Respect personal eating habits
Becky McKeown
Issue date: 11/21/08 Section: Opinion
I'm a vegetarian, not a crazy PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) activist, though I certainly believe animals should be treated ethically.
Most people think all vegetarians are annoying activists who picket outside restaurants and glare at the people inside eating hamburgers. That's not true. Yes, there are vegetarians who picket restaurants and glare and yell at people who eat meat. I'm sure that gets on peoples' nerves and makes them want to scream at any vegetarian they meet, but not all vegetarians are like that.
I chose to be a vegetarian because I take the Golden Rule of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" to heart. I enjoyed eating a rare steak just as much, if not more than, the next girl, but I felt guilty eating it.
As a kid, I vowed to never become a sissy vegetarian. "Carrots are alive, too, and vegetarians still eat them!" I exclaimed. "Why not eat meat?" That attitude stayed until my sophomore year in high school. After watching a chef on the Food Network poke, prod and de-shell a live crab, I decided I'd had enough. I wasn't eating meat anymore.
In addition to being a vegetarian, I'm also a realist. People will never stop eating meat. Not eating meat is a personal choice. I don't care that my family and friends still eat meat. That's their choice, and I respect that. I only ask people to respect my choice, as well.
When people find out I'm a vegetarian, many of them automatically attack me. They say things like, "It's stupid not to eat meat. Animals eat people, why not eat them?" Or "Vegetables are alive, too." They get defensive and act like being a vegetarian harms them. If I had said, "I see you're eating a hamburger. I'm a vegetarian, and you're a horrible person for eating meat," then I would understand their attacks. People need to lay off vegetarians, and vegetarians need to lay off people who eat meat. Animals are often treated inhumanely in slaughterhouses, and people should be informed about that, but there's no reason to be obnoxious. Web sites like meat.org provide videos showing how animals used for human food are treated abysmally. People should watch these videos to inform themselves, but only if they want to. They shouldn't be forced to watch them or be made to feel bad for choosing not to watch them. People shouldn't shove their beliefs down other peoples' throats, whether those beliefs are for eating meat or against it.
Most people think all vegetarians are annoying activists who picket outside restaurants and glare at the people inside eating hamburgers. That's not true. Yes, there are vegetarians who picket restaurants and glare and yell at people who eat meat. I'm sure that gets on peoples' nerves and makes them want to scream at any vegetarian they meet, but not all vegetarians are like that.
I chose to be a vegetarian because I take the Golden Rule of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" to heart. I enjoyed eating a rare steak just as much, if not more than, the next girl, but I felt guilty eating it.
As a kid, I vowed to never become a sissy vegetarian. "Carrots are alive, too, and vegetarians still eat them!" I exclaimed. "Why not eat meat?" That attitude stayed until my sophomore year in high school. After watching a chef on the Food Network poke, prod and de-shell a live crab, I decided I'd had enough. I wasn't eating meat anymore.
In addition to being a vegetarian, I'm also a realist. People will never stop eating meat. Not eating meat is a personal choice. I don't care that my family and friends still eat meat. That's their choice, and I respect that. I only ask people to respect my choice, as well.
When people find out I'm a vegetarian, many of them automatically attack me. They say things like, "It's stupid not to eat meat. Animals eat people, why not eat them?" Or "Vegetables are alive, too." They get defensive and act like being a vegetarian harms them. If I had said, "I see you're eating a hamburger. I'm a vegetarian, and you're a horrible person for eating meat," then I would understand their attacks. People need to lay off vegetarians, and vegetarians need to lay off people who eat meat. Animals are often treated inhumanely in slaughterhouses, and people should be informed about that, but there's no reason to be obnoxious. Web sites like meat.org provide videos showing how animals used for human food are treated abysmally. People should watch these videos to inform themselves, but only if they want to. They shouldn't be forced to watch them or be made to feel bad for choosing not to watch them. People shouldn't shove their beliefs down other peoples' throats, whether those beliefs are for eating meat or against it.
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