In response to “Vegans need to chill.”

I’ve seen it before, definitely.  I’ve encountered vegans getting on people’s cases because they think they’re better than everyone else since they don’t eat meat or drink milk.  I’m pretty sure a lot of people have seen it actually.  Heck, I once said something like that, but my mom bashed some manners into me.

These people are very annoying, absolutely, and they should totally chill.  But that is no reason to tell all vegans or vegetarians that they need to eat meat.

Only 3.2% of American adults are vegetarian, you say?  Well, sure.  Seems like a reasonable number to me.  But why does that matter?  And have you considered the fact that America is not the only country in the world?  Shocking.

Our meat industry is indeed, how shall I put it, not the best.  But many seem to misunderstand and generalize why people are vegan or vegetarian.  Many people will refuse to eat beef no matter where it’s from, because their religion does not allow them to eat it.  I will also refuse to eat meat no matter where it’s from, not because I’m Hindu, but because I personally view it as immoral.  There are plenty of people who are vegan to protest the meat industry, but that is not the only reason in the world that people do so, and to imply that it is shows a lack of both research and understanding.

Humans are evolutionarily omnivores.  I realize that.  I also realize that lots of people hate tofu with a passion, so they don’t want to be vegetarians.  That’s fine.  I like tofu, but I’m not going to force you to eat it, or write an entire article on why you should be eating it.  It’s got a weird texture, after all, and weird textured foods can sometimes just be really unpleasant.

True, some vegans are not getting all the nutrition they need, but some meat eaters aren’t getting all the nutrition they need either.  For some people this is not a choice.  Many people in America, since we seem to be focussing here, are surviving on food stamps, and it’s unlikely they will always get all the nutrition they need.  Many people have eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, and even if they eat meat they may well die because their brains are misfiring.  These eating disorders are much, much more important than, say, someone who doesn’t eat meat, and instead gets their protein from nuts.

Eating disorders affect approximately 9.4% of Americans, according to the National Eating Disorders Association, a much larger percentage than the 3.2% of American adults that are apparently vegetarian.  More importantly, eating disorders can actually be life threatening, whereas vegans can just be annoying.

What I’m trying to say here is, leave us alone. Be mad at the vegans who think they’re better than others and don’t feed their carnivorous pets meat, but leave the rest of us alone.  Worry about eating disorders, instead, because they are actual illnesses that need to be addressed.

Learn more about eating disorders here.