Stuff Vegans Hear All the Time

I found this on http://www.facebook.com/EVOLVECampaigns/. It's so strange because I remember so many of these things coming out of my mouth before I became vegan. Looking back I feel pretty stupid. This gives you some great talking points though. Enjoy!

"FACT: There is never going to be a scenario where everybody goes vegan at once. Farmed animals exist in such large numbers only because human beings breed them for slaughter, through artificial insemination, to meet the huge demand. As more people become vegan, fewer farm animals will be bred, and their population will therefore be reduced."

"FACT: 'You' didn't climb to the top of anything. Your ancestors did. However they most likely committed paedophilia, cannibalism and rape too so if you are going to base your decisions on what people did years ago then you will probably not fare too well in modern society. Furthermore being 'the fittest' on a biological level doesn't grant us free access to create an environment where animals are treated as unfeeling commodities in order to maximize profits. That we can do something does not mean that it is right to do so. We have a lot of power over other creatures, but with great powers come even greater responsibilities and clinging to a system that has become unsustainable is not progressive or beneficial to the well being of our planet, the human race or evolution."

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FACT: Many people still believe that dairy cows lactate uncontrollably and that we heroic humans need to keep their udders from exploding and yes, it is true that if a dairy cow is not relieved of the milk her udders are producing, they will be become painfully distended and swollen with milk. BUT, like all female mammals, including humans, cows only produce milk when they’ve given birth. And natu

rally (like with humans) their milk supply increases as the calf grows and suckles more, and decreases as the calf weans itself. The dairy industry however, artificially impregnates cows and when the calves are born, they take them away (to be killed for veal, if male, or to become dairy cows, if female) so that the milk intended for them can be sold to humans. And as if this isn't bad enough, growth hormones and unnatural milking schedules cause dairy cows’ udders to become painful and so heavy that they sometimes drag on the ground, resulting in frequent infections and overuse of antibiotics.

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"FACT: Lions are obligate carnivores, humans are not! And the difference is that we have a choice. Carnivorous animals do not have any choices, they rely on their genetically-programmed instincts to kill and eat animal prey. Humans have no instincts to do so and no biological need to do so either. Humans as a species can make choices based on many deciding factors, ethics and conscience being just two. Lions also don't breed, confine, abuse and keep other animals in tortuous farming conditions before killing them."

"FACT: Yes, plants are living things but they are not sentient, nor do they possess a central nervous system and therefore pulling a carrot from the ground or picking an apple from a tree does not have the same moral implications as confining, torturing and finally slitting a sentient animal's throat. However, even if someone was concerned that plants were being exploited in the same way as animals

 then by eating meat they would be causing harm twice because the animals they eat would have already eaten plants before being slaughtered (for example, it takes several pounds of plants to produce just one pound of beef). Eating a vegan diet is not about a quest for personal purity, veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude all forms of exploitation and cruelty to the animal kingdom, as far as is possible.. and the difference is that in general we cannot live without using plants. We can on the other hand live perfectly well without causing deliberate suffering (and death) to billions of farmed animals. If the questioner feels so strongly about plant suffering however, they could choose to live as a fruitarian."

 

"FACT: A varied vegan diet provides enough protein for both adults and children. As long as an adequate number of calories made up from any normal variety of plant foods are eaten on a daily basis, it’s easy to get your recommended amount of protein. See lots more answers here:

http://www.vegansoapbox.com/where-do-you-get-your-protein-2/"

"FACT: Helping animals and helping people are not mutually exclusive activities. People who believe in animal rights naturally believe in human rights too. As social justice movements they go hand in hand, we are against speciesism. And veganism isn’t just good for animals, it’s good for people, too! As Will Tuttle says: Enslaving and eating animals is relentlessly polluting our mental and bodily e

nvironments, hardening our hearts and blocking feelings and awareness, instigating fear, violence, and repression in our relationships, laying waste our precious planet, gruesomely torturing and killing billions of terrorized beings, deadening us spiritually, and profoundly disempowering us by impeding our innate intelligence and our ability to make essential connections.

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"FACT: Vitamin B12 doesn’t come from animal meat or their muscle tissue, it comes from the bacteria in their body. The meat isn’t the source, it’s the carrier. B12 used to be found in very mineral rich soil (which we have sadly depleted through animal farming and chemical sprays) and it is believed our very first ancestors who were plant eaters and foragers never washed their greens (quite logical)

 and that is how they got their B12. Some animals have trace amounts of B12 in their flesh because they eat food from the ground that has dirt on it or because their feed has been supplemented with it. However, eating lots of meat - which contains cholesterol and saturated fat - for trace amounts of B12, is inefficient and carries the risk of degenerative disease such a heart disease, strokes, cancer etc. Also, B12 is destroyed by light and excessive amounts of heat, which explains why 1 in 4 Americans have suboptimal levels of vitamin B12.. and they are certainly not all vegan. Furthermore, USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that all persons over 50 get their vitamin B12 from dietary supplements and fortified foods due to a diminished ability to absorb it from other sources.

Achieving an adequate B12 intake is easy and there are several methods to suit individual preferences. Consuming fortified foods is a common way for vegans to achieve an adequate intake - B12 is found in yeast extract spreads, soya meat, many soya milks, rice milks and other plant milks, margarines and packaged cereals. Another easy method is to take a supplement."

"FACT: Veganism embodies non-violence and compassion and recognises the right of all sentient animals to be treated with respect and justice.. it's therefore sad that speaking up for animals is often considered 'preaching', after all it's not commonplace to see other campaigners who speak up for the vulnerable being labelled in this way. It's also a shame that people become so offended when it is s

uggested that certain practices, however widely accepted, are unjust. We really do need to try and not view criticisms of these practices as personal attacks on ourselves, but instead rationally evaluate the criticisms with an open mind. If everyone had refrained from speaking out for fear of offending someone then practices such as racial segregation and institutions such as slavery would still be considered acceptable today.

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"FACT: Fine, don't eat tofu then, there's plenty of other things to eat! Funny thing is though, often people who say tofu is disgusting have never even seen it, never mind actually tasted it! Tofu is an unfamiliar food to most people other than vegetarians and vegans but it is hardly deserving of such revulsion. Vegans may shake their heads in bewilderment at folks who enjoy eating dead flesh and a

nimal secretions and yet pick on this simple soy food, but it’s all about what we have been conditioned to view as ‘tasty’. Having said that, if it’s not cooked properly, tofu doesn’t taste great and that’s because it’s a very bland food with no flavour or aroma of its own. However, tofu is so versatile! It can be marinated and deep fried, baked, sauteed or braised. Sliced, cubed, pureed, shredded or scrambled. It ranges from soft to very firm. It can be used in loads of savoury dishes from soups to curries and sweet dishes too, such as in tofu cheesecake and vegan chocolate mousse. It can be used as an egg replacer in vegan omelettes and quiches and as a base for savoury spreads.. there's so much you can do with tofu! It's also good for you.. full of protein and iron, B vitamins and disease blocking isoflavones, yet low in sodium, low in calories and has zero cholesterol.

If you do want to try it, check out the links below for lots of tofu recipes!
http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/vegetarian-recipes/tofu-recipes.php
http://vegandiet.posterous.com/where-to-find-great-vegan-tofu-recipes
http://vegweb.com/index.php?board=557.0
http://www.theppk.com/2008/10/scrambled-tofu/
http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/great-recipes.asp?food=vegan+tofu+dishes "

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FACT: He wasn't. And even if he had been, what relevance would it have to veganism? Seems this is the argument: "You people who say that we would all be more peaceful if we ate a vegetarian diet always seem to forget that Adolph Hitler was a vegetarian. That pretty well destroys your belief system, doesn't it?" Wow, really? ONE person can destroy a whole belief system?! That was a real letter tha

t John Robbins (author of Diet for a New America and Food Revolution) once received and I'm sure he's not the first to hear this 'argument' - we've had it said to us too. Here Michael Bluejay explains why we know that Hitler, just like all other mass murderes in history, was however NOT a vegetarian, never mind a vegan:http://michaelbluejay.com/veg/hitler.html

