What do you make of this?

[AppleBlossom]

I saw this on the news last week:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...fury-town-hall-plans-halal-menus-schools.html

I am respectful of other people's culture and religion for the most part. I hate religion but I don't judge those who have certain beliefs. But I think that some people are starting to go to far. We are predominantly a catholic/christian country. I think it is wrong for us to keep catering for other cultures without thinking about our own. I am in no way a racist. But I think there has to be a line? Surely introducing halal meat as the only type of meat in schools is making the differences between cultures more apparent when really we should be trying to make our children realise it doesn't matter what religion you are?

What do you think? Do you think it's a good idea? Or do you think political correctness has once again gone mad?

 

[blahblahblah]

I despair of our country sometimes. I strongly disagree with Halal methods, and suspect that many British people do (or would if they knew more about it). I accept that some cultures require it, but when you are a minority living in another country, one should be expected to adhere to our usual practises, or make their own arrangements.

It is wrong (and I believe illegal) to supply Halal meat to people who do not hold those beliefs, especially if it is without their knowledge or understanding.

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

I think a school should have a halal option. But to make a whole menu dedictated to that to me is going to far
xx

 

[Gwizz]

I agree the whole menu shouldn't be dedicated to it plus I think only in schools that would cater for that culture - some schools aren't as culturally diverse with pupils, if at all.

 

[Blah11]

i dont really care tbh. Animal slaughter is animal slaughter

 

[kiwimama]

I don't agree with the halal method of slaughter and think they should offer a halal option for muslims at schools, but not force every other student to eat it too.

Blah - the animals are awake while their throats are slit and they suffer before dying, it's not the same as being stunned immediately into a coma and then slaughtered....

 

[Blah11]

Oh. Well idk, they're still being killed either way. I think it's a bit silly to be strongly opposed to a certain method of slaughter when you eat meat

 

[Tiff]

As petty as its going to sound, I feel the same with how much pressure there is to say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" here. To me, its "Merry Christmas" and I wouldn't be offended if someone said "Happy Hanukkah" to me! So why is everyone getting all up in a bunch for "Merry Christmas"?



Although I have a hard time saying that we were "founded" by Christians and whatnot... as it was the Native Population who was here before anyone else. But that's just North America. Its different overseas.

 

[BlackBerry25]

There should be an option, if enough people want it.
I don't see what the big deal is.

I would eat it. I agree with Blah. What difference does it make if you stun the animal? Seems like a bunch of BS to me. I never knew that thats what it meant, how the animal was killed. Hmmm...

If it is the same meat that they were serving all along, just killed differently...I wouldn't care. If it was all of a sudden, just like...goat. Then I guess I would care.

 

[Kimboowee]

TBH if I was one of the parents at one of the schools I wouldn't be bothered. Though I think the schools should cater for everyone rather than just muslims.

 

[Tiff]

I posted the two methods of slaughter for meat, "Normal" (for us, that is) and Halal. Its upsetting though so its in spoilers. Click at your own risk!!!

Spoiler

Definition of Halal Meat being Slaughtered:

Thabiha or Dhabiha (Arabic: ذبيحة&#8206, is the prescribed method of ritual slaughter of all animals excluding fish and most sea-life per Islamic law. This method of slaughtering animals consists of a swift, deep incision with a sharp knife on the neck, cutting the jugular veins and carotid arteries of both sides but leaving the spinal cord intact. The method is believed to cause minimal suffering to the animal as it cuts off the blood supply to the brain hence the pain center[citation needed]. Furthermore it causes all the blood from the animal to gush out leaving negligible amounts of blood remaining in the body, the principle being that blood is a good medium for germs.

Definition of how regular meat is slaughtered:

Direct blow to skull using a club or poleaxe. The blow must be dealt with precision and force, so that the skull is immediately smashed, causing instantaneous unconsciousness. In cattle the aiming point is in the middle of the forehead in line with the ears, where the skull is thinnest. Horses have thinner skulls and are therefore easier to stun by this method. In sheep and goats the brain is more easily reached from the back of the neck. Pigs have a well-developed frontal cavity so the blow should be aimed slightly above the eyes.

Slaughtering mask. A bolt held in the correct position by the mask is driven into the animal's brain by a hammer blow. The device is usually fitted with a spring which returns the bolt to its original position.

Free bullet fired from a pistol into the skull is effective but unsafe. This method has been used on horses and cattle.

