Veg*n-ism.

[Guest Vitamin X]

If you don't know the above term, it stands for both the ideas of veganism (no meat or animal byproducts of any kind, including dairy and gluten) and vegetarianism (other stuff's cool, just no meat). The reason I bring this up is because lately, and maybe this is a byproduct of now living in Portland or perhaps living on my own, but I really dig the idea, I just can't fully commit to it. I think the best thing to do, is really to cut down on meat consumption in general- not just for health reasons, but also for ecological and global wellness issues- and so as a result, I went shopping at a couple places lately and I picked up some Tofurkey stuff and a lot of the things I've tried that are vegan alternatives are surprisingly good, equal to or actually better than their meat byproducts. Now, I'll say I don't claim to be any kind of veg*n or anything of the sort- pizza and sushi are my two favorite foods, and while the latter certainly implies meat, the first can be made vegetarian in a variety of ways- I just feel that making up for the lack of meat in soy and other goodie veggies is better for me and the world around me.

 

I just had a chipotle tofurkey frank with jalapeño garlic hummus on top and it might possibly kick the living shit out of any hot dog with mustard and/or mayo on top. Earlier today I also had a tofu spinach stir fry with rice and a couple other veggies topped with peanut sauce and that was also good, which is what made me think of this. Vegan cuisine is not as bad as some people make it out to be, although admittedly it's a hell of a lot easier to do it in places like here in Portland or I'd imagine San Francisco, Seattle, or New York than some others. Let's discuss this, and maybe any other Veg*n recipe/dish/meal ideas you guys might have.

 

EDIT: Furthermore, I'd also like to point out the relative cheapness of these things- I kind of like soy milk a little better than regular milk, particularly the Silk vanilla brand.. It goes a hell of a lot better with cereal! And Tofu for the most part is only like a couple bucks- compared with your run of the mill beef or chicken brand which can be considerably more, particularly if it's organic/natural.. And it really tastes just as good, especially if you know what the hell you're doing in regards to spices and sauces.

[Guest Tzar Lysergic]

You know what? Kiss my white ass.

[Guest Tzar Lysergic]

Nah, honestly now, I have no problem eating vegetables and all, but fuck eating nothing but, plus all that soy juice shit. I've actually tried it, before anyone gets critical, and it tastes...wrong.

[Slayer 0]

It always seemed to me that vegetarians were the laid back "I don't eat meat for personal reasons but I don't care if you do" while vegans are the fiercely political "No one should eat meat at all!" assholes

 

I never gave any thought to the differences in what they actually eat/don't eat

[Nighthawk 0]

People who don't eat meat make me sick.

If someone is a vegetarian because they think it's wrong to hurt the animals, I do point out to them that they should really just be vegan, because, for example, the life of a dairy cow is worse than that of a meat cow. They usually agree with me, look sadly at their grilled cheese or whatever, and conclude that while that would be nice, they just can't make that kind of commitment.

Someone once told me I should stop eating meat, and I told them that I'd consider it but I'd have to take up hunting, because if I stop being responsible for the slaughter of animals, I'm just not me anymore.

[MrRant 0]

You are going to grow a pussy on your face.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

He could soon suffer from a brutal bout of vaginitis.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Meat is murder.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And murder is delicious!

[Guest Vitamin X]

I should probably re-iterate that I'm not really strict about it- I'm not going to be the asshole at Thanksgiving that refuses to eat turkey or whatever- it's more of a health thing than an ethical thing. Hell, if all those animals were slaughtered for consumption, the least we could do for them is savor their sweet succulent meat anyways.

 

I don't care for veganism, and I don't think there's any way I could go there. I don't care who eats meat or if they do. Big difference. I know people out here who've graffiti'ed billboards and public advertisements for beef, chicken, etc.. I just happen to actually like this stuff better, and it's way healthier, particularly if I continue to eat just fish, since I would still be getting complete proteins.

 

And it's a hell of a lot more pussied out to eat just anything in sight than to actually make a change in your natural eating habits for whatever reasons one has. It's a lot easier, I'll say that much. I grew up a carnivore and only really started incorporating vegetables in my diet a few years ago, so it's especially difficult for me.

 

Also, soy milk tastes way better than regular milk for certain things, but not for all.

 

EDIT: I must say, that of all the people replying with smartass responses, I'm surprised kkktookmybabyaway isn't one of them.

[Guest George's Box]

Didn't someone here once point out the fallacy of going vegetarian for "health reasons" while ingesting highly modified and unnaturally occurring soy products? I don't really do the soy thing.

[Gary Floyd 0]

Vegetarianism and Vegans are, out of all the things I never understood, the things that I understand the least. Every time I see a vegatarian, I ask myself "why?" It just seems so boring and lifeless. There just seems to be no point to it. In other words, someone offers me a steak or a rack of ribs, I will eat it. It would be stupid not to.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

Some people don't like seeing animals suffer unnecessarily. I can see where they're coming from, and I respect it. I know V-X said it was mainly for health reasons, but I'm sure some ethics are involved as well. Good for him.

 

Personally, I've thought about giving up meat, and I still do once in awhile. My indecision has nothing to do with whether or not I can do it but more to do with I don't know how I feel about it entirely, whether it would be wrong or not. I've never felt that it was, so I've never given up meat. I've come close though, and maybe with a little more research I might go all the way. Not yet though.

[BruiserKC 0]

I remember when PETA told us that drinking beer instead of milk was much healthier. So I decided to compromise and have a cold one with my steak.

