Vegetarians/Vegans

zaq

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 8:46 pm

Apropos of another thread about carnivorous men and a not-uncommon belief that meat eaters are fiercer than non-meat-eaters:

Do you believe that vegetarians are on average , compared to non-vegetarians,
-kinder, gentler, more patient and soft-spoken,
-more likely to have liberal leanings,
-more health conscious?

Do you think there is a difference in this area between vegans and those who eat eggs, dairy and/or fish?

Why or why not?

Mrs Bissli

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 8:52 pm

More health conscious? Yes I tend to agree.

But kinder, gentler, liberal? Enough to say that Hitler (ימח שמו) was allegedly a vegetarian.

amother

Fuchsia

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 8:52 pm

zaq wrote:

DH is vegetarian and would be vegan if he felt he could handle it.

He has a huge heart but is not patient.
He has liberal leanings.
He is not health conscious.

amother

Honeydew

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 9:32 pm

I was vegetarian for many years. I wasn't any more/ less kind or more/ less liberal. I was less healthy, but I don't necessarily attribute that to vegetarianism so much as just where I was in my life.
Thinking of all the vegetarians/ vegans I know and have known it's hard to pin down a stereotype. Most were ultra liberal, but then again when you're living on a college campus everyone seems to be. They have been mostly kind but so are most people I associate with. The idea of vegetarians and vegans being particularly healthy though I would say is a huge misconception. Many ate plenty of processed garbage. Many smoked and/ or were on drugs. Many looked ridiculously thin and pale. Others were the picture of good health with a great understanding of nutrition but it wasn't a large percentage.

Maya

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 9:36 pm

I think yes to the health conscious and liberal leanings, and not necessarily a better or kinder personality.

I cannot understand veganism. It is my opinion that vegans must have some kind of masochistic personality, deriving pleasure from extreme deprivation. I don't get it at all, unlike vegetarianism which makes more sense to me.

amother

Honeydew

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 9:40 pm

Maya wrote:

If the reason for the lifestyle is humanitarian rather than health, veganism actually makes more sense than only being vegetarian.

Maya

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 9:48 pm

amother wrote:

If the reason for the lifestyle is humanitarian rather than health, veganism actually makes more sense than only being vegetarian.

How so?

amother

Bronze

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 9:56 pm

Maya wrote:

I can't understand giving up cheese.

That said, DH and I are both vegetarians who eat dairy (hence, the cheese), and fish.

imasinger

Wed, Jul 29 2015, 10:04 pm

Vegetarians more pacific?

I believe that like I believe that those who don't keep kosher (Jewish or not) are somehow less kind, spirirual, or anything else. (As if it isn't clear what "chok" means.)

Which is to say, not at all.

Just look at PETA.

amother

Mustard

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 12:19 am

I was a vegetarian since I was 5 and have been vegan for the last 2 years. How did a 5 year old become a vegetarian? I'm just extremely sensitive. It wasn't so much the thought of hurting an animal, but rather how could I possibly consume an animal? In subsequent years I just got more and more grossed out from animal products, hence the relatively recent jump to veganism. Am I kinder and gentler than non vegans? No. I'm just more sensitive to what I eat. Am I more health conscious? Sometimes, if I have time and energy. If I don't prepare the proper foods for myself I end up eating lots of junk. When I am prepared, I enjoy yummy tofu with broccoli, rice and bean burritos, yummy salads with beans etc, and other protein packed healthy foods. Am I more liberal? Not at all.

einstern

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 12:24 am

More health conscious definitely imho. Also I would say that many vegans are more sensitive. In both good and bad ways.
This is not meant as a generalization, this is a thread asking for a personal opinion and I am giving just that.
No need to get all sensitive, vegans Wink

Makes me think of a joke actually...

How do you know if somebody is vegan? - Don't worry, they'll tell you!

Teomima

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 12:36 am

Us vegetarians are just that, vegetarians. Our diet has nothing to do with our personalities. After all, as Bissli said, Hitler was a vegetarian.

Just one thing re what Bronze said (sorry, this is a little pet peeve of mine), vegetarians do not eat fish. If you consider yourself a vegetarian who eats fish, technically you are a pescatarian, NOT a vegetarian.

Iymnok

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 5:24 am

We had non frum guests who said that they were vegetarian. But when they came they ate the chicken. They said they don't eat red meat. (As if I could afford it for that crowd...)

ora_43

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 5:31 am

Maya wrote:

How so?

The same mistreatment of animals in the meat industry is present in the dairy and egg industries.

Birds are killed in the egg industry (male chicks are killed soon after they hatch).

And both create the same environmental problems as the meat industry. And the same risk of creating antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

So if someone's goal is to not be part of any of those problems, then veganism is a logical goal.

(Just FTR I'm not vegetarian or vegan, although I rarely eat meat. I'm not convinced that my potential individual impact on the situation would be worth it.)

ora_43

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 5:37 am

re: the original post

I think that liberals are more likely to be vegetarian/vegan, and so are health conscious people. So on average, vegetarians are more likely to be liberal and to be health conscious.

(The "liberal" thing is kind of a trick question IMO because animal rights is generally viewed as a liberal issue. Not that it's not possible to be republican and vegan, but a republican vegan will probably be seen as slightly less right-wing than a non-vegan with the same political views.)

Kinder, gentler, more patient - no. Soft-spoken? Rolling Laughter

Sadie

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 7:10 am

I am pescatarian and would be fully vegetarian or vegan if I had the self control for it, or the cultural support (as it is, fish is the only thing my MIL ever makes that I can currently eat so cutting it out would be hard on family relationships)
I'm liberal/left and that is connected to my reasoning for not eating meat.
I am not soft spoken or very health conscious.

chani8

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 7:35 am

The few vegans I know are indeed gentle, patient, soft-spoken, kind, and liberal, but not at all health conscious. I had to laugh (not mocking!) at one guest who was vegan but doesn't like vegetables. I guess she lives off chocolate.

One would have to be a heathen to eat fish. To kill a fish, we have to pop them hard on the head or just chop their heads right off. Nothing gentle about that. I eat fish.

How humane is it to not drink milk when those poor cows and goats make too much, so they desperately need to be milked. We should just poor it all on the ground. Imagine if we did that to mother's milk. Animal milk is precious.

Sadie

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 7:51 am

chani8 wrote:

How humane is it to not drink milk when those poor cows and goats make too much, so they desperately need to be milked. We should just poor it all on the ground. Imagine if we did that to mother's milk. Animal milk is precious.

Chani, I worked on an organic goat farm, and while the animals were very well treated, sadly the baby goats were never allowed to nurse from their mothers. We bottle fed them pumped goats milk for a few days and then they were transferred to a pen with other babies and fed formula. Their mother's milk went to us.

amother

Fuchsia

Thu, Jul 30 2015, 8:12 am

einstern wrote:

Makes me think of a joke actually...

How do you know if somebody is vegan? - Don't worry, they'll tell you!

The bolded. All the way. They are more sensitive in both good and bad ways.