Holiday Meals: Are Vegans Causing Problems?

You may have a negative reaction upon learning that a friend or family member has become vegan.  You might feel that this new vegan is being a pain, picky, ridiculous, or is making things difficult for your family, especially with respect to traditions around the holiday times.

Your friend or family member has decided not to eat animals or their products likely because they have learned that what happens to all animals used for food is horrible for those animals.  They have also learned that human beings do not need to eat animals or any of their products to be healthy.

Most people care about at least some animals.  Would you ever describe someone as a pain, picky, ridiculous, or as making things difficult just because they choose not to eat dogs?  Or dog’s breast milk or ovum?

Would you be willing to gather with your family around the headless lifeless body of a slaughtered dog in celebration of a holiday?  Even if it was tradition to do so?  Would you be able to enjoy your meal?  Especially knowing that your family or friends believe that you are somehow in the wrong or odd for caring about that dog’s life?  Indeed some may even find your predicament funny and laughable.

You know how it feels when the animals you care about are treated with cruelty and indifference.  It hurts the heart.  It is so disturbing.

Einstein one year after rescue above.  Einstein before rescue below.

Before rescue

If you do not consider yourself in the wrong for refusing to eat an animal that you care about, refusing to even sit at a table where an animal is being served such as the dog in the photo above, then why consider someone else a pain when they refuse to do the exact same thing that you refuse to do:  to sit at a table where others are dining on an animal they care about.

Vegans and animal eaters are exactly the same.  The only difference is that the animal eater does not think a vegan should care about the animals that the animal eater does not care about.  The animal eater believes that only the animals they care about matter.

Every animal eater has in their mind a certain group of animals that matter and they will fiercely defend those animals.  The ferocity of an animal eater with respect to the animals they care about is often extreme and even to the point of violence against humans.  Search any article or post about an abused dog and read the comments.  Death and torture are commonly wished upon someone who ill treats a dog.  But rape, torture, and slaughter alive billions of farm animals every year and it is the vegan who will receive the ill will of the animal eater for caring about those animals. The vegan is not allowed to act like a vegan unless it is for the exact same animals an animal eater cares about. The animal eater  is in charge of when it is ok to feel caring for animals and when it is not.

What if someone were in charge of when you could care about a dog or a cat and when you could not?  This breed has good meat so it is ok to farm and slaughter that breed.  But this breed is more intelligent according to human standards so that breed is great for pets. The dog eater tells you when you can care and advocate and be upset and when you cannot.  The dog eater has every explanation and justification for why it is ok to kill one breed of dog but not another breed of dog.

All of us are vegan with respect to the animals we care about.  The only difference between someone who is vegan and someone who is not vegan is simply the amount of animals they care about.  But the feelings, reactions, and what we find acceptable versus unacceptable are the same.

This is your chance to value your friend or family member and to show them that you are equitable.  That you will not expect them to gather around or eat an animal or an animal’s products they care about because you would never be ok with someone expecting that of you.  You would not be ok with eating the breast milk or ovum of a dog especially knowing that they too are slaughtered and their children also are slaughtered.

Traditions are not more important than family and friendship.  Traditions can and should evolve. Your loved ones feelings should matter more to you than insisting upon serving a slaughtered animal that your loved one cares about.  That choice should be simple if you truly love and care about this person.

The new tradition with respect to holidays should be to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

You are wonderful.  You are kind.  You care.  You are important to the new vegan person in your life.  They love you and hope you will understand because they know that you care about animals too. They know you would never eat an animal or its products that you care about . They are hoping that you will not expect them to do what you would never do.

The way we feel about the animals we care about is exactly the same.  The person who identifies as vegan is simply saying “I realize that I care about all in the same way I used to care about only a few”.

Just as you realize you care about all breeds of dogs with respect to slaughter and abuse and not just a few.

~Peace