im vegetarian but have been trying to go vegan for a while now. the reason i am a vegetarian/want to be vegan is because my beliefs are such that i dont believe in cruelty and harm to any beings, and the factory farm industry hurts not only the animals, but us & our enviroment today. i think that most people, knowing about factory farming or not, have a double consciousness about eating meat because they know cruelty of a great sort is involved. most choose not to think about it, i.e. reaons we call certain meats but names not associated with the animal it came from
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p.s. the whole circle of life/why shouldnt i eat animals questions seems, to me, silly. here is a good reason not to eat animals: they suffer, regardless of how free-range they are raised & kosher killed.
gosh, writing all this is getting me riled up, and also mad at myself. it's such a touchy subject- i say i dont lecture people but ill bet i could lecture my head off from my little soapbox
i guess the way i think about it is that we are conscious of the pain we inflict on other beings, and in most instances it hurts us to maim/kill animals- i think many people are more uneasy with the fact that they eat meat then they let on, and it conflicts us. makes us sad, whether we notice consciously or not.
but i cant speak for anyone, obvs. i see what you mean, of course, but respectfully disagree.
Vegetarian for 15 years, vegan for 2 years but started back in with milk when I was pregnant (craved it SO MUCH) and now I eat cheese. :( I found a great soy milk but the cheese has not been replacable yet. I don't buy any leather or fur, and our bath products are safe. We don't eat eggs, we use egg replacer (makes cakes more moist than eggs!) and of course no fish for us either. ( Totally do NOT get the "Im vegetarian but I eat fish thing at ALL) I feel like a total failure sometimes for not being able to just complete the circle and cut out cheese. I am trying so hard to find a replacement but it has always been such a staple in my diet for the protien and calcium. I have guilt about it every time I buy it. I I don't HATE anyone for eating meat but I am always curious if they feel secretly guilty about killing a living being when there are so many alternatives!
"I I don't HATE anyone for eating meat but I am always curious if they feel secretly guilty about killing a living being when there are so many alternatives!"
you see, that is what confuses me, what is the distinction between living things? is a plant's life less valuable than a rabbit's? what about mold spores? do they have a soul? they react to their environment and draw away from death, so how do we know they don't feel pain in their own way? ever hear a plant scream from being cut?
word- i have been searching for a good vegan cheese for ages but have turned up nothing so far. the truth is that i enjoy it a lot but feel so guilty for not being able to give it up just because i like it. boo!
2. People who eat fish don't fall under my definition of vegetarian. Eggs, yes.
3. Because food is a very personal choice that touches on issues very dear to people. Cultural and gender identity is all wrapped up in food choices, not just ethics & spirituality. What a stew!
4. There are all kinds of ways to be compassionate. Abstaining from meat doesn't mean you won't be an awful person to someone else. I think of vegetarianism as one of many ways to practice compassion.
5. n/a
6. Yes, I do purchase leather. Generally I try to check for vivisection, but I have a very limited range of bath & body products- I'm very utilitairan about them- it's all either Tom's of Maine or Dr. Bronner's.
7. I am not vegan although I have flirted with it.
8. n/a
9. 1. compassion/nonviolence/spiritual practice 2. environmental ethics
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gosh, writing all this is getting me riled up, and also mad at myself. it's such a touchy subject- i say i dont lecture people but ill bet i could lecture my head off from my little soapbox
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but i cant speak for anyone, obvs. i see what you mean, of course, but respectfully disagree.
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question, would it make a difference if i told you i prayed over all meat, thinking of the life force?
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I feel like a total failure sometimes for not being able to just complete the circle and cut out cheese. I am trying so hard to find a replacement but it has always been such a staple in my diet for the protien and calcium. I have guilt about it every time I buy it.
I I don't HATE anyone for eating meat but I am always curious if they feel secretly guilty about killing a living being when there are so many alternatives!
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you see, that is what confuses me, what is the distinction between living things?
is a plant's life less valuable than a rabbit's?
what about mold spores? do they have a soul? they react to their environment and draw away from death, so how do we know they don't feel pain in their own way?
ever hear a plant scream from being cut?
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2. People who eat fish don't fall under my definition of vegetarian. Eggs, yes.
3. Because food is a very personal choice that touches on issues very dear to people. Cultural and gender identity is all wrapped up in food choices, not just ethics & spirituality. What a stew!
4. There are all kinds of ways to be compassionate. Abstaining from meat doesn't mean you won't be an awful person to someone else. I think of vegetarianism as one of many ways to practice compassion.
5. n/a
6. Yes, I do purchase leather. Generally I try to check for vivisection, but I have a very limited range of bath & body products- I'm very utilitairan about them- it's all either Tom's of Maine or Dr. Bronner's.
7. I am not vegan although I have flirted with it.
8. n/a
9. 1. compassion/nonviolence/spiritual practice 2. environmental ethics
10. n/a
11. No, I don't donate to PETA.
12. n/a
13. What is that exactly?
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