Monday, April 26, 2010

Yes, I am Going There

alright comrades. i usually keep the vegetarian talk to a minimum, but ive seen TWO articles today already on this just wandering around and its only 1PM. the way i see it, this is my blog and i can say whatever i want. so, here is my issue: FLEXITARIANS! THEY DRIVE ME BATSHIT CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! in case youve never heard of these wiffle waffling psychopaths, "flexitarians" are assholes who are "vegetarian most of the time." ive also heard it described as "vegetarians who occasionally eat meat." or, as those of us who are actually vegetarian call it: "meat eaters."
as far as im concerned, there is no grey area with vegetarianism. you either eat meat, or you dont. (btw, i dont need everyone pointing out to me that there are vegetarians who dont use any animal products at all so there is some wiggle room. those are vegans. also no grey area there. youre either vegan or youre not). to call occasional meat eating by any other name is just aligning yourself with vegetarians for some inexplicable reason. its the same madness as "social smokers." theres no such thing as social smoking. you either smoke or you dont. the fact that you do it LESS than OTHER smokers is irrelevant. people just seem to have this need to fit in with a label, to have some purpose or motivation defining their behaviour, and i dont get it.
maybe its more about justifying behaviour. "im going to justify smoking by saying i dont do it all the time" or "im going to justify eating meat even though im fundamentally opposed to it because i dont do it all the time." i realise that in general in life, we have to make compromises, and they are often to the benefit of all involved. but i think that these sorts of moral compromises dont make any sense. especially because most moral compromises (particularly ones of this nature) really only affect the person making the compromise. which is why i think that this whole attitude is about how people want to appear to others rather than how they truly feel about themselves.
i would have more respect for these so-called flexitarians if they would just be straight about what it is theyre trying to accomplish. something more along the lines of "i try to limit my meat consumption for health and environmental reasons" or "i believe in moderation, which includes the consumption of meat" or, (lets be honest) "i feel the need to draw attention to my dietary choices because a) i want you to know that i have been keeping up with current events, b) i need to feel superior to others and c) we can further discuss me and my opinions for the rest of the night."

3 comments:

Callie said...

i also hate the ever-present, "do you eat chicken and fish?" well, those are still meat to me even if they don't seem "meaty" enough for you, you freak of psychosocial nature. and people who do eat chicken and fish that call themselves vegetarian. puh! if it has consciousness in life it's meat in death.
oh, and people who "taunt" you because the meat is just sooooo good. give me a break.

word-v: merpra

full_of_puppy_love said...

merpra makes me think of merpeople, who are the greatest people of all.
and yes dont even get me started on "do you eat chicken and fish"
i decided long ago that if biologists have classified it as part of the animal kingdom, its meat. so that even includes insects.

Shinxy said...

You know what I hate most?

"Can I have Shinxy over for dinner?"
"Sure"
"She's a vegetarian though"
"Okay, that'll make it tricky"

-when I'm there-

*am presented with fish*

"Oh, sorry, I'm a vegetarian"
"Oh but you eat fish..."
"No. Fish is an animal."