I have a friend who recently started dating a woman (we'll call her Jenny). Jenny seems like a very nice girl, and my friend seems very happy with her, so of course, I'm happy for him.

Anyway, Jenny is a self-proclaimed vegetarian. I have no problem with this, personally...I have a few friends who are vegetarian/vegan. On the 4th, we were, of course, barbecuing. We made some vegetarian-friendly dishes for Jenny, and had steaks for the rest of us. At the BBQ, Jenny started unloading on us, basically saying things like, "eating meat is cruel to animals," and "That's a living creature you're eating"...you know, things of that nature. Her tirade went on probably for a good 20 minutes or so. You guys can probably imagine that it kind of put a damper on things for a little bit.

My personal opinion is that being vegetarian/vegan is fine -- I'm a meat-eater, so it's not something I would choose to do voluntarily, but if someone else wants to do it, whether it's for health reasons, because they want to make a political statement, or whatever, it doesn't bother me, so long as they don't rudely and belligerantly force their opinions on me.

What I find silly about people like Jenny is that in my experience, they generally turn out not to be fully educated about what they're preaching about. Jenny, for example, doesn't eat meat because "it's cruel to animals," but will gladly use leather products, makeup, and other products that involve the use of animals. For example, Jenny wears contact lenses. The protein-removing solution she uses to clean her contact lenses contains "porcine pancreatin enzymes," which is a product isolated from pigs. But if I bring that up, her response is, "that's different. I need that." Err...but I don't need the various minerals (i.e., iron), amino acids (i.e., taurine), and fatty acids (i.e., arachidonic acid) that are present in meat but not so much in plant sources?

Like I mentioned, I don't have a problem with people who choose to be vegetarian/vegan at all. My only issue is with people like Jenny who think that it somehow makes them better than us meat-eaters. Has anyone else had experiences like this? Are any of you vegetarian/vegan, and what do you think?

I agree with you Nienna. I have nothing wrong with vegetarians but they shouldn't push their ideas on us.

First off, I thinks animals that are raised to be meat, should be meat. I just think it's cruel when a pet gets turned into meat.

For a while I was on the verge of being a vegetarian but my doctor told me that I would die from not eating meat because I'm rather picky and don't like the foods that act as a replacement for meat. So I now only eat chicken and pork and when we do hamburgers or hotdogs, I eat beef that way but that's it.

i dont have a problem with that, as long they dont say stuff to me like that.. i would prob respon with the "Shut up, and eat! and lemme enjoy my MEAT" kinda thing, lol.. see i couldnt live without my Turkey! i love that soo much! LOL.. i also wanted to be a Vegetarian when i was younger, because my friend told me that she gets to make her own meals.. and thats why i wanted to be that! LOL.. but my mind has changed my moms cousin rasies Chickens for meat and kills them herself, and she is Soon gonna be getting Angus beef cows, for that purpose also.. my dad wants to do that also, but i told him that i wouldnt eat it.. because if i like see the animal in person i wont eat it.. esp, if my dad and brother went hunting.. i've been tricked into eating bears and deers sooo many time. but yeah i dont even eat 2nd on meats.. i just have one serving of it, and thats it. lol..

Well i can tell you guys here i am 1/3 veggie.. I like to call myself that. I only eat Chicken and fish. As much as i would love to give those up as well i was raised on fish all my life and i love it so much. My father owned a fish buisness. So thats tough for me. I havent eatten red meat in 20 years. I never liked the taste of it. So for me its a matter of not liking it more then it is for the animal cruelty. While id love to go full veggie cause of the animals its not just about the "meat" its about the leather and everything else that animals can give us. So like you said Neinna, Jennys saying her contacts are "different" is a load of pants. If you are going to argue that point then you have to go full force.. Not make exceptions.
I dont mind being around people who eat meat and i would never try to push my veiws on anyone. Anyone who does that is just wrong. Everyon is entitaled to their beleifs. Whats good for one is not good for another. Jenny is totally wrong and it wasnt right what she did.
The health benefits are also a factor. I know some people who are full blown vegans and they are just very sickly looking.... too thin and pale and they arent getting enough nutrients. They also dont suppliment with things they are supposed to. While i think you can totally live a healthy vegetarian lifestyle i think a vegan lifestyle is very hard. I know i couldnt do it. I could never give up my yogert and skim milk. YUMMY.....
i always say to each his own. im all for differences in opinion but when you start throwing your veiws on me and start a fight about it.. well thats just a control freek that needs to be right and get attention. Maybe that was what Jenny was looking for at the BBQ... :rolleyes:

I have no problem with eating meat, or raising animals for meat. I dont care if you eat meat or dont--why should i!

Its annoying if anyone pushes theyre views on anything at people.

So basically i agree with what has been said.

Ok I'm a vegetarian here, don't know how I missed this topic before but...

