Will Miss #33: Not Having to Worry About Accidentally Eating Pork or Pork-Based Products

I don't eat pork for cultural reasons, and for disgust-mechanism reasons. As part of Iranian culture, I was raised without it, and the thought of eating pork revolts me - putting aside pepperoni, which I stupidly didn't realize was pork until sometime in high school, and things I've eaten that might have had pork-based gelatin (shudders), I have had pork on accident twice in recent memory, and those instances were both two of the worst dining experiences of my life. I don't care if others eat pork, but I don't want to handle it, look at it, or smell it.

That being said, one of the GREAT things about being in Iran is NEVER having to worry about accidentally eating pork... because importing pork is officially banned! None! Nada! It's wonderful! I know none of the stuff will ever creep up in a dish, and it's the best thing ever. Versus in China and Japan, I CONSTANTLY had to be on the lookout that there wasn't pork in my food. It's less of a problem in the States in comparison to China and Japan, but I still do have to be very, very careful... it might look like chicken, but it actually isn't.

Interestingly, the United States Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services published a report in 1998 that stated, "According to a Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs at the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, there could be a quiet black market in pork in Iran. The Specialist stated that although he is not aware of this type of activity in Iran, he compared it to the consumption of alcohol, which is also banned under Islamic law... Iran has a porous importation system, that a lot of trade goes unnoticed, and that there are many ways to import pork into the country" and that "According to a Professor at George Mason University who specializes in Iran, while pork is forbidden under Islamic law, the policy in Iran is to leave minority religions alone. The professor stated that Armenians living in Iran are allowed to eat pork, and although pork is not publicly available, he believes pork can be purchased 'under the table.'"

So, make you what you will of that 1998 report, linked here: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3df0a5f64.html.

I will miss not having to worry about accidentally eating pork or pork-based products.