Vegetarian - Yes or No?

El_Duderino 09

JupiterKid wrote:

I started the thread and please tell me how I had a "pop" at vegans? I opined that I couldn't understand veganism but I did opine "live and let live."

I know. And when a vegan or vegetarian states their position they're usually branded as preachy. So it must be the same when an omnivore states their position too, right?

Shenshen

andekwarhola wrote: »

So liking the taste of meat is down to draconian social conditioning whereas liking the taste of kale smoothies and bean stew is simply manifest destiny?

Not sure where you're getting that from - I said what you eat shapes your sense of taste. Essentially, all our tastes are down to draconian social conditioning, otherwise why would people be squeamish about eating insects, or brain?
I can't stand kale smoothies, personally.

andekwarhola

Shenshen wrote: »

Not sure where you're getting that from - I said what you eat shapes your sense of taste. I can't stand kale smoothies, personally.

Looks like you're implying that meat is a conditioned taste as a value judgement. At least say it and don't hide behind breezy I don't know what you means. Humans are omnivores after all.

I'm saying that as an (occasional) meat eater that totally sees the ethical and health benefits of vegatarianism and may well go full at some stage.

Shenshen

andekwarhola wrote: »

Looks like you're implying that meat is a conditioned taste as a value judgement. At least say it and don't hide behind breezy I don't know what you means. Humans are omnivores after all.

I'm saying that as an (occasional) meat eater that totally sees the ethical and health benefits of vegatarianism and may well go full at some stage.

No, I'm saying all taste is acquired. I know plenty of people who can't stand cabbage - that doesn't mean that I assume people who do had been force-fed it until they liked it.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

I like meat, but I love animals. I don't eat beef at all - even the thoughts of eating it, blergh. I love love love love sausages and ham but a few years ago I got it into my head that I wanted a pet pig and it completely put me off eating it. If I'm very hungover (or still drunk) i might get a sausage from the deli but very rarely, maybe twice last year. Don't eat lamb. I like smoked salmon and prawns and have a love hate relationship with chicken. Sometimes I'll go completely off it, but then I'm back on it a few months later. Out of all the meat I found chicken hardest to give up.

andekwarhola

Shenshen wrote: »

No, I'm saying all taste is acquired. I know plenty of people who can't stand cabbage - that doesn't mean that I assume people who do had been force-fed it until they liked it.

Gotcha.

Graces7

Effects wrote: »

These days a lot of people realise the issues surrounding removing calfs from cows in order to take their milk. They choose not to partake in an animals suffering. The animal reacts in a similar way to taking a new born child away from a human mother.

Given that by the next time she came into season she would be chasing the older calf off?

Yes they grieve and bellow for three days. So do sheep when their lambs go off to market.


Same as when lambs die naturally,.

Then they recover. And all is well again.

I kept a goat for milk for 9 years. Never had her put in kid as the only billy available (small island) was her father..and thus they would kill the kid at birth. She never ran dry

sullivlo

I am not a vegetarian. I have no problem with somebody being a vegetarian and if they are coming to my house for dinner I'll either cook a veggie meal for everyone or do a separate veggie dish for them. I'll always accommodate anybodies dietary preferences.

However, it irritates me when people don't accommodate my dietary preferences/they don't return the favour. I'm not asking vegetarians to cook meat, far from it. But there are certain things that I really don't like eating (beetroot, mushrooms) and certain things that can really hurt my tummy if I eat (brown rice/pasta, spinach, lettuce). I get frustrated when I go to a vegetarians house and am served a mushroom risotto and I'm told to "pick out the mushrooms" - I'd never ask a vegetarian to "pick out the chicken" in a chicken curry...

seamus

JupiterKid wrote: »

Do you think some vegetarians are very preachy about meat eating?

No, I've never encountered a vegetarian who discussed vegetarianism unprompted.

The topic only ever comes up when a meat-eater starts asking questions about it. Sometimes innocent, usually some level of snide or condescending nonsense like, "If God didn't want us to eat animals, why did he make them out of meat, hur hur hur".

Meat eaters are about the most preachy of all.

No, I never really liked the taste of meat. Black pudding, super tasty, everything else, meh. Too salty, greasy, chewy and stringy.

sullivlo wrote: »

However, it irritates me when people don't accommodate my dietary preferences/they don't return the favour. I'm not asking vegetarians to cook meat, far from it. But there are certain things that I really don't like eating (beetroot, mushrooms) and certain things that can really hurt my tummy if I eat (brown rice/pasta, spinach, lettuce). I get frustrated when I go to a vegetarians house and am served a mushroom risotto and I'm told to "pick out the mushrooms"

Well that's just bad form. If I knew someone didn't like mushrooms, then I wouldn't make a mushroom dish. And if someone served me something I didn't like even though I had told them I didn't, then I probably wouldn't go back there.

team_actimel

I was a vegetarian for 10 years and the last couple of years I've gone back eating chicken and fish.
I used to avoid telling people I was veggie because a lot of preachy meateaters would be belittling my eating choices and it was a pain to listen to. I never preached to them about not eating meat.