I'm vegetarian for moral reasons. I don't use products that have been tested on animals, avoid animal products and generally try to live my life in a way that agrees with my spiritual/religious principles, which includes living by the idea that I do as little harm as possible.

I have NEVER forced my opinion on others or made a big deal out of it, just quietly choosing to go without if there hasn't been a vegetarian option available. However it's sad but true that in 25 years of living that way and quietly minding my own business about it I have been repeatedly verbally attacked, ridiculed and generally harassed about my eating by meat eaters, suffering everything from bad jokes about screaming carrots to serious hostility. I don't believe people should force their views on others, religious, moral or political but people who live in a majority world can get very het up about anyone who's living differently, for whatever reasons. Prejudice is a big issue in this world.

Personally I think the girl at the barbeque showed a serious lack of manners, but I'd like to make the point that vegetarians get a lot more grief about their choice in a general way than the other way round.

I know that there are certain medical conditions where animal testing has made the difference between life and death to many, and while I avoid products which have caused suffering and death to animals which are - lets face it - no different to the pets we know and love in our homes, I don't have a totally black and white issue with it. My brother, whom I love, is type 1 diabetic as well as being strict vegetarian, and he knows, as I do, without animal research he'd be dead now. To me the thing is to do least harm, and that includes a tolerance of others beliefs and lives that goes beyond 'do what you like but hide it'.

So that's my rant for the day.

Do you have any idea how many years i have put up with people trying to get me to eat red meat?
so i know where your comming from when you say you get harrased. Its like why does my food choices bother you? yes i eat tofu and hummus and stuffed grape leaves that look like turds and i like them. and im gonna like them so stop harrassing me...
The veggies get it as well. Its so silly. Its just people trying to push their veiws on others.. again.. alot of people have control issues and just need to learn to stop caring about what other choices are. If they dont affect you then why care?

i just remembered watching the Surreal Life, on VH1 and this one chick is a Vegetarian, and (i dont remember her last name but its Tracie) and then Rob AkA Vinilla Ice.. and some other dude, were griling some meat, and Tracie comes out and just starts to point out her veiw.. well she then turned it around to "What if i ate your Daughter?! your eating the cows babies.. what if i ate your daughter" and i was just in Shock that she would say that! and then Rob just went out on her, saying like "THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS.. DONT EVER SAY YOUR GONNA KILL AND EAT MY DAUGHTER!" they just went all out!

Sorry i just had to plug this since its pretty much about this thread. LOL

LOL! Sorry -- that made me giggle a bit.

Kate - I totally agree, it goes both ways. I have a few vegetarian friends and I've seen people get on their cases as well.

It just seems really silly to me that people would get on each other's cases about something so stupid. If Bob likes steak and thinks that vegetarianism is stupid, then fine, so long as he keeps it to himself and isn't a moron in public about it. Same with vegetarians/vegans who think eating meat is bad. Getting on someone's case (rather rudely at that) isn't going to change how they eat.

Exactly :D

It really gets on my wick when meat eaters try to make me eat meat... my granddad for one... Since I was 12, I've said I was veggie (basically I'm so picky that I'd never eat any meat except sausages anyway) to stop my aunts and gran feeding me kidney/liver/whatever other vile thing they could make into a stew... since then, all I've had is hassle about what I eat.
What difference does it make?! I don't get on his case coz he doesn't eat dogs... his reasoning is that other people eat meat, so why shouldn't I... other people eat dog, so why doesn't he?!
It's so aggrivating when you're happily tucking into your veggie spag bol or whatever else at Christmas dinner and all they can talk about is how you should be eating turkey like everyone else... despite the fact that I've made my dinner myself!
It also annoys me when people go on about how we should skin and eat rabbit... it's the same thing... harrassment because of beliefs that are different from other people. Fair enough, they can eat rabbit, but I don't shove it down their throats about animal rights, rabbits and their personalities, etc. so why must they do it to me?!
It is rude to start lecturing people at parties... but it goes both ways...

I don't agree with either side pushing their views. I sure don't. I had to put up with a year of riticuling from my family because I wont eat much red meat (I only hamburgers and beef hot dogs because I don't like the taste of chicken an turkey ones). Luckiy, they've come to understand I don't eat it. Unfortunately in December my mom wouldn't drop the subject of me not eating red meat because it was thought I had anemia. I got to the point I refused to talk to her until she stopped pushing it and when the test results came back with a totally different hereditary problem, I had to rub it in my moms face and tell her that she's not always right.

Anyways, that got off topic but I would never push someone to eat meat that doesn't want to and I would never push someone to be a vegetarian either. There are certain people who can't be vegetarians, like my dad for example. He's allergic to so many things that he would die if he could not eat meat to get those certain nutrients.

The only person I ever bug is my brother because my mom will make this nice meal with meat and veggies and my brother eats only meat! So there's never any chiken left for me the next day and that's the only meat I eat on a regular basis.

