Just curious to see if I'm alone in my support for animal liberation. I became a vegetarian four years ago for health reasons, and after about 6 months I went vegan and haven't looked back. My reason/s for abstaining from animal products has evolved to include compassion towards animals.(Whereas I went vegetarian for health reasons only.)

It's been over three years since I've consumed any animal products and my health has improved to say the least. When people ask me about being vegan, they tend to show complete and utter ignorance towards what it entails. I have grown in my sincerity, and have become more and more fed up with modern industrial methods of farming. I fully support the actions of such organizations as the animal liberation front, and it is with vehement passion that I opposed animal abuse. I am not shy about my militance, and I embrace and express it through music.

I do not expect anyone to share my fierce passion and hatred against the food industry, but I am curious if anyone else here is vegan or veg. Animals are sentient creatures, and they should not be subjected to the degradation, torture and abuse that our species puts them through. I'm not religious, so I will not accept the argument that God put other species here for us, although If I was a believer I would think that God would find factory/fur farming (etc.) a vile abuse of his creation.

Moby talks about veganism.

Being a vegan is easier than one would think, and as time progresses it becomes second nature. The variety of foods I eat has grown immensely since becoming vegan. I never would of guessed, but there is a plethora of options out there.

This post has been edited by PietroChocko: Feb 24 2009, 06:50 PM

Isn't being vegan unhealthy? Do you need supplements to your diet?
Aside from that, why the moral reason? Even animals eat meat too.

Veganism can be unhealthy if you don't know what your doing, and the same thing goes for non vegans. I personally do not take any supplements as vitamin B12 is fairly common in vegan foods, but there are of course vegans who do just as there are non vegans who also take supplements.



I'm sorry, but I cannot take people seriously when they say this. Do you really derive morality and ethics from observing other animals? There are also animals that do not eat meat, but this alone is not a valid reason to abstain or consume meat. First and foremost, when another animal consumes it's kill that animal was at least able to live a wild and free life, free from the inhumane conditions we subject them to. Animals kill to survive whereas most humans have no need to do so. There are cases of animals killing unnecessarily, but this is because they do not understand the moral implications of harming others. Unlike carnivores, we do not have an uncontrollable urge to chase an animal and then eat their flesh right after the kill. We are not even capable of doing that without the aid of technology.

Many animals are vegetarian (herbivore) so why should we look to the omnivores or carnivores for guidance? We are able to use logic and rationalize our actions; thus, we should make our own minds up w/o referring to the animal world.

< Veggie

I like the ALF, too. But there are some crazies in there.
Rise Against is an all-vegetarian band, and they're on my top 2 favorite.

< Veggie.

LOL

I like it.

People can eat what they like.
But I love my burgers and my steak more than anything. I really do. I want a burger at the thought of it.

I almost became a vegetarian when I was emo though.

Easily one of the worst bands I have ever heard.

Oh and I like my steaks medium rare. My dad ate them Pittsburgh style but I can't do that. What an awesome guy eh?

I'm a vegetarian My cousin is a vegan but it wouldn't be healthy to be one for me. I try to buy animal friendly animal products though.

I swear some of the best food I have eaten has been in my vegeterian years.

Isn't there other stuff that is present in animal products only?
Biotin, amino-acids and stuff like that.
Also, iron, whilst present in vegetables, is only available in smaller quantities than in meat. That makes eating meat more practical.


We need to eat meat as well. Chimpanzees and other apes, in general, have moments of blood lust.
Not all carnivores have this "uncontrollable urge" to hunt and eat right away.
Spiders don't do that.
Maybe this "urge" was more prevalent among humans during our hunter-gatherer days when food is not so easily obtainable.

So's your face.



Everything that is found in meat can be found in a meat alternative.



Wut? I've only heard of a few cases where people actually had to eat meat for health reasons.

Maybe it's because most food these days are cooked with too much spices and sauces.
How many people have tried raw diet? Raw pork, for instance?

^RAW PORK!?!? You have got to be kidding me. That is a one way ticket to a serious case of intestinal worms.


Err.. Mainly because we are Omnivores. Witch dose happen to entail the ability to survive on only vegetables. However, no omnivore can survive on only meat.


The mere thought of burgers makes me sick. It is not as bad as hot dogs though. Those are terrible.


This is one that frequently gets to me. No where is there any evidence that there was a time where humans survived only by hunting and gathering. This is just something people say because it sounds good, and of course because it sounds 'primitive'. However, do you know how easy it is to farm the land? Well, from a technological aspect anyway. If the Native Americans could do it with there technologically halted society, then surely early man could have done it as well.

This post has been edited by Jemini: Feb 25 2009, 04:40 AM

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/411241
Raw dieters, FTW!