[Nighthawk 0]

Yeah, but if you don't like seeing animals suffer, like I was saying, you have to be prepared to go all the way vegan. Besides, dying isn't the same as suffering. They don't torture the animals to death (unless they're kosher). It would actually make more sense to give up dairy and junk and still eat meat.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

A lot of the animals do suffer in death, slaughterhouses aren't the most humane places around. But I understand what you mean about going all the way Vegan. I don't know much about the suffering that occurs when making dairy and other products related to eating meat products but not meat itself.

[Nighthawk 0]

I'll tell an anecdote about two vegans I know. One of them was really hungry one day and there was nothing there but this pizza (which had real cheese on it). Finally she got so hungry that she said fuck it and had a piece. The other vegan saw her and said "Why are you eating that?" and she said "Because I was hungry." and he said "That's not why. It's because you don't care!" And he stormed off.

That's like me. I don't like the idea of animals suffering either, but I eat meat anyway, because it tastes good. Put me in the right culture, I'd be a cannibal.

[Giuseppe Zangara 0]

Vegetarianism and Vegans are, out of all the things I never understood, the things that I understand the least. Every time I see a vegatarian, I ask myself "why?" It just seems so boring and lifeless. There just seems to be no point to it. In other words, someone offers me a steak or a rack of ribs, I will eat it. It would be stupid not to.

A Definitive Statement, by Gary Floyd

[Guest George's Box]

of all the things I never understood, the things that I understand the least.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

That's like me. I don't like the idea of animals suffering either, but I eat meat anyway, because it tastes good. Put me in the right culture, I'd be a cannibal.

 

This is how I feel really. If I think about it, I find the idea of animals suffering to be horrible, but meat tastes good so it's almost like the fact that they're dying is alright, because they're serving a purpose. It's selfish I suppose, but I'm a selfish person. It's almost like it's justified. Anyway, what makes you think you could be a cannibal? It's funny how the idea of eating human flesh appears, at least in my view, what you're sort of trying to "shock" us with there, but the process of snuffing out a human life is not really broached at all.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

of all the things I never understood, the things that I understand the least.

 

I noticed this too, but fuck man, did you guys pick on the retarded kids in school?

[Guest George's Box]

That was mean of me. I just had to pile on. It was too good to pass up. Sorry, Gary.

 

They don't torture the animals to death (unless they're kosher).

On the contrary, isn't kosher slaughter supposed to be more painless for the animal, since they're just cleanly slicing the jugular, I believe?

[Jingus 0]

That's like me. I don't like the idea of animals suffering either, but I eat meat anyway, because it tastes good. Put me in the right culture, I'd be a cannibal.

Pretty much how I feel too. Except for the cannibal part.

 

To the hardcore vegans: yeah, you're right, I DON'T care. I think human wants, needs, and rights are more important than animals'. Or, at least, more in tune with my own interests and desires.

 

Meat is murder.

 

And murder is delicious!

No no no, it's "meat tastes like murder... and murder tastes pretty goddamn good!"

[Nighthawk 0]

If you bleed 'em out, they don't die right away. Regular slaughtering is supposed to be instant. I always thought that this was why kosher tastes so good, because it saturates the meat with delicious adrenaline, while the cow slowly bleeds out.

[Nighthawk 0]

Oh, and regarding cannibalism, I just meant that if it were socially accepted to eat human meat, I would, as long as it tasted good. I'm a nihilist, it's not meant to be shocking, I'm just pointing out that there is pretty much nothing I won't do if I can get away with it, and this lifestyle applies to meat eating as well, even though I don't agree with torturing animals. I don't like it on a personal level, but it doesn't really matter in the end. Torture them if you want.

[Gary Floyd 0]

of all the things I never understood, the things that I understand the least.

Christ, I'm embarrassed.

 

I got in a debate with some anarchist punk chick a few months ago about veganism. Not much else to mention, except that she was pretty hot.

[Your Paragon of Virtue 0]

I'm just pointing out that there is pretty much nothing I won't do if I can get away with it

 

I believe this makes you a sociopath, or at least is one of the main tendencies of one. I used to think that I felt this way too, but recently I've learned that I care a little about others, enough to make this a false hypothesis.

 

Just a little.

[Nighthawk 0]

Let me rephrase that... there's nothing that I can't do if I could get away with it, that doesn't necessarily mean I want to. I have a moral code, I just chose it for myself, I don't think there's any obligation for me to be a decent guy, but it's what I like doing.

I've been called a sociopath many times before, by many people, including trained professionals, but I think I've found my niche in being a nihilist. Do I care? Sort of. Does that undermine my belief system? Doesn't matter. Why not? Skeletor jumping the grand canyon. What? Exactly.

 

And that's nihilism.

[Jingus 0]

Also, cutting off people's johnsons and sqvuishing it, ya.

[Karnage 0]

I see a lot of people turning away from meat because of the way animals are raised in tight places and stuff like that and all that unnatural chemical shit they inject into them.

But rather than just avoiding meat, we should like eat more free range chicken and stuff that hasn't had stuff injected in them. There's nothing wrong with meat if they lived a nice life, and then have a nice after life in our stomachs.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

EDIT: I must say, that of all the people replying with smartass responses, I'm surprised kkktookmybabyaway isn't one of them.

 

Sorry to disappoint.

 

Why should I care what someone wants to eat? As long as it's not one of my cats, knock yourself out.