When People Try Vegetarianism
Post written by VegBlogger. Follow me on Twitter.
I always find it interesting when I come across stories of people
attempting to go vegetarian for more than a day. I know, more than a day is nothing, but people act like it's a huge deal if they go a couple of days without animal flesh. This morning I came across this article about a guy who decided to go vegetarian for 30 days, after spending time with his vegetarian friend.
While he was a die-hard omnivore, it is interesting to see how he handled shopping, dining out and cooking at home. His story provides some great detail about what vegetarians go through every day when they try to dine out, for example, as he dealt with hidden animal ingredients, only salad options, etc. Granted, his experiment was vegetarian and not vegan, but I am one that believes vegetarianism is better than omnivorism.
I also loved the fact that greatly expanded his culinary horizon. Most omnivores eat the same few meals over and over and then somehow think that we vegetarians and vegans have nothing to eat. Yet we know it's the opposite, we eat a far great variety of food than they would ever realize!
You can read the full article here.
It's just too bad that we can't get every omnivore to try vegetarianism for 30 days. Perhaps they would open their eyes to what meat is, the problems associated with it, the way it is linked to so many products (e.g., gelatin, flavorings, enzymes, etc.), and how much better it is for their health.
And perhaps they would have a renewed sense of appreciation for how their bodies would were designed (rather than evolved) to eat.
I also agree that vegetarian is better than omnivore. There's Meatless Monday which seems to be quite mainstream now. "Flexitarian" seems popular too though that's -- I dunno. It means fewer animals killed so good. My work cafeteria has started using "Flexitarian" a lot. Vegan seems so extreme but full of benefits for oneself and the environment. Perhaps as people see how easy through all the mainstream programs that they'll come around :)
Oh, it's not just salads and tofu. ;)
Posted by: Jessica | 06/17/2010 at 10:05 AM
Jessica, I compeletly agree! While I would LOVE a vegan world, I'm also a supporter of any steps people take to reduce the number of animals they are eating. Flexitarianism and Meatless Mondays will amount to a lot of animals spared. I will take that over pure omnivorism anyday, especially for the person who will never become vegetarian or vegan.
Case in point: my mother and step-dad. They now eats meat just a couple of times per week. They used to eat it seven days a week! While she will likely never be completely veg, I'm thrilled at the fact that they have doing that for several years. They are now eating veggie burgers and things that they hadn't considered before. And while it has saved animals, it has paid off big time for them as well. They have both lost a lot of weight and are healthier than they have been in many years!
Jacqueline
Posted by: Jacqueline | 06/17/2010 at 10:13 AM
Fascinating article. There seems to be quite a trend with journalists taking on the same challenge this year.
Hard to believe the author lost 25 pounds in such a short amount of time. Makes you wonder just what he was eating before and why he would return to it!
Posted by: Jodi | 06/17/2010 at 01:11 PM
Great point, Jodi!
Posted by: Jacqueline | 06/17/2010 at 08:11 PM
Jacqueline, first let me say that I really do like your blog. I wouldn't comment if I wasn't interested in what you had to say. I wrote a reply to your post about vegetarianism and tried to post it, but the comments are closed. I thought this post would be a good place to put my reply instead. I hope that's OK.
"And if one went vegetarian and never in their life went vegan, it is
still FAR better than spending their life being an omnivore."
I think that's a pretty broad statement. Obviously, if someone took
meat out of their diet and replaced it with grains and vegetables,
then an argument could be made that it is better than not having done
that at all. But if a vegetarian replaces the meat with other animal
products like eggs and dairy, then I don't see how that's any better
(and, if you measure the amount of needless suffering and death that
is the direct result of those products, it's actually worse) than just
having the standard cruelty-filled diet.
"Given the choice, they would likely prefer a vegan bun, but we don't
live in a world where all those options are always readily available."
But they do have a choice. They can choose to not eat the bun. It's
simple. I've done it plenty of times.
As far as veganism being to hard, there are vegans in all corners of
the world on all incomes. It takes a little bit of planning when
traveling or going to a social function, but that little bit of
planning is nothing when compared to the immense amount of unnecessary
suffering and death the animals endure for our taste and convenience.
"Also, what if someone has their own chickens as pets, that roam
around the yard, being treated wonderfully. Is it morally wrong that
the person consume those eggs?"
Yes it is. Because the chickens are property and their eggs are not
ours. Owning chickens means they came from somewhere and where they
came from is almost always a hatchery and I know I don't need to
explain what goes on at those places. In regard to backyard chickens,
I strongly suggest watching Episode 10 of Vegan News --
http://news.vegan.fm/?p=50
Finally, I want to say again that I agree with you that vegetarianism and omnivorism are not the same thing. There are practical differences between the two. I think the reason many vegan advocates get up-in-arms about vegetarianism is that they see many animal advocates advocating vegetarianism, which is a morally inconsistent position that does little to nothing to challenge the property status of animals and does not take animal interests (and their right to be free from harm and exploitation) seriously.
Posted by: Al | 06/18/2010 at 09:59 AM
Al,
Thanks for your feedback.
I know it's easy to say just eat the patty and not the bun, but it's not practical. Most people wouldn't be interested in ordering a bunless veggie patty, to be honest.
When I speak of having a chicken as a pet, treating it as a member of the family, and eating the ovum it drops, I'm comparing it to something like my cat. I have a cat, treat her well, and if she laid an egg that was not going to be fertilized and merely tossed in the trash, I don't think it would be morally wrong to eat it. Disgusting, yes. Unhealthy, yes. Morally wrong, I don't think so.
I think that vegans get up in arms about vegetarians because they see vegetarians as being SO close and they want them to go fully vegan immediately. They find it frustrating, I know I sometimes do. But I'm still all for vegetarianism, as some people may never choose veganism. And as we have already determined, vegetarianism is FAR better than omnivorism.
Furthermore, I think vegans HIGHLY over-estimate the amount of eggs/dairy products that a vegetarian eats. For example, in my home I do vegan cooking. But when we eat out, my kids may end up having something that is not (yet it is still vegetarian). When you consider there are 21 meals in a week on average and they may eat non-vegan ones (yet they are still vegetarian) 2 times per week you can see where I'm coming from. Do the math - over 95 percent of the time they are eating vegan.
So to paint the picture that someone who eats vegan 95 percent of the time is somehow the same as an omnivore because of that 5 percent of the time is absolutely crazy! Crazy, I say! :)
I enjoy your blog as well, Al!
Jacqueline
Posted by: Jacqueline | 06/22/2010 at 08:59 PM