Shenshen

sullivlo wrote: »

I am not a vegetarian. I have no problem with somebody being a vegetarian and if they are coming to my house for dinner I'll either cook a veggie meal for everyone or do a separate veggie dish for them. I'll always accommodate anybodies dietary preferences.

However, it irritates me when people don't accommodate my dietary preferences/they don't return the favour. I'm not asking vegetarians to cook meat, far from it. But there are certain things that I really don't like eating (beetroot, mushrooms) and certain things that can really hurt my tummy if I eat (brown rice/pasta, spinach, lettuce). I get frustrated when I go to a vegetarians house and am served a mushroom risotto and I'm told to "pick out the mushrooms" - I'd never ask a vegetarian to "pick out the chicken" in a chicken curry...

That's just being plain rude - if they know you don't like certain foods, why would they even invite you when they don't intend to feed you something you like/can eat?

OldGoat

I like vegetarian. I like meat. I'm Bifoodual.

Graces7

Need another option please..MOSTLY vegetarian.

With many of us it is a work in progress. As a lot of the posts show

I eat no red meat, and almost no chicken but occasionally fish IF I can afford it. I would never go for any of the so-called meat substitutes.

A deteriorating medical problem means no meat and I am happy with that.Having raised pet lambs, and am surrounded much of the year by gentle faced cows...

Milk and cheese yes, more milk than cheese.

I have five rescue cats and a dog.The cats especially are obligate carnivores and get raw chicken every day but never red meat.

I do find some of the posts here a little deep in anthropomorphism .

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

Graces7 wrote: »

Given that by the next time she came into season she would be chasing the older calf off?

Yes they grieve and bellow for three days. So do sheep when their lambs go off to market.


Same as when lambs die naturally,.

Then they recover. And all is well again.

I kept a goat for milk for 9 years. Never had her put in kid as the only billy available (small island) was her father..and thus they would kill the kid at birth. She never ran dry

We had a cow who was very unlucky with calves, and one year she gave birth to a calf a month or so early and the calf wasn't alive. The vet had to be called as she couldnt get the calf out and the dead calf was left laying on the ground of the holding pen while the vet fixed her up after birth.
Never in my life have I ever seen an animal so distressed. She stood over her dead calf licking him and nudging him to get up (the vet cut his head off to test for mad cow disease). My dad put the dead body in the transport box of the tractor to move it away from her, while we waited for the lorry to come to remove it. She roared for days, and it wasn't a normal moo like when they're bored or hungry. It sounded like she was being murdered. Every time she would walk through the holding pen for weeks after, she would smell the ground looking for him, and she would go over to check the back of the tractor too because she could smell him off that no doubt.

Cows can recognise their off spring after not seeing them for months, they're very intelligent animals and i don't think its right traumatising them by snatching their calf off them straight after birth. At about 4/5 months they're almost weaned off and to be honest at that stage neither of them are too bothered

everlast75

I've come across far more preachy vegetarians than preachy meat eaters. That is just my experience.

However, I don't mind whichever people wish to be.

What I do mind is when I am cornered about eating meat and I'm chastised for not giving it up. The last time it happened was in a late bar and this person and his mate got fairly f**king judgey. "Won't you think about those animals locked up, not having a proper life etc etc". "Why won't you look at the documentaries on animals which show some of their conditions?"

I replied saying that I only buy free range eggs and only eat meat from locally sourced farmers, who I strongly suspect have certain standards which need to be met.

They kept on and on at me.

So I asked him what phone did he have. He answered an iPhone. I asked would he not think about those people locked up working in those phone factories with limited/non existent rights, to the point where they have committed suicide?
I asked his mate where he got his jumper was made. He wouldn't answer so we looked at the label. Bangladesh. I asked him would he not think of the teenagers working in very poor conditions and not buy from that store again.

They left me alone on the issue of meat from then on.

Tilikum

I ate meat everyday for yrs & yrs.
I became a vegetarian a few months back for health reasons just to see if we do anything for my blood pressure. My bp has come down & I don't miss meat at all (very rarely anyway)

I have no problem cooking meat everyday for my auld fella (who has vascular dementia) Which he got as a result from a couple of strokes from high blood pressure.

Graces7

LexieOnRale wrote: »

We had a cow who was very unlucky with calves, and one year she gave birth to a calf a month or so early and the calf wasn't alive. The vet had to be called as she couldnt get the calf out and the dead calf was left laying on the ground of the holding pen while the vet fixed her up after birth.
Never in my life have I ever seen an animal so distressed. She stood over her dead calf licking him and nudging him to get up (the vet cut his head off to test for mad cow disease). My dad put the dead body in the transport box of the tractor to move it away from her, while we waited for the lorry to come to remove it. She roared for days, and it wasn't a normal moo like when they're bored or hungry. It sounded like she was being murdered. Every time she would walk through the holding pen for weeks after, she would smell the ground looking for him, and she would go over to check the back of the tractor too because she could smell him off that no doubt.

