Vegetarians are feisty beasts!

... I'm finding it quite amusing at the moment.
This room seems to have a lot of arguments going on it in.
As a general grouping amongst the human race, vegetarians and vegans argue a lot.

We argue over whether eggs are "Vegetarian" or not, we argue over whether Milk powder is "vegetarian"...

Why are we arguing??
If a meat-eater is eating meat, don't we generally say "it's there choice, oh well."?
So what does it matter what type of vegetarian we all are here?
If a vegetarian wants to eat eggs shouldn't we just say "Oh well, they're not exactly like me but at least they are happy and the cows get to live another day!"
There's so many names for every type of vegetarian now.
(Still waiting for that "Meaty-Vegetarian: eats all types of meats but primarily lives on fruit and vegetables unlike omnivores which tend to cut out greenery entirely." ... J/K)

So... you know, In that tacky old saying,

"Can't we all just get along?"

Also it's kind of amusing how we pounce on anyone who comes in and comments on a thread who isn't a vegetarian.
Even when they are being ignorant pigs, by being all hissy at them, we're only setting their beliefs in stone that they think we're all a bunch of emotional nut jobs.

(P.S. I'm a Vegetarian, I belong here, don't pounce!")

I'm not trying to start a fight here, I'm just looking to try and get everyone to think about how they could be a little more understanding about everyones beliefs.

Whether their beliefs include eating meat, eggs, milk, animal byproducts or fish.

*grin*  Well, I'm not a vegetarian but occasionally drop by the forum as I really enjoy many vegetarian foods (especially the bean- and legume-based ones).  I can't say I feel like I've ever been pounced on.  Yet?  :-)

Surely the egg- and milk- debates are about vegetarianism vs. veganism?  If eggs and milk weren't vegetarian, you wouldn't need both terms.  I think?

Yeah I know, there was a silly argument awhile ago about whether eggs were vegetarian or not though.
Eggs are of course allowed by dictionary definition, but some people got huffy.

Good to hear you have been welcomed warmly! lol.

I agree Restless_girl,

One reason that so many choose to not eat meat is that it is inconsistent with a non-violent nature and lifestyle. But, that is only one of the many wonderful reasons to become some form of vegetarian or vegan.

It is quite a personal choice and I think that some become vitriolic in their comments because they feel the fervor of a convert and may have a too quick auto-self-defensive mechanism in place when others disagree about their chosen Way to Eat. It takes many people to make this planet and there are as many personal ways to eat as there are people.

So, yes, please try to convince rather than threaten someone into your way to eat. Play nice people and be glad if someone has only given up eating baby cows. It's one step in a potentially long process that is good for them, good for animals, and good for the planet and should be applauded.

Original Post by jannid:

I agree Restless_girl,

One reason that so many choose to not eat meat is that it is inconsistent with a non-violent nature and lifestyle. But, that is only one of the many wonderful reasons to become some form of vegetarian or vegan.

It is quite a personal choice and I think that some become vitriolic in their comments because they feel the fervor of a convert and may have a too quick auto-self-defensive mechanism in place when others disagree about their chosen Way to Eat. It takes many people to make this planet and there are as many personal ways to eat as there are people.

So, yes, please try to convince rather than threaten someone into your way to eat. Play nice people and be glad if someone has only given up eating baby cows. It's one step in a potentially long process that is good for them, good for animals, and good for the planet and should be applauded.

 Here here. I once had my head somewhat bitten off here and have not been back since.

"Play nice people and be glad if someone has only given up eating baby cows. It's one step in a potentially long process that is good for them, good for animals, and good for the planet and should be applauded." Love it.

I am " a vegetable lover who avoids most dairy and eggs and occasionally eats fish or seafood, but doesn't eat any meat or poultry".   Peace

Lol I know! And posting in this forum turns me into more of a b**** than I usually am. Around my meat-eating friends I have a very laid-back, do what you want attitude. I think its just that people who've put that much thought into a lifestyle choice feel very strongly about it, and when you get them all together they loooove to talk about it, since they probably spend most of their time pretending not to be bothered by other people eating cheeseburgers.

Original Post by restless_girl:

... I'm finding it quite amusing at the moment.
This room seems to have a lot of arguments going on it in.
As a general grouping amongst the human race, vegetarians and vegans argue a lot.

We argue over whether eggs are "Vegetarian" or not, we argue over whether Milk powder is "vegetarian"...

Why are we arguing??
If a meat-eater is eating meat, don't we generally say "it's there choice, oh well."?
So what does it matter what type of vegetarian we all are here?
If a vegetarian wants to eat eggs shouldn't we just say "Oh well, they're not exactly like me but at least they are happy and the cows get to live another day!"
There's so many names for every type of vegetarian now.
(Still waiting for that "Meaty-Vegetarian: eats all types of meats but primarily lives on fruit and vegetables unlike omnivores which tend to cut out greenery entirely." ... J/K)

So... you know, In that tacky old saying,

"Can't we all just get along?"

Original Post by danaofdoom:

Lol I know! And posting in this forum turns me into more of a b**** than I usually am. Around my meat-eating friends I have a very laid-back, do what you want attitude. I think its just that people who've put that much thought into a lifestyle choice feel very strongly about it, and when you get them all together they loooove to talk about it, since they probably spend most of their time pretending not to be bothered by other people eating cheeseburgers.

