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Can Conservatives be Vegans? —TeeGee
I am pretty much just a lurker here, but I’m going to take my cloak of invisibility off for a moment.
DocJay had a thread a few days ago about diet and health weirdness. My confession: my wife and I lean toward being vegans. While she would prefer to embrace veganism entirely, I still enjoy meat from time to time.
Here’s the thing: I find I feel better when I keep meat consumption minimal. I feel mentally sharper and in better control. I also feel more energetic, focused, and productive when my diet is more Spartan than Epicurean.
Switching to a near-vegan diet did not lead to spiritual enlightenment. It did not clear up my complexion, make me happier, or produce any dramatic changes at all. It simply seems right.
There are two extreme points of view regarding veganism, both of which frankly bug me.
First: yes, absolutely, there is an abundance of left-wing nut jobs who eat vegan and who insist on calling it the “vegan movement.” I’ve met any number of vegans who insist their diet is a pathway to enlightenment. That’s not me. Food is just fuel for my body. If there is any spiritual component to my diet, it comes from the company I keep when I eat. I might be nuts, but I am emphatically not left-wing, new age nuts. Nor am I particularly given to evangelizing about eating vegan.
Second: A lot of people on the right seem to think that people who prefer eating fruits and vegetables can’t possibly be conservative.
I am a conservative and I generally prefer meatless meals. It’s got nothing to do with my spiritual, political and philosophical convictions. It’s just about what works for me.
So can conservatives be vegans? What do you think?
Invisibility cloak back on.
Published in General
Not true. Mechanics are greasier.
Wakka wakka wakka!
I think you mean progressives, don’t you?
I’ve never heard that progressives are intelligent.
Yes, but you frequently hear that they are. Just ask them. They always tell you they are the smartest kids in the room.
Try pemmican. It’s meat, not a substitute.
Or, I could eat a shoe.
I have been eating Vegan for the last month, and am a libertarian on social issues and a conservative on fiscal issues. I don’t see an inconsistency.
Gary Robbins, Flagstaff Arizona
Vegetables: the food that food eats.
I am a vegan, libertarian, gun enthusiast, and have never voted for a Democrat…..
The good news is, proponents of freedom are not much for curtailing other people’s freedom. If someone is telling your otherwise, challenge their credentials.
BTW I run a vegan website, so in case you are looking for some recipes http://vegan42.com
:-D
Be forewarned though, Paleo is not for the faint of heart — the food pyramid was different in those days:
Of course we can. I was a Las Vegan for many years. I loved living in Southern Nevada until I moved to Florida. What? Huh? Oh . . . never mind.
The question is why you are a vegan. If it is to save the world and you want to force the rest of the planet to be similarly enlightened, no, it’s not possible. If you just like vegan food better, of course, be our guest.
I have a very close beloved family member who doesn’t like meat, and is terribly allergic to dairy. She does eat eggs, though. Myself, I eat all the bright red meat, well prepared, that I can find (I am very fortunate in my cholesterol profile), but hate the taste of coffee, tea, booze, and anything that swims in the sea.
According to my research a plant based diet is clearly more healthy for humans than the typical meat heavy American diet. I’m trying to head in this direction myself for weight and health reasons but it is difficult ending my love affair with food.
I don’t plan on becoming vegan but I am eating a lot more fruits, vegetables and beans and cutting back on meat, which doesn’t have the nutrient density of plant based foods.