Any Vegetarians/Vegans here?

[James2014]

One caveat, though: I think a lot of the perceived "hostile attitudes" are a projection or an unintended implication. For example, if a vegetarian says, "I think it is more moral to avoid eating meat," then a meat-eater is likely to think, "That guy's so condescending-- he thinks he's better than me." That's certainly the case with some vegetarians, but much more rarely than people think.

For example, I believe that causing suffering or death in food animals is wrong, and that meat-eating is therefore immoral. BUT I also have many other faults and moral weaknesses of my own. Nothing about being vegetarian makes me think I'm better than others in a general sense.

l would agree that veganism is not the be and end all of ethics, nevertheless when we challenge the ethics of meat eating it will inevitably be construed as criticism of meat eaters personally. Meat eating to most people is not just something they do that may be right or wrong, it is part of their identity , and a criticism of it is a criticsm of them personally regardless of a vegan's intention to only focus on the ethics of the act itself.

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I do broadly agree though that the primary reasons for veganism should be moral and environmental/economic.

That's an interesting statement by itself.

I can believe that there might be health benefits to a vegetarian diet so that seems a good reason for people to be a vegan. Not everyone of course, for reasons already mentioned. Lots of things have postitve effects on health like less sun, less extreme sports, drinking red wine etc, but everyone gets a choice.

Or do you mean veganism in a more general sense, as a "movement". If so then I wholeheartedly agree. I still don't think those reasons are anything like adequate, but those are the reasons.

I think the vegan movement should continue to make people aware of the health effects of meat eating, as many people hold their health in higher regard than the enjoyment they get from meat eating. However the link between ethics and health choices are complex. To take it to an extreme one could imagine some potential health choices that are so detrimental to one's quality of life that they actually cause suffering. On the other hand, some health choices could be so detrimental to the populations health that health services could be overwhelmed. l would not put meat eating intrinsically into this latter group, so when it comes to the ethics of meat eating and health choices, it should be upto each person to judge for themselves if the potential damage to one's heath is worth it, as those who are subjectively experiencing have the most knowledge regarding which is worse.

When it comes down to the ethics of meat eating with regards to the suffering of animals and effects on the environment, that is a different story , as we have to compare between individuals' subjective experience and whether it can ever be right for the interests of one conscious individual to be completely disregarded in favour of another's