 Danaofdoom that is exactly right.  I am laid back around my friends and even my fiance but i do try to educate them right if they ask.  When i get worked up about it is because i feel so strongly about it and i myself constantly have animals on the brain.  I'm always thinking about them, i wish i could do more to help them, wish they didn't have to go through this.  The sadness i feel for them is so strong and often does turn into anger because of what they have to go through day in and day out just for our unnecessary cravings, amusement, etc.  What they go through is worse than any horror movie.  Sorry.  Not trying to argue, really.  Maybe i shouldn't have responded to this!

Anyway, we're not nutjobs, we just care a LOT.  And often feel helpless.  I try hard to be calm about it just sometimes i get so passionate about it, you know?  I don't want to come off as crazy but sometimes i just do.

There is no reason to pretend to not be bothered when people eat meat - there is also no reason to resort to verbal fisticuffs when pleasant discussion will do.

The main thrust of restless_girl's post is that Vegans and Vegetarians are doing much too much arguing amongst themselves even though both categories agree that eating meat is not right - so the level of argument seemed out of place.

As future2114 said so well - Peace.

My personal opinion is that unless a vegan/vegetarian diet is very carefully managed, its actually not healthy for the human body - we evolved to eat both vegetables AND meat.

That said, it is totally everyone's own choice how they want to eat. I will add here that I was vegan for about 15 years for medical reasons, so I do know what I'm talking about. As long as vegans/vegetarians don't condemn me for eating a well-rounded diet that includes meat, I have no problem.

And I totally respect those who don't eat meat because of concern over how domestic animals are treated - I think there are more effective ways than veganism to deal with that problem, but raising awareness is the first step, and many vegans do that.

Nice, no ones arguing over my post!
I was a little nervous after awhile TBH. ;)

I'm not a vegetarian, so i hope i'm allowed to reply!?

Doesn't it make a difference in what the reason for becoming a vegetarian/vegan is? If someone does it for health reasons such as bad gut or acne, they might be less feisty in sending out the No Meat message than someone who does it for environmentally reasons. Just my thought on it.

Someone who is restricted by their own body might be less inclined to force their believes on someone else. They might not care what type of veg someone is.

Yes. This is why I thnk the conversation often takes on the intensity of a religious convert defending their position to a non-believer. I wish they'd lighten up too.

That said, this is a forum for vegetarians and people interested in learning more and to respond to posts in an angry or sneering way because there are differences among an obviously varied group is extreme.

Peace

Restlessgirl - I have noticed it too. Coming over here sometimes feels like walking into that scary biker bar off that dirt road - you don't know if a brawl will break out or if someone will crash a pool stick over someone else's head so you just sit in the corner and sip your beer hoping no one looks at you funny... ;)

It's not the arguing about semantics that get me, it's that sometimes there's a valid question or post and it denigrates into something so sour and angry (and usually the same argument over and over again). It's just bad vibes... (but, honestly, I prefer a angry vegan rant to "OMG I binged on a piece of celery help me I'm going to blow up to a size 0!" posts! LOL!)

Perfectly stated, punkybrew!

It's ironic. Most of us are vegetarians for the animals sake. But we can't be decent to eachother. We're not on opposite sides, we're all fighting for the same cause.

Restlessgirl - I have noticed it too. Coming over here sometimes feels like walking into that scary biker bar off that dirt road - you don't know if a brawl will break out or if someone will crash a pool stick over someone else's head so you just sit in the corner and sip your beer hoping no one looks at you funny... ;)

 Punkybrew_-That was the funniest thing I have read all day and completely describes how I feel when I visit here!!

I have been thinking about adding an egg to my daily diet on Spinning days and wanted to ask what people thought but am shaking in my boots!!

Glad to see so many people are agreeing.
Maybe now we could move to improving ourselves not just towards animals but humans too? :)

Future214 - I take it you're vegan?
If you are really wanting to add eggs and feel ok with it, then all I can recommend is looking for the best quality eggs you can get.
I.E. Free range.
Or better yet, if you live in a town with a local farmers market, you could always try there and see if there is anyone selling eggs.
Then you might even be able to talk to the owners of the hens and see what their living conditions are like.
I'm not sure how far farmers markets have spread however so this may not be available to you!
We're lucky here, a farmers market was started in the town I live in a year or two ago and it's really flurrishing now!
It's very popular and now it's even started up a second half day mid-week.

Thanks for your kind reply restless girl Ilive in a rural area and think that I could easily find some eggs from kindly treated chickens. I hope to have my own some day!

Technically I  try to adhere to a pescetarian diet. However Idon't find that to be an accurate description since I don't do dairy -I am not lactose intolerant-dairy is something I have been trying to avoid because of some things I have read about it. And I don't eat eggs, yet.  Plus although I eat fish and shellfish it is max 2-3 times per month.

The reason I love this post so much is because I once called myself "mostly vegan" in this forum and got a stern talking to! So I don't say that anymore!

Speaking of anger, I was on my way home today and driving by the dairy farm down the street from my house and it was gorgeous out. I saw one of the cows inside the barn, with its head down. Mopng. And I got really angry with that damn farmer! He doesn't let them graze at all-they are stuck in the barn all day every day.

I am a middle of the road person and I live with omnivores. I don't hold it against meat eaters that our govt and "progress"has let it get this bad. Most of the meat eaters don't know anything about it-I didn't myself til last year. I found out on my own and no one clobbered me over the head.

Peace out

Oh that's horrible! :(
Luckily in New zealand, all our cows are feed in pastures.
I don't think we have any barn-raised cows.
I would be shocked if we did!
Most of our country side is devoted to dairy farms.
Pig farms are still 99% down in barns/factorys however, apart from the 1% which is primarily organic farms or specialty breeders.

Chickens really are easy.
My sister has a few and they live down beside her house.
Plus they eat food scraps too so they're handy! ;)