As I write this, I wonder if this will ever get onto the front page of Google’s search results? Not sure, I’ve never seen an organic result that contains cuss words in it. But for those 2 or 3 of you that might find this little gem amongst the real sewer shit out there, I wanted to talk about the bullshit with veganish and other such crappy fairy tales.
For those of you who aren’t in the know, as I wasn’t a little while ago, veganish is the new term delish, or is that du jour that I think it was Kathy Freston and Oprah came up with. Now maybe I’m being unkind (sorry mama), and maybe I’m misinformed and neither Freston nor Oprah came up with the namby pamby veganish term. Nevertheless, I’m gonna rant and rave about this for the remainder of the post so bear with me. You can check out a small portion of the veganish segment on Oprah by clicking here.
So I guess she did mention that atrocity “veganish”. Now the problem is that there is no fucking thing like veganish. Jeebus Christ, can you get pregnantish or murderedish. God know. This whole thing is just to pander to the sheeple and y’all know the problems I have with the sheeple. But seriously, everyone is damn well veganish then if that’s the case. Bugs the tar out of me when people start talking about crap like that. Meanwhile, billions of animals are being mercilessly murdered every year for the sake of your taste buds. That’s pure evil.
This is the problem with terms and labels. They can get manipulated, but at the end of the day, that’s all we’ve got in order to fight the shitstym. So let’s not allow ourselves to laugh along happily (Kathy I’m talking to you) when folks start coming up with inanities like veganish. You’re either vegan or you’re not. And I’ll allow for some debate on honey, though I don’t use it myself. But to sully the waters of veganism by letting folks cloud the real ethic of it with words that mean absolutely nothing at all, quite frankly annoys moi.
And please, let us not allow ourselves to congratulate the devil’s minions for their efforts in trying to improve “humane” slaughter like some people do towards Temple Grandin. This is the devil’s work made to try and comfort us and assuage our guilt. Fuck no, that’s not cool, people with blood on their hands should not be congratulated and adored because that blood came at less suffering or less pain. Have we really become such cafe philosophers that this is the best we can debate. Let us either be for murder or against it. But let us not fog the issue with “painless” or “humane” murder. That just wastes time and resources.
And let me not get started on Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. You are either okay with killing sentient creatures for no other reason than your self centred selfish taste for their flesh or you aren’t. There’s no dilemma about it Michael. All this smoke and mirrors has got to stop. These philosophical meanderings and navel gazing doesn’t work and it’s not helpful. All dietary guidelines now suggest that a vegan/vegetarian diet is at the very least as healthy as an  omnivorous diet. So if that is the case then the only reason to eat animals is because you like the taste. It is nothing more than physical debauchery, and to be partnered with the horrendous death of tortured animals is to be partnered with evil. Plain and simple.
Vehemently vegan,
Jason
“Sheeple?”
That’s speciesist.
(OK, maybe just specieistish.)
Yeah, I think it’s some kind of fetishish 😉
Haha, thank you Jason, well put. Have you seen the essay by CarpeVegan?http://www.carpevegan.com/?page_id=352
Makes the blood boil
Just read it. The thing is, folks just don’t know that veganism is more than just diet and therefore not something that you can be in and out of at your leisure. Yeah, there’ll be a ton of ex-vegans and more so as veganism becomes more popular.
Though it’s not a popularity contest. I’d rather not entertain veganish-ism. You’re either vegan or you’re not. Now, I’m not fascist about it, and I don’t think you need to be. But you do need to draw a line somewhere. And veganism has done that quite well.
Let the sheeple be (mis)led we don’t want them soiling the legitimate reasons for going and staying vegan now do we?
So, if your goal is to get people stop killing/eating animals does it really matter their motivation?
When I became a vegetarian 30 years ago there were no options when dining out (unless you count that stupid “california veggie” sandwich crap). When I became vegan it was even worse. There was nothing, and I was CONSTANTLY having to explain the why and the whats. But then things started to shift. Being vegetarian became COOL. People started telling me they couldn’t do without meat all the time, but they were trying to be vegetarian part time. I applauded them – – – knowing full well the more they ate veggie, the better they would feel and the more off putting meat would become to them. I supported them any way I could, gave them recipes. You know what? More of those people are not only vegetarian but VEGAN now. The family across the street that subsisted on Totino’s pizza with ground beef on top? ALL VEGAN. For them, a salad had been peas with mayo and bacon. One of their youngest kids now runs a no kill shelter.
