Vegetarian due to ethics

SteveJWatson

These threads just depress me. I'm vegetarian because I've basically been left unable to digest meat after becoming very ill (hospitalized) in Peru a few years ago. Getting rid of meat in my diet has made my GI issues virtually non-existent and I am so happy with how I now feel that I can't imagine going back.

I'm not a short order cook so my family has changed along with me. Originally they would both eat meat at lunch (cold cuts) and eat meat when we were out for dinner. My daughter (13) decided last fall that she wanted to become fully vegetarian. We both supported her in that decision and talked about nutrition etc. For her it was a love of animals that inspired her choice.

She never makes her friends feel bad, she tells them not to be silly when they worry because they mention how much they want a burger or whatever. She askes if she can bring her own food to parties (veggie burgers) or if a cheese pizza can be ordered, etc, and/or offers to eat the sides and skip the mains. She very much identifies it as a personal choice.

My husband has stopped eating meat at lunch. He says being mostly vegetarian seems to suit his system and that any digestive issues he had before seem to have disappeared. He still eats meat occasionally when we're out for dinner. Neither my daughter or I give him any grief for it.

But what really gets me is that we don't give our family or friends any grief for their eating habits and not a single one of them has given us grief for ours. Both have gone out of their way to make sure there's something we can eat at meals and/or they're okay with us bringing something. No one's ever complained about eating vegetarian at our place and usually we're actually asked for recipes so they can try them at home.

So it amazes me that everyone is so at odds because we haven't encountered any of the animosity evidenced in this thread in the year since we've gone veg.

Lastly, as far as eating vegetarian or vegan but not feeling like you can give up meat, then don't. I read about Kathy Freston and a friend who said he'd never be able to give up his favourite cheeseburger. She just shrugged and said, so don't give it up. Eat vegan or vegetarian most of the time and have your cheeseburger when you feel like it.

Which kind of applies to all "diets" really. If you can't give up your chips or your pop tarts or whatever, then fine, don't give them up. Eat "healthy" 90% of the time and indulge 10%. You're still doing your body better than you were.

Quoted for reasonableness.

I agree - and I have absolutley nothing against vegetarians or, indeed, vegans.

However, I DO have something against people spouting spurious nonsense about the industry in which I am employed.

Sqeekyjojo

Since when have chickens needed to be mated to produce unfertilised eggs? How do they lay when they've never seen a rooster in their lives?


[looks suspiciously at the farm cats]

SteveJWatson

Since when have chickens needed to be mated to produce unfertilised eggs? How do they lay when they've never seen a rooster in their lives?


[looks suspiciously at the farm cats]

Sneaky little madams are clearly escaping and running off down the chicken 'disco' to get themselves some....c o c k (erel)....:bigsmile: