Vegans & veggies - is your self righteousness pushing people away?

Question

Some vegans & veggies are in my experience incredibly self righteous - would you get more people joining the cause if - say - a sense of humour was applied?

Answer 1

actually i find most people who eat meat are farrrrrr more offensive and rude than any veggies i know....

what do you consider being "self righteous"... answering questions that are asked of us a million times?  why do we have to be funny?  if your relgious do you joke about?  if people are killed do you joke about it?  i'm light hearted about it when people are rude and obnoxious towards me, but i really don't find anything about what i'm doing that amusing.  

Answer 2

hum  (go ahead troll, report me...   hypocrit)  anyways...

does your floss co.ck  scare away hot chicks?

Answer 3

i don't find humor in the slaughter of countless animals for the tastes of selfish, ignornat humans. I love that you are called self rightrous when you make informed decisions that take into account others than yourself

Answer 4

Yeah, I already have that figured out.

Thanks for playing though.

Answer 5

It's easy to be self-righteous when you see ignorant fools walking around who could only learn self respect for Earth's other creatures if an alien race came and forced them into human slaughterhouses. Then all of a sudden they would want to be shown the mercy that they didn't have...

Answer 6

Agreeing with Luna here-

A veg*n is offered a hamburger at a picnic/restaurant/dinner.  The veg*n says, 'I can't eat that, I'm veg*n.'  The person offering asks 'Oh, why don't you eat meat?'

I can guarantee you, almost any answer the veg*n gives will be taken as 'self righteous'.  It doesn't matter how polite we are, how calm and logical we are, or even if we were asked our opinion.

Answer 7

I have noticed that meat eaters often act very defensive around me, almost as if being in my presence makes them feel 'guilty' for eating meat!. I have never done anything to make them feel this way though! I am utterly non-judgemental and have always respected that others have made choices in life which are different to my own!. But I still always get phrases like "Tam would not approve but for dinner I cooked?”  What other people eat does not reflect on my veganism, it’s not my problem!. I would never have given them the impression I disapprove because I don't, it’s not my place to disapprove of other people's choices!. But I have often wondered if this is perhaps where the 'preachy' vegan thing has come from!? Other people’s feelings of discomfort around people with a moral code that precludes something their own does not!. I have come across a few 'preachy' types on here, but no actual real world acquaintances!. And there are far more ‘preachy’ meat eaters on v&v than there are ‘preachy’ vegans!.

That is because non vegetarians/vegans feel a threat!. Some of them are still wonderful people who just seem to believe that animals have no equality!. Others feel threatened because they feel like they are being outnumbered in those questions in terms of animal cruelty and no matter how much they wanted to help they don't understand how we give up hamburgers in order to do that!. Some people are just plain mean and they hold our goodness against us because they have no intention of letting different kinds of people into their lives in anyway!. But most people are just scared, because they think that going vegetarian/vegan is the right thing to do but they don't want to because in doing that you take on so many challenges and they just don't care ENOUGH to change their own lives to save someone else's!

Vegetarianism is miserable. It attacks one of life’s greatest and surest pleasures - enjoying good food. Anything which makes people less happy is bad.

SOMETIMES VEGETARIANS/VEGANS SOUND PUSHY BECAUSE THEY REALLY LOVE ANIMALS AND CAN'T BEAR TO SEE THEM SUFFERED! JUST LIKE HOW PARENTS CAN BE REAL PROTECTIVE OVER THEIR KIDS!.

Answer 8

I am a vegetarian who is not skinny, frail or pail and look years younger than my age so can't say my diet is doing me any harm! However, I don't see it as my right to tell other people what to do. My boyfriend eats meat and that is his business! I've never tried to turn him!

Answer 9

I'm kinda vegitarian, I only eat chicken and fish... i hate the idea of eating animals... but i dont push my views onto others. I beleive it's their choice and im not here to convert them... this is just what i think. Im not pushing my values on other people, and i know lots of vegitarians and they dont do it either.

And i dont get the whole sense of humour thing :S I have a sense of humour, and once again... some of my funniest friends are Vegitarians.

Answer 10

I know loads of funny, laid back veggies and vegans and consider myself to be one. However, I know what you mean about self righteousness amongst our lot. Particularly veganism can be difficult to practice and I've seen many people becoming almost cult-like in their beliefs, which is totally off putting for anyone else. The same fanatics also (in my personal experience) sometimes tend to end up going to the other extreme and go meat crazy rather than just having a bit of fish and an egg because there is no middle way. But there is. Doing something is better than doing nothing...

Answer 11

they can be like religious zealots sometimes, very uncool

Answer 12

i dont like to tell people what they should eat even though im a veggie.