Captive-bolt pistols fitted with a blank cartridge are effective on cattle and sheep but not pigs whose skulls are thicker (Figs 17 and 18). After firing, the bolt returns to its original position in the pistol. The bolt may or may not be designed to penetrate the skull. With penetrating types the brain becomes contaminated with hair, dirt and bone fragments. If brains are to be saved as edible tissue then the non-penetrating type with a mushroom-shaped head should be used.

Electrical stunning. An electric current of high frequency but, in the case of manually operated equipment, of relatively low voltage (60–80 V) is passed through the brain of an animal for a few seconds to produce unconsciousness. If applied correctly a deep state of unconsciusness is invariably achieved. Strict safety rules must be observed. Head tongs (Fig. 19) are suitable for pigs and sheep but not for cattle. The electrodes carried on the ends of the tongs must be accurately placed (Figs 20 and 21). Places where the skull is thick must be avoided. Electrical contact is impeded by hair and caked mud. Water or brine will improve contact but the head must not be completely wet otherwise the current will have a short-circuit path avoiding the brain. The electrodes must be applied with strong pressure

Seems like the other stipulation is that the animal can't have eaten a blood product either, so no other animal byproducts including gelatin, etc. (Pork and Rabbit can't be Halal), hormone free, etc.

Doesn't seem that bad now that I think about it. Either way its sad that the animal has to be slaughtered for us to eat it in the first place.

 

[buttonnose82]

I am going to try and word this the best way I can!

It should be an option but they shouldn't change the entire menu

I love that as a country we are so multi cultural, but this is where we go wrong, we take it too the extreme anything to please anyone and avoid the risk of being called racist. When in reality sometimes we need to say 'NO, we will meet you half way but we won't change everything to please you' Lets face it, how many countries that worship different religions would build a church of england church in their towns ...... none, if 1000 people from britain went to a country that was mainly muslin and said 'our children go to this school too, we want the food to be served to be the same as in the UK', do you not think we would get laughed at?

Most other countries/cultures live by a 'you come to our environment, you live by our standards' yet in the UK it is all about pleasing others and sometimes, like this example, it means leaving our own standards behind, which is wrong, it is what defines us as a country

I hope people understand what i am saying, I am not trying to be mean or nasty, just stating fact, very very few other countries would give up their own standards to please others and they shouldn't have to or be expected too

There should b a halal option, but changing the entire menu is like saying 'ok this whole menu is vegetarian/vegan/gluten free/lactose free, like it or lump it'

 

[Blah11]

i think its probably easier for the school is they make the menu 100% halal instead of a mixture?

 

[buttonnose82]

it would be easier to serve school dinners the way they do in many italian schools, ONE dinner is served, take it or leave it! lol

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

It also means children can't have pork either. At my school they had a halal option and a veggie option, they jsut cooked it while everything else was being cooked
xx

 

[lesleyann]

tbh i dont like it, is my son wants to eat pork at school he should be allowed to

I HATE how people come here and expect us to change to suit them rather than them coming here and accepting our way of life.. I would rather home school kyle tbh and no what his eating and that he can have pork and other items that are not halal..

I dont eat any halal meat and dont eat at halal eat outs tbh i find the halal slauter horrible ok so at the end they both die but having your throat slit while still alive compared to die them be slit i no which i profer, but then again i refuse to let other religion groups ruin how i live my life in england where we are a moslty christan place "well used to be anyway".

 

[suzanne108]

I don't see a problem with it at all and is a good idea I think.

The two methods of slaughter posted above are both as cruel as each other imo (not that it stops me from eating meat!) so if it makes it easier for the school to serve just halal meat then that would be fine with me.

As for the non-muslim children not being able to eat pork - does it really matter?? They can eat it at home

Maybe it will stop there from being a divide between the muslim and non-muslim children also?

 

[Blah11]

I do think this is more about the meat really. I think the issue is more should our country be catering for other religions and cultures.

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

I think we should be accepting of cultures to a certain degree and try and accomodate where we can.
xx

 

[Blah11]

Also, I'd rather live in a world with no religion because I dont believe in God but that doesn't mean I wont go to a church wedding, celebrate christmas, pray in a mosque etc etc I don't think it's a bad thing to be flexible with things like the meat we eat in schools. Its not a huge deal to our kids to eat halal meat but to not eat halal meat is a massssive deal to the muslim children.