I am a vegetarian and have been for the majority of my life so far (since I was 8). None of my family are vegetarian or are animal activists or anything, but one day I just decided that I didn't like the taste or texture of meat when I was eating it anymore.

My question is why do so many people have so much hate for vegetarians? A lot of my acquaintances constantly berate me for my eating preferences like some kind of amateur food Nazis, but I fail to see how it is different from not liking, for example, bananas or turnip. Even the really hardcore, morally orientated vegetarians and vegans have the right to eat what they want, and although it is not my view, I understand and respect their not wanting to kill animals. I feel this to be a perfectly reasonable point of view.

So I ask you, why the hate?

I'm not sure, I have previously been a vegetarian and I think hate is a little strong, it's more a case of not understanding the various positions or being unconvinced by the moral arguements.

In your case, you've chosen not to eat meat on the basis that you have no desire to eat it, which to be honest is the rarest stance but I imagine it's one that meets the least scrutiny. The point is that animals are raised and culled for food anyway, and I now eat meat because I can't morally allow animals to be slaughtered and refuse to consume that produce, it seems wasteful to me. I understand people not wanting to eat meat morally, but the culling of animals won't stop as long as the majority want meat.

But in answer to your question, people inherently dislike and distrust things which they cannot fully comprehend, and also some people simply like winding up those who represent a caricature of "bleeding heart liberalism" which is another discussion entirely...

Not a vegetarian, never have been. But I have no idea what could be so insulting about it to someone that eats meat that they openly hate them. Alot of my friends have been vegetarians at some point or still are and It's very interesting seeing the different reactions they get even among friends. For the record though meat tastes good (Numnumnum, I'm eating a cute little bunny sandwich as i type).

The short answer is that we don't HATE you, its that we think you're being stupid.

the long answer is as follows:
for one, I have no problem with people disliking or not being able to eat meat. That's fair enough. I don't like pumpkin soup, so i sure as hell don't do that. anybody who says any different to me would feel my wrath as well, so I understand your position in that regard. On the same note, however, would you recommend someone eat no vegies because they dont like them? I mean lets look at the classic example of the child who simply won't eat his brussle sprouts. now there's a good chance that there's a suitable alternative to sprouts, say beans, that you can offer the kid and they might eat. with vegetarians, the whole idea of meat doesn't work. but, like I said, if you dont like meat, i can't change you and you'll have some tofu dogs at my next barbie

which leads me into the militant vegan rant that really pisses off us carnivores. if you read the above sentence, you see that I am a kind, accommoditating person, willing to bend my own personal views to ensure you have a good time. this is not a view that i've ever, EVER seen expressed by a vegitarian or a vegan. again, this is less to do with people like you who don't eat meat for personal taste reasons. I have no qualms about asking vego's where my meat is at dinner parties, in the same way if they asked me where my vegitarian alternative is.

the reason i said this is stupid is because the ethical reasoning behind veganism and vegitarianism is often flawed. the thinking is that by not eating the dead animal the company is not profiting from its death, meaning they will stop killing. this is of course, bullshit. the company makes millions and millions off carnivores like us, and throws away anything that doesn't sell. so rather than saving an animal, you let one die in vein. so as you see, its not about hatred, its about stupidity

It's not the vegetarians themselves that people hate.
It's when the same vegetarians start telling you that you are murdering animals, abusing animals, and start generally pushing vegetarianism on you.

But, hey, the same goes for any person or group with views different than the majority.

I don't hate vegetarian in general, what I hate are those vegetarians that try to push their lifestyle onto me, or look at me like I'm an awful person when I eat meat.

It's militant evangelising vegetarians, those who seem to think you're on par with a child molestor if you eat meat, that we don't like. If you don't like the taste of meat, thats fine (my sister is vegetarian for this reason.) I don't understand in myself, as I like the taste and texture (especially blue steak...mmmm...) but I respect that some people don't. I don't like seafood, I don't expect people to get on my back about it (amazingly, some do.)
I did see a sticker at a butchers which read "If God didn't want us to eat animals, why did he make them out of meat?" which made me chuckle slightly.

Generally I think you're hated because your food takes longer to prepare has to be specially prepared and people have to go out of there way to do it - and usually don't receive a thanks for taking the effort.

Offcourse I'm stereotyping here, but not everyone hates vegetarian's so there you go.

jim_doki:
the thinking is that by not eating the dead animal the company is not profiting from its death, meaning they will stop killing. this is of course, bullshit. the company makes millions and millions off carnivores like us, and throws away anything that doesn't sell. so rather than saving an animal, you let one die in vein. so as you see, its not about hatred, its about stupidity

Or maybe they just don't believe in killing and eating animals. You're taking a probably isolated idea within the group and saying everyone believes it.

Anyways I'd consider myself a "flexitarian" I suppose. I usually don't consume meat, but on some occasions I will, as it can be delicious.

This has changed, ignore my above words.

Levinthor:

It's when the same vegetarians start telling you that you are murdering animals, abusing animals, and start generally pushing vegetarianism on you.

That I get, I mean I dislike vegetarians that try to push vegetarianism on others, as is the same with any philosophy or point of view. I am a staunch believer that people should be left to their own devices to choose whatever they want without ideals, points of view, religion or political stances being crammed down their throat.

jim_doki:
The short answer is that we don't HATE you, its that we think you're being stupid.

the long answer is as follows:
for one, I have no problem with people disliking or not being able to eat meat. That's fair enough. I don't like pumpkin soup, so i sure as hell don't do that. anybody who says any different to me would feel my wrath as well, so I understand your position in that regard. On the same note, however, would you recommend someone eat no vegies because they dont like them? I mean lets look at the classic example of the child who simply won't eat his brussle sprouts. now there's a good chance that there's a suitable alternative to sprouts, say beans, that you can offer the kid and they might eat. with vegetarians, the whole idea of meat doesn't work. but, like I said, if you dont like meat, i can't change you and you'll have some tofu dogs at my next barbie

which leads me into the militant vegan rant that really pisses off us carnivores. if you read the above sentence, you see that I am a kind, accommoditating person, willing to bend my own personal views to ensure you have a good time. this is not a view that i've ever, EVER seen expressed by a vegitarian or a vegan. again, this is less to do with people like you who don't eat meat for personal taste reasons. I have no qualms about asking vego's where my meat is at dinner parties, in the same way if they asked me where my vegitarian alternative is.

the reason i said this is stupid is because the ethical reasoning behind veganism and vegitarianism is often flawed. the thinking is that by not eating the dead animal the company is not profiting from its death, meaning they will stop killing. this is of course, bullshit. the company makes millions and millions off carnivores like us, and throws away anything that doesn't sell. so rather than saving an animal, you let one die in vein. so as you see, its not about hatred, its about stupidity

I have discussed this with a couple of other vegetarians in the past and kind of gotten nowhere as regards to the ethical argument. The 2 girls I was talking to felt that personally they relieved themselves of the guilt of killing animals, not that they were changing the course of a multi million pound food company.

But I will concede that some vegetarian's futile attempt to make the world a more animal friendly place by trying to save as many cows as they can by not eating meat may appear a bit silly, but I still don't understand why that would particularly offend a person such as yourself, because as you said, it would have no effect whatsoever upon the food production company and therefore no effect on you (except at your barbecues). So why not let them have their ethics if it makes them feel better?

Something tells me that vegetarianism may be the most moral diet one could have - after all, it does seem a bit sick when you look at slaughterhouses and meat production methods. But vegetarianism defies nature - animals eat other animals and such - and I don't have enough compassion for a cow to care.

