ABC story about "Holier Than Thou" vegans

ABC news has posted on there website this story about how some vegetarians feel they are treated by what they perceive to be preachy, sanctimonious, condescending vegans. As one who has perused pro-AR and vegan blogs and web sites for some time, it certainly isn't news to me that some ideology-driven vegans are some of the most self-righteous people one will ever encounter, so there isn't really that much here that is new and revealing. What is interesting, and refreshing, to me, however, is that ABC would even have the backbone to run this. It seems that most of the time, the mainstream media shies away from being critical of far-left, politically correct causes, of which ideology-driven veganism is generally one. Here are some interesting quotes from the article:

"Vegan people have a religious verve, always encouraging people to go further with their faith."

I've always thought militant veganism is very much like fundamentalist religion, as they have many characteristics in common. All kinds of possibilities for later blog posts here!


"People have to eat to live, and some argue virtually everything consumed by humans, including nonmeat eaters, can be tracked back to a dead animal. Vegetables, for example, must be farmed, according to the argument. Farms need land, and countless animals perish when that land is tilled and occupied. So is it really even possible to survive without causing harm to another living creature in some way?"


Bravo ABC for mentioning this! The answer is a resounding NO! It is not possible to survive without causing harm to some other creature, which is why AR-driven veganism is not only hypocritical, but also intellectually bankrupt.


There are also some interesting comments on the story left by people in the discussion, some are good and some border on the idiotic:


As a dairy-eating vegetarion (sic), I'd have to say that speaking to vegans on the subject is like discussing religion with a born-again Pentacostal(sic) (read the posts on this board for proof). They are the most sanctimonious, judgmental people I've ever met outside a church. They should understand that their attitude does not attract others to the lifestyle. Who would want to give up animal products if it turns you into a world-class jerk?"

Yes indeed.


"If you think morality is just a matter of taste or opinion, then you may as well say that putting thieves and murderers in jail or ostracizing liars from your circle of friends is acting self-righteous. Of course this is nonsense. Morality is not left "to each his own"."


This is a fine example of the kind of immature, black-and-white reasoning seen among many in the AR community. Yes, there are some moral issues, such as murder, that are pretty clear cut. There are also issues where the morality is not so clear cut, such as abortion and homosexuality. I would count dietary choices in this category. To not see that all issues do not have clear cut morality perplexes me, and to choose black-and-white, absolutist reasoning over rational situational ethics strikes me as immature and irrational.


"If she is lucky to be on a large dairy with open fields, then she will have grass to stand in all day. If not, she will find herself confined to a feed lot with as many as 60,000 other cows per acre."

60,000 cows per acre? 60,000? LOL! It's not physically possible to cram 60,00 cows on one acre without literally physically stacking them one on top of another. How utterly daft.


"Despite the first paragraph to this article, Vegetarianism is for everyone."

This person ignores the personal experiences of many who have actually tried vegetarianism and found that their health suffered because of it. Since people are different, it is rational to conclude that not all diets work equally well for all people. Yet more juvenile, absolutist reasoning.


It's baffling to me that some, not all, but some AR-driven vegans feel the need to use their dietary choices as some kind of a moral bludgeon against other people. Perhaps there is some kind of insecurity at work there. "The psychology of militant veganism" would make an interesting thesis subject for a graduate psychology student.