Answer 13

Good question - though eating nut cutlets year-round is no laughing matter ...

Answer 14

Most veggies are not like that

I dont mind what poeple eat its everyone's own choice.

Answer 15

Haha, ever since I've become vegan it seems like people are drawn to me more.  I'm not very outspoken about the issue unless it's brought up or some "self-righteous" omnivore makes nasty comments about my veganism without getting to know me first.

Since I went vegan, three of my friends have become vegan as well.  Not because I was pushy, but because I led by example. They saw my weight loss, my health increase, and they understand that it's better for the environment and animals raised for food.

I can take a joke, trust me, I've heard them all.  It's like beads of water falling off my back.  I even make some jokes up myself.  Of course, if I'm in the presence of an omnivore who just won't let up with their ranting and raving about how they feel about my lifestyle, I put her/him in their place. haha.  

Answer 16

I belong to PETA...People Eating Tasty Animals.

Answer 17

I am vegan. I beleive hatred, voilence and such will only

push people away from what you beleive and they wont

see your side (chances are they wont anyways) but it

will make it even less likely. The human race the way i

see it is often a discusting thing, so many people driven

by greed and acceptance. Lots of people are affraid to

change because they will constantly be told its wrong

which is the situation with me been vegan but been

voilent or extremely self righteouss will probly lower

the chances of people seeing your point of view. You do

have to try and put it in a civilised calm way i guess.

Then they there is more chance of people seeing your

point not focusing on fighting back at you. A little bit of

humor would probly help, not alot.. It is not a joke.

But what ever, who would listen to a 16yr old dropout?

Answer 18

agreed, although in defence of vegetarians people who do eat meat are often very nasty to veggies.

Answer 19

"Some" vegans & veggies are "in [your] experience" incredibly self-righteous.

If it's only some and only some of the ones *you've* met, surely you must realize that making a generalization that encompasses the rest of us (as you have done in your main question) is incredibly unfair.

I have been veg*n for over two decades.  I am not trying to get people to join my cause.  My friends, family and sometimes acquaintances talk about veg*nism on their terms: if they are curious, I'll talk to them about it.  But I am not getting up on my self-righteous soapbox and pushing people away.

Actually, suggesting that you know a better way for us to live our lives could be construed as self-righteous.  If there's someone you're dealing with personally whose attitude you don't like, deal with them directly.

Answer 20

Being a vegetarian/vegan is serious, not funny.

Answer 21

I wouldn't say it's self righteousness on my part.

I think some people are not very tolerant/ accepting of vegan and vegetarian beliefs because they do not want to endure different viewpoints. Lots of people push themselves away because they either see vegetarian/ veganism as anti-tradition, and therefore not right. People are pushed away because what we believe in deglorifies the average, widespread accepted diet and casts light upon the inhumanity of slaughterhouses, which most people would rather not think about. Ignorance IS bliss.

I think claiming that we're all "Self-righteous" is just a facade for something deeper. Lack of acceptance/ tolerance and perhaps a twinge of guilt.

Answer 22

People who already eat meet will not turn over to veggies. Plus being a vegetarin isnt healthy in a sense. I hope you realize your going to be skinny, frail, and pale and and gray before your supposed to be any of those.

Answer 23

Yes, I agree. I'm a vegetarian, but my husband and son aren't, so I cook meat dishes for them.

I've sometimes found the sandal brigade to be fanatical in their belief.

It comes down to personal choice/ethics, and I might inform people if asked, but I would never preach to them.

PS. Just decided to have a rant.! People who eat fish/chicken are NOT vegetarians.

I've lost count of the times I've been given fish at dinner parties because people know I'm a vegetarian, so you eat fish, right? Grr!!

Answer 24

Neither I or my 2 veggie friends force our views on others or preach. Perhaps you could consider that you've just been self righteous in the way that you phrased your question.

Answer 25

Some really are, I agree!  I've been a veggie for 17 years now and have never pushed my feelings or thoughts on anyone else, at least I don't think I have!  I am happy being a veggie and if everyone else is happy with whatever they do then so be it, its not my life!  I handle and cook meat for my husband and daughter, i haven't made them turn veggie, they will eat veggie meals a couple of times a week just to make my life easier when cooking and they enjoy it but i don't force them not to have meat.  i actually encourage it if anything!  My daughter is only four and needs a balanced diet which includes meat in my opinion so unless she decides to go veggie when she's older i'm quite happy for her to eat it!

Answer 26

Why must we have a sense of humor about slaughtering animals?

I do not push my ideas on people but I don't understand why there would need to be sense of humor when talkign about eating meat or not? I don't get the question maybe.