Shivari:

Or maybe they just don't believe in killing and eating animals. You're taking a probably isolated idea within the group and saying everyone believes it.

yes, it probably is isolated within the group, and it is the most vocal members of those groups who make such noises, but at the same time, not eating a dead animal for ethical reasons confuses me as well. I understand that you dont believe in killing yourself, but you didn't kill it. regardless, its dead now. you can use its body for sustainance as it was intended, or you can throw it out, letting it die in vain.
I for one want my food to contain as many souls as possible. you never know when you might need to bargain.

Also, i wouldn't say it offends me as such, its just i dislike a double standard and being hassled because i loves me a good steak every now and again. it's kind of like I'm being told i'm less of a person because of my dietry habits. if for example I decided that plaque was a living creature that deserved to run free, and stopped brushing my teeth, you would probably let that go. if however, i started berating you and calling you a killer every time you spat into a sink, you would get sick of me real fast

does that make sense?

Some vegetarians come across as rather....zealous, which immediately earns them the undying animosity I enjoy their ilk(zealots in general, not vegetarians in general).
Other vegetarians I don't mind, whatever they eat is up to them.
Though I have experienced a few incidents where a vegetarian(there's always just one, dunno if it's just due to the "you usually only notice the loud idiots" principle) in a large dinner group insisted on having their dish prepared & cooked separately from the rest of the course.
I have never understood why, it due allergies, made sure of asking that.

My mother is a vegitarian because she used to have chickens when she was a kid and she thought they were discusting so she wouldn't eat chicken anymore, and soon she stoped eating meat all together.

jim_doki:

Also, i wouldn't say it offends me as such, its just i dislike a double standard and being hassled because i loves me a good steak every now and again. it's kind of like I'm being told i'm less of a person because of my dietry habits. if for example I decided that plaque was a living creature that deserved to run free, and stopped brushing my teeth, you would probably let that go. if however, i started berating you and calling you a killer every time you spat into a sink, you would get sick of me real fast

does that make sense?

Yes I understand what you mean, and I see that as understandable in some cases when you may occasionally be dictated to based upon other peoples preferences, as that's never pleasant regardless of the circumstances or subject matter.

Although plaque may not be the best choice of analogy haha.

Mistah Kurtz:
But vegetarianism defies nature - animals eat other animals and such - and I don't have enough compassion for a cow to care.

You could argue my way though and say that if you gave a child an apple and a live chicken he'll eat the apple and play with the chicken. The same goes for chimps, they'll eat a banana if it's right there instead of hunting an animal that they'll eat.

jim_doki:
yes, it probably is isolated within the group, and it is the most vocal members of those groups who make such noises, but at the same time, not eating a dead animal for ethical reasons confuses me as well. I understand that you dont believe in killing yourself, but you didn't kill it. regardless, its dead now. you can use its body for sustainance as it was intended, or you can throw it out, letting it die in vain.
I for one want my food to contain as many souls as possible. you never know when you might need to bargain

So if it's an isolated case just move on instead of trashing the whole idea of vegetarianism. And it honestly just makes me feel better that I'm not eating animals (or in my case not often.) And your idea of "Well you didn't kill it" doesn't make sense, I don't like animals being slaughtered in general, it doesn't matter that someone else killed it for my convenience.

Mistah Kurtz:
it does seem a bit sick when you look at slaughterhouses and meat production methods.

This is why I don't eat meat, I really just hate the idea of animals being slaughtered. You obviously don't feel the way I do so you're not going to "get it."

But yeah, I agree that no one should force their lifestyle on anyone else. I won't do that to someone and wouldn't want someone to do it to me.

