Yesterday the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company recalled 143 million pounds of beef. Imagining that volume of meat is a difficult and disgusting exercise. What led to the recall is worse. The U.S. Humane Society released a graphic video showing workers at the plant kicking "downer" cows and forcing them to the "killing floor" with forklifts. We know they're not all pampered animals, but this is a really bad scene.

The situation at these huge industrial meat companies is unhealthy and brutal. But it's also brutalizing. While these places are obviously beyond miserable for the cows, they can't be much better for the humans who work there. We need to figure something else out for everyone's sake.