I eat meat but I do feel bad for the animals :(

I agree with everything that has been said. No one needs to push their views on the other- vegetarian or not. It's a personal choice that should and needs to be respected.

I eat meat, and I love it. But I would never harass someone who doesn't, or in anyway make them feel uncomfortable on purpose. I respect them for making their own choice, just as I have made mine. In turn I do not expect to be harassed for eating me either.

I have no problems with animals being bred and used for meat. That is their purpose. If they weren't being used for meat there probably wouldn't be many left on this Earth. It's just what they are for. I admit I do not check products before buying to see if they were tested on animals. I probably should, but that's what I get for being lazy I guess.

I work with a individual who actually signs my paychecks lol! and he is or claims to be 100% vegetarian but eats fish, drinks milk. That's fine with me, but its when he nags me about my diet of eating meat, the ramifications, and so on I get upset. Having lived this long on my diet I don't see a problem with it and told him to lay off and leave me alone. There are certain meats I cannot eat only because of the smell or they make me feel sick, but that's of my choice. But I respect each and everyones views also. I have tried veggie burgers, and they taste okay, also soy milk (if its flavoured) I can drink it. And love veggies and fruit.

The only kind of meat I eat are fish and seafood...I just can't give it up. :(

My family is constantly telling me I should eat red meat, chicken, and all that other stuff. It drives me crazy because they always tell me how silly I'm being. I just brush it off because I'm used to it now. :(

I'm not vegan/vegatarian but I respect those who choose to live that life. I have friends that are and it's not a problem. They dont harass me to stop eating meat and I dont harass them to eat it. We have more impotant things to talk about.

Everyone should be free to eat as they choose and accept that others may not see things their way.

Well said! :D

Btw, I seriously doubt we can produce enough crop to feed a world of vegetarians. But the conrol and distribution of food is whole new issue <_<

Back to 'Jenny' though, her raining on your 4th of July BBQ was just plain bad taste, behavior and judgement.

Hate to tell you but the crop space needed to feed cattle for meat is eight times the equivalent needed for veggie human consumption :P :pinkbun:

But then that could probably just as well be said about tea or coffee growing :unsure: .

The thing is to respect differences and that woman at the barbeque wasn't. Isn't it good how we manage it on the forum!

Here's what I've witnessed as both a veg and non-veg:

Vegetarians and vegans tend to be self-righteous. Remember, I say this as a former vegan. They tend to believe that they have made an educated decision and can't understand why other people don't see it their way.

Non-vegetarians tend to be defensive. Just mentioning vegetarianism is often interpreted as an attack on their eating habits.

Both sides are often uninformed and can spout off a lot of incorrect opinions.


That said, I totally respect vegetarians, and understand their viewpoint, but choose to eat meat. To each his own B)

you have no idea how many people (especially at work) laugh at me when im eatting my stuffed grape leaves.... and i stuff them in my mouth and go "mmmmmmmmmm....turds....mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm" :lol:

i tend to agree with this too since carrots dont graze... :lol:

I have a healthy respect for vegetarians/vegans. If they believe SO strongly in something to give up something as yummy as meat -- well, let's just say I couldn't do it myself. lol.

But yeah, getting on each other's cases about it is just pointless and only leads to hard feelings. There are good points to each side - vegetarian, or carnivore. If Jenny wants to stick to veggies, more power to her! So long as she doesn't get in the way of me and my meat. :)

:lol: I'd love to see your colleagues watch you enjoy ...'turds'!!!

You may well have a point there, although where I live we have practically no soil and few crops do well - hence there is a lot of cattle farming. In any case, everyone has the right to make life style choices and veggie or no veggie is just that - a choice. I don't think there is a 'right' and 'wrong' - it shouldn't even be an argument.

:lol: :lol: mmmm. yummy..... :lol: :lol:

That's the way it is here.. I think there are twice as many cows as people here! :lol:

you could tell jenny if she gets in your way you'll just eat her LOL

i tried the meatless things for about 6 years.. and i'm not a big red meat fan anyways.. but it just wasn't right for me or my body, so now i'm back to my limited meat eating.. which i can sometimes go days w/o meat but not forever.. on the days i need to eat it if i don't i never feel quite full and continue to stuff other food in my mouth all day..

i grew up on a fam in a fishing comunity, i don't think i could give up seafood even though now being further inland i don't get it as often...

i think some peoples bodies were more cut out for veggies and others for meat, and thats just the way it is.
my biggest thing...
stay away from my CHEESE! you take my cheese i kill you LOL

i went vegetarian a few months ago, but i got told straight away that i coulnt go on about the "details" of meat eating. fair enough, ill try to convince people to go vegetarian because i can no longer believe that i ate all sorts of meat (even rabbit) before. but not at a bbq, thats just a waste then. No one will accept ure opinion if u do it in those sort of places.