Mistah Kurtz:
Something tells me that vegetarianism may be the most moral diet one could have - after all, it does seem a bit sick when you look at slaughterhouses and meat production methods. But vegetarianism defies nature - animals eat other animals and such - and I don't have enough compassion for a cow to care.

have you ever been in a slaughter house or have you just seen the peta type ads of "real" slaughterhouses? i'm guessing the latter because a slaughterhouse is pretty darn nice, cept for the death, it's not that bad to be in, it looks like a butcher shop for the most part

as for vegetarians, i have nothing against you not wanting to eat meat, my mom can't eat meat so she's a vegetarian because of that. what i DO hate is those vegans and other ppl that try to push meat is murder and humans aren't supposed to eat meat type flawed arguments to push their beliefs on you.

i really love the "humans aren't meant to eat meat" ones, cause then i give them a lesson in dentistry and the human mouth and teeth found there in. then i go on to inform them of how our digestion system works. at that point they usually walk away in disgust after and i laugh.

be a vegetarian, just don't push it onto me.

jim_doki:

yes, it probably is isolated within the group, and it is the most vocal members of those groups who make such noises, but at the same time, not eating a dead animal for ethical reasons confuses me as well. I understand that you dont believe in killing yourself, but you didn't kill it. regardless, its dead now. you can use its body for sustainance as it was intended, or you can throw it out, letting it die in vain.

If you're talking about scavenging, that's pretty disgusting. However, I take it that you mean simply buying meat from previously slain animals from a butcher shop, in which case I see what you mean.

jim_doki:

if for example I decided that plaque was a living creature that deserved to run free, and stopped brushing my teeth, you would probably let that go.

You'de be surprised.

I personally have no problem with people who are vegetarians if they do it because they don't like meat or if they are athletes. However, moral vegetarians who "damn" me because I utilize my canines and incisors get on my nerves.

I think the reason some people hate vegetarians and animal activists is because the only ones they hear about are the ones that tell you your a murderer for eating meat and throw paint one people wearing fur. They dont know that the majority of of vegetarians that simply make a moral choice not to eat anything that involved the killing of an animal or fish.
Kinda like how people tend to not like people who hunt becuase the only kind they hear about are the ones who shoot out of thier truck window and just leave the animal to die, which is rare but they get all the attention. It basicly boils down to only hearing about the few kind of people who are pricks about it, and not hearing about the majority of people who are normal people like me and u and just made a moral choice. I think anyway

I'm a vegetarian. I get the hate. I don't push the ethics. People accomodate at parties etc, but they're still condescending. Personally, I have the same reason for being a vegetarian as wewontdie1. Ever since I was a child I hated the texture and flavour. I tried to eat more complicated forms of meat but it always tasted gross, just like brussel sprouts, which I also loathe. Eventually all I could manage was sausages, bacon and McDonalds(ironically I always hated fishfingers and chicken nuggets too, which sounds weird doesn't it). Eventually I gave up the rest when the smell started to make me feel sick, at around age 16.

Now, I don't have a problem with killing. In fact, if someone gave me a licence to kill every cow, pig, goat and sheep tomorrow I would. Not because I'm a vegetarian, but because euro-trash(including all the white people-yes I'm one of them) doesn't belong in Australia(they're just not cut out for it)(also I'm aware that not all of the above listed animals are european, in fact most of them are of African I think... anyone want to clarify?).

I'm really sick of all this hate, but then I got the feeling the other day that my friends are not attacking vegetarians; they're trying to defend their own choices...much like a homophobe will rag on about gays endlessly, because they find the fact of homosexuality confrontational itself. Which begs the question, why so insecure? Methinks thou dost protest too much...

But yeah, I'm tired of the lame 'machoism' crap that everyone brings out, when you've heard it a million times already, there's nothing like stabbing a morons eyes out to make you feel manlier.

*I wouldn't kill all the white people in Australia, I'd just move them to Tasmania where the climate is better suited to north euros.

**EDIT: I like to use my incisors... during sex...

cleverlymadeup:

have you ever been in a slaughter house or have you just seen the peta type ads of "real" slaughterhouses? i'm guessing the latter because a slaughterhouse is pretty darn nice, cept for the death, it's not that bad to be in, it looks like a butcher shop for the most part

Wow I don't know about the slaughter houses near you, but the one I visited on works experience (how ironic) was by no means nice. Worst thing was the smell. I actually had to hold my nose pretty much as long as I was in there it was that awful. Wasn't just like the smell of meat either, was actually the smell of death or dead/decaying flesh, which for anyone who has experienced it, its not fun when there's a lot of it.