If it start as a hobby it’s fun and motivating. I work with three women who have been eating meat their whole lives. Since that Oprah episode they have been trying new vegan recipes and bringing lunches to share with one another. Three days a week they go totally vegan. One co-worker has become full time vegetarian along with her husband and kids. Why? Because it is so delicious and they feel great. So if it takes Oprah and some annoying Beverly Hills housewife to get the message through, then I’m all for it.
Baby steps.
Thanks for your comment.
I hear what you’re saying. I’ve been vegan over 20 years so I know what it was like in the early days, and you’re right things have improved immensely, but at the same time we’re still killing more animals than ever to eat and test on etc.
My biggest problem is that we’re muddying the waters about what veganism actually means. I’m all for folks trying a strict vegetarian diet, but unless you understand and embrace the ethical issues of veganism you don’t really get it.
And this is what is happening in the mainstream now. We’re being told that veganism is nothing more than a self centered diet to make you feel good and become healthier. I don’t find it surprising that more people are becoming vegetarian and at the same time more people are claiming to be ex-vegetarian or ex-vegan.
I believe the issues of veganism are becoming co-opted by capitalistic ideologies. Let’s sell more Gardein, ‘cos we know real vegans can only eat so much, so let’s come up with a new term. Something warm and cozy like veganish, you can be vegan 3 days a week or at one meal a day. That is the bullshit with veganish. Veganism is not an ethic of self centered convenience. That’s my problem.
Hi Jason, just found your site. I’ve been a vegetarian for 24 years, 12 of those strictly vegan, and just recovering from a second attack of vegetarianism as I succumbed to a 6 month period of eating pizza with real cheese. Wtf was I thinking, f*ck knows…anyway, back to base, I’m cutting all dairy and going full tilt vegan. I’m ashamed for stealing some kid’s milk, and I’ll have to live with it…
My point, eh…I’m yapping here, my point is, veganism, (and vegetarianism) is not so much about my own diet as much as it is about the equality of all animals. Animals and humans feel the same pain, agony and horror when being murdered. Noone has the right to decide who gets eaten or worn and who lives as a pet. But when I look at the industry of murder and all the people endorsing it, it’s very often Me against Them. I’ve been attacked and yelled at for my beliefs, I’ve reasoned and argued, answered questions, converted a few, angered many and I’m getting tired of it all. More I give the Veggie issue a thought, more ignorance and self-righteousness I see and there is no way I can win. People just don’t give a hoot. It’s convenient to buy leather, nobody thinks, wow, some poor animal was skinned for this… people buy meat in nicely presented wrappers without any thought to hot the wrapper got there, when I call eggs ‘chicken abortions’ people eew and urgh – but still eat them. They have decided not to give a shit and I am usually the insane one. It’s unethical and immoral what humans do to animals. Killing, eating, wearing, testing, good grief the agony never ends. All I can do is refuse to be a part of it and hope some will follow. But not many do. And often I’m at loss. Still, nice to come across people like you, feels like home. I’ll be around, just subscribed to your newsletter. Take care x Juno
Hi Juno,
Thanks for the kind words.
It is tough being enlightened and compassionate when there is so much ignorance around. But I imagine it was similar in the early days of the slavery abolition movement. I’m sure abolitionists back then had the exact same thoughts as you do.
One must never lose hope. Without hope you are vulnerable to despair and despair is a very dark and disheartening place to be.
My veganism is a low key veganism where it is just a part of my life and it doesn’t usually come up unless folks notice and inquire about it. At that point I try to gently and succinctly explain my reasons and benefits for it. But you have to be gentle and quick. I’ve noticed you only have a minute or two before the courteous curiosity leaves.
Most folks don’t want to be confronted with the cruelty on their plate and what they put in their mouths. Understandable. So find gentle ways to approach the topic. Talk about the ethics. I like to tell them that I just can’t be party to animal slaughter when it isn’t necessary for my health. Make it about you rather than about them. Don’t point fingers or be too militant. That just shuts people off and they get defensive.
Keep up the good fight. Less than 70 years ago, no one knew what a vegan was, the words wasn’t even made up then. Nowadays it is in the public lexicon and that is a good sign.
Btw, I feel that eggs are more like “menstrual waste” rather than “chicken abortions”. Most eggs you buy in the store are not fertilized so there was never the potential for a chicken to be born.