Quote:
Originally Posted by gregorio
This is not an argument against vegetarianism at all. It's an argument against the consumption of eggs, cheese and other dairy. No, it doesn't mean that. It means that vegetarians who don't eat meat because they think it is wrong to kill animals may make some other decisions that are not in the best interest of animals. It doesn't mean they might as well start eating killing animals for food as well. It's not an all-or-nothing world we live in.
True, but it is certainly a flaw in the logic of a lot of
vegetarians. I actually think it's pretty hard to argue against veganism being the most righteous diet choice.
You're right, it's not an all or nothing world we live in. That's why I think this whole concept of vegetarianism is a bit shallow. I think just banning yourself from eating meat is a little bit strange, why not just cut down your consumption whilst still occasionally eating meat if, for example, you're at someone's house and they've prepared it, or if you find a product you've bought already has meat in it? My suspicion is that many vegetarians are somewhat attracted to the idea of being an all-out vegetarian, I mean, those freaky hippy chicks aren't gonna want to bang you if tell them that you've cut your meat consumption by 80%, but still occasionally enjoy the odd steak, even if the cow is grass-fed, organic, fair-trade, free-range and killed by a cocaine overdose whilst banging fly heffers in a Vegas hotel room. (Lesbian cow.)
What I'm trying to say is there is no other eco-friendly activity that is mainly practised in such a wide scale all-or-nothing way. For example, a few family friends have severely cut down the amount of driving they do, both for personal (lose weight) and more ethical reasons (environ), that doesn't mean they won't occasionally use their cars, or accept lifts from other people. Why can't the whole vegetarianism movement work in a similar way?
The real tragedy of this argument is that it deflects attention away from the real problem in the global food market- the fact that every single malnourished person in the world could quite easily be fed if it wasn't for the massive amounts of food waste.
If my arguments seem confused, it's because I am a little confused... and drunk.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63NNuG-6-hQ
Edit- Added vaguely relevant sketch
Last edited by BertieWooster; 03-16-2013 at 01:12 AM.