^Ok, we just talked about this in biology. You could get seriously ill!


Burgers I'm ok with. I'm not a vegetarian or anything, but I can't stand hot dogs. They make me really sick. Hey, just wondering: What are you vegetarian's views of PETA? (I ask only out of curiosity, not trying to be mean or stereotypical)

PETA gives us a bad name. I've had so many people quote PETA and link to articles about them when I talk about being vegetarian, but being a vegetarian does NOT equal PETA fanatic. I'm all for animal rights. I've even campaigned for better treatment of animals, but not in the way PETA does

I'm a meateater, but I live in a vegetarian household

I'm a meateater, but I live in a vegetarian household

I can’t stand PETA, even during my years as a vegetarian I always found that group ridiculous.
When you start belittling other people because they don't share your beliefs, you instantly lose all credibility. PETA is too extreme.

There are times when extreme tactics are justified. I am willing to accept the fact that extreme measures must be taken if animal liberationists ever hope to ease the suffering of animals. I do, however, oppose the misogynistic tactics PETA employs to try to get their message across.

I think PETA makes vegetarians look bad.
Giving out flyers to kids that say things like “baby cows get taken away from their mommas and get killed and eaten, how would you like your momma to be taken away?”, throwing flour at people, rolling around in fake blood. All of those things makes vegans look like rabid, ranting maniacs.
Their hearts are in the right place, but their views are offensive.
I prefer intelligent discussion and providing factual arguments instead of threatening people, and scaring them. When you send peta your money, you don’t know where it goes. It’s better to volunteer, ect.
And honestly, (I hope I don’t get in trouble for posting this) but money spent on things like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtUp9pHokTw is insane and could have been better spent

<----- ovo lacto vegetarian (who doesn't eat fish or plain eggs)

I'm not big into animal rights or anything, at least not as long as there's suffering people out there, but I just find dead cooked animals impossible to swallow.

< Veggie too! although i eat more fruit than veg!

I use to eat some meat when i was little because my Dad is a BIG meat eater and wanted us all to eat meat, and i would even cry when i had to eat it, and be sick afterwards (i didn't stick my hands down my throat, i just use to be sick whenever i ate meat after a while) yet i just use to force myself to eat it to keep him happy. I've never liked meat the taste of it makes me cringe.

I became a vegetarian when i was 11 (Dad was not happy at all) and i first became a veggie because eating meat would make me sick, and i hated the taste. And now as i've got older and have a love for animals i'm also a vegetarian for that reason too. I hate seeing people suffer, and that goes for animals as well now.

does it bother anyone else when people go out of their way to make sure you have a vegetarian meal to eat?

People are always doing this for me, which is sweet and I'm grateful, but it makes me feel bad. A lot of the time I don't show up at these events (mostly church dinners) and then they went through all that work when it wasn't necessary. And when I do go, I have no prob living off of side dishes. lol. It is sweet of them though.

This is the more major reason why I'm not vegitarian or vegan. I have an accute iorn deficiancy anemia, so sometimes I need not only the meat, but also supplements if the need comes.

Those who are veggitarian or vegan, good for you It is generally a much healthier diet when one goes about it the right way. I have a friend who's a veggitarian and her mom's vegan. From them, my mom, and my brother, I learn a LOT of health things. Expecially the viriety of vegan cusine. I always leave with a happy tummy whenever I eat at my veggi friend's house
Also, if you read the bible, people didn't eat meat until man was kicked out of Eden.
For non-bible people, what is the diffrence between a plant and a cow? Cows have legs for better running away from people. This is generally a sign that we're suppose to eat more plants and less animals. They're hard to catch for a reason
What I'm striving for (which is kind of a family goal) is a raw-foods diet (Jemini might have talked about it previously) which means that yes, you can eat your meats and cooked foods, but make a more majority of one's diet raw foods such as fruits, veggies, and other things that you don't nessisarily have to cook (no, I don't mean sweets and fats all day).

My friend had talked to me once about how meat is to her now. I remember when I first met her, her favorite food in the UNIVERSE was chicken noodle soup. When she decided to go veggi with her mom, she went crazy about not having her soup, but now, she gaggs and feels like she's gonna barf just at the smell of meat. She's generally respectful about it. If it's too overpowering, she'll just quietly leave the room to eat somewhere else. She'd announce that it is because of the meat at our house, but she knows that we already know about it and respect that she might not want to be in the same room as the meat and we generally try to avoid cooking meat while she's around in the first place.

Personally, if you're veggi or vegan and you're proud that you are, then I'm proud you are too, just don't go about it like crazos on the street corner calling out "The end is near!!!" I havn't come across anyone like that, but it's just something that got brought up in raindrop's post.