Why are people Vegetarian?

[RAINRA]

I am curious? I am coming from a meat eating background so I don't understand why are people vegetarian? I am being sincere when I am asking this question because I really don't know the answer. I would understand a person said they are vegetarian because they don't like the taste of meat. That would make perfect sence but if it is for health, environmental and specially animal rights reasons it seam to me that it is no different than someone who said I only vegetable based diet and sometimes fish. I think the liking cheese reason is not solving anything.

[beforewisdom]

Rainra;

 

Are you asking why people are only vegetarian for animal rights, the environment, or health reasons when all of those reasons point toward being vegan?

 

If so, in my humble opinion, most reasons fall into two sets of reasons

 

1. Simple ignorance.

I've met several ethical & health vegetarians who simply did not know that "milk is liquid meat" as far as cruelty or human health goes. Most of these people went vegan fairly quickly after I began talking with them about these issues. Very gratifying!

 

 

2. Emotional inertia

I know a few ethical vegetarians too. Most are older people who went vegetarian for ethical or health reasons a LONG time ago. They don't want to take on the perceived burden of making another perceived large lifestyle change. My intuition is that an emotional level they believe it is about making a gesture rather than addressing the details of a problem.. "Hey, I'm already doing a lot" versus "What has to happen to settle the situation? ". Nice people. I have the same kind of irrational emotional reaction with other issues in my life as I am sure everybody else does with some issues in their lives as well.

[RAINRA]

reason I ask is one of my co workers said he was vegan for two years and went vegetarian. Also another coworker of mine says his roomate is vegetarian. He mentions to his friends that I talk about being vegan... he told me their impression was I was some religious vegetrain nut... Vegetarianism .... Is only good because it is one step in the right direction but if it is like they stopped half way.

[Zack]

reason I ask is one of my co workers said he was vegan for two years and went vegetarian. Also another coworker of mine says his roomate is vegetarian. He mentions to his friends that I talk about being vegan... he told me their impression was I was some religious vegetrain nut... Vegetarianism .... Is only good because it is one step in the right direction but if it is like they stopped half way.

 

 

Better than not going any of the way i suppose, assuming they don't start eating more eggs/dairy after giving up meat.

[Im Your Man]

I agree that vegetarianism is almost nothing compared to veganism, some vegetarians even eat more animal products than some omnis with all the cheese they eat... As long as they don't buy and eat a steak, they are happy, thinking that if everybody would do this it would be enough to solve all problems on Earth. Most vegetarians are not strict, they won't check the ingredients lists. so they eat things that are actually meat: gelatin in yogourt and jell-o desserts, rennet in cheese. Also, vegetarians eat fish and seafruits, as if it wasn't meat, flesh or animals... some even eat chicken and poultry...

 

Anyway, it's still better than not being vegetarian at all ! I hope most vegetarians are not satisfied with this and that they see vegetarianism as a start, transition to veganism.

[Richard]

I guess a lot of vegetarians haven't been educated on the subject, so they don't see why they should be vegan. There are vegetarians I have talked to, who have clearly been educated on it, but they don't agree with the reasoning. They think veganism is pointless, and don't see the harm in the dairy, egg etc industries. Others say that veganism is too hard, or dangerous to your health blah blah blah same sort of thing you get from omnivores.