Cows can recognise their off spring after not seeing them for months, they're very intelligent animals and i don't think its right traumatising them by snatching their calf off them straight after birth. At about 4/5 months they're almost weaned off and to be honest at that stage neither of them are too bothered

It is a horrible noise right enough. Stops after three days..

seamus

Graces7 wrote: »

Need another option please..MOSTLY vegetarian.

With many of us it is a work in progress. As a lot of the posts show

That's the last option in the poll - not vegetarian but would like to become one.

theteal

I do enjoy the occasional falafel for lunch



It's usually followed by a 10 ounce rump for dinner though!

sullivlo

seamus wrote: »

Well that's just bad form. If I knew someone didn't like mushrooms, then I wouldn't make a mushroom dish. And if someone served me something I didn't like even though I had told them I didn't, then I probably wouldn't go back there.

Its relative. If it was a mistake - grand. If I'm ever cooking and someone says "I don't like XX" or "I'm a veggie" I'll always have the makings of a fritatta or something that's quick, easy and tasty. Its when I go out of my way to accommodate people and they don't return the favour.

And hypocritical vegetarians. I complained one day in work after I had visited relatives one weekend, and they had served up a fully vegetarian dish. Ordinarily it wouldn't bother me, but we had really gone out of our way to cook for them when they had visited us a few weeks previously. A colleague said that it was rude of me to expect them to cook meat, that she would never cook meat for anyone because she's a vegetarian. Grand. And then she said "Oh I'll cook steak for John, he doesn't like vegetables". She'll cook meat for her boyfriend but nobody else.

Or the in-your-face veggies that go out of their way to tell you about their eating habits, yet will eat cheese with rennet in it, jellies with gelatin in them, and goose fat roast potatoes.

I'll always be considerate/mindful/respectful of people when choosing what to cook/where to eat - I just find that sometimes others don't return the favour, and in my experience, these people tend to be vegetarians.

seamus

sullivlo wrote: »

Or the in-your-face veggies that go out of their way to tell you about their eating habits, yet will eat cheese with rennet in it, jellies with gelatin in them, and goose fat roast potatoes.

Do they actually exist though? I've never met an actual vegetarian who discusses their eating habits with anyone, let alone get in your face about it.

I've met a couple of narcissists who love to label themselves and talk about their eating habits, but who aren't actually vegetarian. Like my aunt who declared she was vegetarian, "except for steak, I love a good steak".

El_Duderino 09

Graces7 wrote:

It is a horrible noise right enough. Stops after three days..

Babies in Romanian orphanages stop crying once they realise nobody is coming to help them. I don't think anyone believes they're happy once they stop crying. Their needs still rust, they just have no way to express the need. It's far too convenient to just pretend that mother gets over it once they stop crying.

sullivlo

seamus wrote: »

Do they actually exist though? I've never met an actual vegetarian who discusses their eating habits with anyone, let alone get in your face about it.

I've met a couple of narcissists who love to label themselves and talk about their eating habits, but who aren't actually vegetarian. Like my aunt who declared she was vegetarian, "except for steak, I love a good steak".

My cousin is one of these people. Point blank refuses to use bisto gravy because "its meat" (despite saying suitable for vegetarians on the side of it), yet she'll eat any amount of jelly beans and marshmallows.

And she frequently comments on how animals had to die for my burger. As I'm eating it.

joefromireland

LexieOnRale wrote: »

Out of all the meat I found chicken hardest to give up.

Most people find meat more palatable when they add plant flavors to disguise the taste, try eating the chicken without flavoring it with plants and it will be easier to give up.
Unless you flavor the chicken with plant flavors ( curry , garlic, or other spices or herbs) it tastes very bland.

rainbow kirby

I understand and respect the ethics of eating a plant based diet, but I just really like meat...

beggars_bush

I'm going to start eating more vegetarian dinners

the need for meat and protein is over-emphasised

Shenshen

sullivlo wrote: »

My cousin is one of these people. Point blank refuses to use bisto gravy because "its meat" (despite saying suitable for vegetarians on the side of it), yet she'll eat any amount of jelly beans and marshmallows.

And she frequently comments on how animals had to die for my burger. As I'm eating it.

We've got one like that at work - she'll give out to anyone she spots eating bread in any shape or form, as gluten apparently is a killer.
Never says no to a piece of cake if someone brings it in, though

Evangelist, ill-informed idiots come in all forms, in my experience.

Badly Drunk Boy

Dravokivich wrote: »

I don't see the point in this bit at all:

"Not Vegetarian but would be interested in becoming one"

I eat vegetables anyway. I'm not losing out by eating meat too. Nor would I expect to gain much of anything, by not eating meat.

I voted for the 'No - I love meat' option but that isn't ideal either. I quite like meat, and won't give it up to become a vegetarian, but I don't need to eat meat at every meal (or even most meals).

jameorahiely

I'm a part time vegetarian , just like prince harrys girlfriend

Graces7

seamus wrote: »

That's the last option in the poll - not vegetarian but would like to become one.

Ah no that does not cover it.. I am almost totally vegetarian already