If you don't like the taste or texture of meat that's fine and dandy: I don't like the taste and texture of Cauliflower that's why I don't eat it.

I have nothing against regaler vegetarians it's the ones that think they have some moral high ground over me for not eating meat.

Shivari:

Mistah Kurtz:
But vegetarianism defies nature - animals eat other animals and such - and I don't have enough compassion for a cow to care.

You could argue my way though and say that if you gave a child an apple and a live chicken he'll eat the apple and play with the chicken. The same goes for chimps, they'll eat a banana if it's right there instead of hunting an animal that they'll eat.

Actually, that's not true at all. The reason that a child will eat an apple before a chicken is because it doesn't associate meat with animals yet and it has no butchering skills.

The fact of the matter is children are highly abusive to animals until they reach an age where they're taught not to. Have you ever left a baby in a room with a small dog? Come back an hour later and that dog will have fist sized patches of fur missing, and if the dog has any balls, you'll also find a dead baby. Children are naturally cruel to animals, and it's society that teaches them to be nice to them. This shows that humans have natural inclinations towards hunting and killing animals.

I don't really hate vegetarians all that much. Let them munch their carrot sticks, more meat sammiches for me.

Like a lot of posters here, it's when they call me an evil murderer for eating meat that I can't stand.

my hate for vegan/vegetarians is the same for my hatred of Mac users, and Democrats. It's not that what they believe in is in and of itself bad, it's that the way they attack me for disagreeing with them and refuse to listen to reason that makes me hate it.

I have to say, it's put my mind somewhat at ease knowing that the majority of people don't generally take offence with my personal opinions on food, and the more realistic ideas of vegetarianism, as some people I know seem to.

There are two types of vegetarians/vegans that I simply can't abide. The first would be the ones who try to take a moral high ground over me, which everyone in this thread has agreed to be detestable. The second, that nobody has mentioned I believe, are the ones who try to say that it's healthier to not eat meat. Such a statement is based on complete ignorance. More often than not, it's the preparation of the food, not the food itself, that makes it unhealthy. There's a massive difference between salmon poached with lemons and herbs and Kentucky Fried Chicken. And I can promise you that I can prepare veggies in such a way that they are absolutely delicious and absolutely horrible for you. People need protein. That's just a fact. Yes you can get protein from nuts. But if an athlete tries to get his protein from nuts, his jaw will seize before he gets what he needs. Then there's the vegans. Now I've only known two vegans, but they both needed to take supplement pills because they weren't getting the nutrients that they needed from their diets. And yet they insisted that their diets were healthier than mine. Any diet that requires pills in order to keep a person healthy doesn't sound healthy at all.

You have a point in that most vegetarians most likely aren't pushing their habits onto other people. However, the ones who do are very loud about it and they take it upon themselves to speak for the entire vegetarian population. So if most vegetarians keep to themselves, it's likely that only those people's friends even know about their eating habits. Conversely, if the pushy vegetarians are the only ones that we carnivores ever hear talk, it's very easy to come to be ill disposed toward the entire group.

In short, if you want to stop the hate on vegetarians, tell the loud mouthed ones that you meet to shut up and keep their business to themselves.

Most of the hate is directed more towards the pushy vegetarians and vegans who think we omnivores are some sort of murderous barbarians for liking meat. I don't mind them myself because I like having people I can ignore and not feel bad about doing so to (not that I feel bad most of the time, but I think I probably should).

And to anyone here who is a vegan and doesn't like eating meat, remember that plants are alive and are sentient. They move their leaves to absorb the most sunlight, meaning they must have some sense of where it is and how to follow it. At least cows and chickens and what-have-you can run away or fight back (albeit not well, but whatever) whereas plants can't. And I know that they probably can't feel pain, but the point is they are alive, not the same way as animals but they are and you are killing them.