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"I'm afraid that if you eat animals then you can hardly say that you love them. What you mean is you love "some" animals but you love to eat other animals. That is called speciesism. All animals are sentient and deserving of respect, not just "some". Liking the flesh of an animal does not give you the right to cause its death. No matter what the "quality" of life an animal has on a farm, (and 99% have a truly tortuous, pain-filled existence) they are still being used and exploited against their will and sent to slaughter at a fraction of their natural lifespan. You don't need to be a part of that, you can live your life in alignment with your true values by being vegan."

"FACT: Without getting into the whole 'God didn't make us, we evolved' thing, I'll simply say that humans are made of meat, too, but we’re not made to be eaten... are we?! And as a footnote, can I just remind you that these are the words of HOMER SIMPSON - not exactly the brightest of sparks!" 

"FACT: Hypothetical dilemmas like this one are pointless. Who is to know how anyone would react in a survival situation and who cares anyway? It is totally irrelevant and bears no relation to the every day food choices of someone living in the modern Western world. For arguments sake though, can we just point out that it would be impossible to be stranded on an island where there were only animals to eat. It stands to reason that any place where there's concentrations of animal life, there will also be edible plant life supporting them." 

Being vegan is not about a quest for personal purity, it is a way of life which recognises the right of all sentient animals to be treated with respect and justice, which means not consuming, wearing, using animals or taking part in activities of their exploitation. It's about doing the best we can, as far as is practical and possible, to align our actions with these values and is so much more tha

n just a diet.

Although it is true that some animals may get killed during the cultivation of crops for vegan diets (farmers themselves have told us it's rare as farming machinery used these days makes so much noise and vibration that the field animals get out of the way when they hear and feel it approaching), far more of these same animals are likely to be killed during the cultivation of crops for a meat based diet. This is because plants have to be fed to the livestock, and only a small fraction of the food which an animal eats is converted into meat for human consumption. Far fewer animals would be killed during the cultivation of crops if humans ate these crops directly, instead of feeding them to livestock.

As mentioned earlier, veganism is about doing our best as far as is practical and possible and while we cannot live without using plants, we can live perfectly easily without causing deliberate suffering (and death) to billions of farmed animals.

Ultimately, regardless of how hard we try to avoid it, some animals are always going to be accidentally killed in the course of human events, but intention is the key here. Similarly, no matter how hard we try to avoid it, some people will always die in car accidents. But the fact that we might accidentally run someone over with our car does not imply that it is ok to run them over on purpose.

FACT: Veganism isn't some amazing feat that only certain types of people can achieve. Veganism is not a quest for purity either. It's about accepting accountabilty. It's about realizing the impact your actions have on other beings and choosing your behaviour accordingly. I used to love meat and cheese too, but I decided that I loved not exploiting animals more.

"To all the religious folk who hide behind this excuse - FACT: Animals were not created for humans any more than women were created for men, or black people were created for white people. Why would any compassionate God create beings capable of feeling pain, suffering, and a desire to live, if their only purpose in life was to suffer and die at the hands of humans? "

"FACT: Someone's "personal choice" to eat an animal fails to take into account the animal's choice to continue living. From a moral standpoint, actions that harm others are not matters of personal choice. For example, murder, child abuse, and cruelty to animals are immoral acts, not matters of choice. Imagine saying to someone, "If you don’t want to beat your dog/ child/ wife, that’s fine. But, don’t tell me not to beat mine." While we are entitled to believe what we like, we are not entitled to treat those weaker than us however we like. When we are responsible for harming others, people have every right to ask that we stop.

(Part of this text is by Compassion Over Killing)"