends. While driving down costs and improving productivity may be laudable in the production of wigets, in the killing and "cleaning" of our meats, these ends are set to produce an epidemic of deadly pathogens and diseased foods. The recent mad cow scare has hopefully produced the publicity this book and others of its ilk have long sought. The USDA has proven to be impotent and having cattlemen assoc. leaders overseeing production is insanity.A very insightful read.
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Summary: Made a vegetarian out of THIS Texas girl!
Review: I was raised on steaks, ribs, burgers, chicken, turkey - you name it. Reading just excerpts of this book made me an instant vegetarian. I cannot imagine anyone, no matter how big a meat eater they are, reading this book and being able to continue to eat any form of meat. The unthinkable, unimaginable is done to animals in slaughterhouses, and people need to educate themselves about it. Not only the atrocities done to the animals, but also the outrageously contaminated food we are putting in our bodies. That alone, minus the animal suffering issue, would make a vegetarian out of any sound minded individual. You will find all you ever needed to know and probably more than you ever wanted to know about the slaughterhouse industry and slaughterhouse food contamination in this book! This book will arm you with the information you need in order to take a stand against the greed-driven slaughterhouse industry that could care less about YOUR health and well-being! I highly recommend it!
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Summary: disturbing
Review: the most vivid and readable account of slaughterhouse practices you're likely to find. instead of relying on numb statistics, the author puts a face on your food, and on the men and women who monotonously kill these animals. anyone who reads this will become a vegetarian. i plan on buying copies for friends and families. it's absolutely amazing!
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Summary: Hard to ignore
Review: I've read this book from front to back, and although it took me several weeks (the gruesome pictures I had in my mind were hard to swallow) I'm glad I did. Now I'm less ignorant about what goes on, now I can help support the cause to relieve animal suffering in this world. I hope you read this as well and see for yourself what Gail Eisnitz has, through her clever reporting and careful documentation, been telling us all along.
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Summary: Eye Opening
Review: Slaughterhouse reads like a novel. It is captivating and dramatic! I first read it 2 years ago and it confirmed to me in so many ways why I became a vegetarian. Everyone should know about the things Ms. Eisnitz discovered through these investigations. Be prepared for a life changing experience through reading Slaughterhouse.
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