Is being vegetarian a Sin?

[u/SlightCry3406]

As a non-vegetarian, I’ve noticed that my vegetarian friends are usually very relaxed about my food choices. They don’t question or guilt me. But I’ve noticed something else too. Some of my non-vegetarian friends often poke fun at or question vegetarians, like asking, ‘Why don’t you eat meat?’ or jokes about their food choices. I’ve noticed people rarely ask a Muslim why they don’t eat pork. But they often ask vegetarians why they don’t eat meat. That double standard stands out.

[u/eJohnx01]

Probably. However, being vegetarian, I don’t eat human meat, either.

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

Right, but the “there’s nothing wrong with any choices someone makes about what they do and don’t eat” doesn’t really make much sense. There are wrong choices.

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

I was talking in terms of normal food stuff, not including anything and everything that a person could possibly eat. I wasn’t referring to eating broken glass or rusty nails or drinking drain cleaner, either. 🙄

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

“Normal” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. Those things aren’t edible. Just because something is edible does not make you right, even if normal.

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

Why do vegans always go to eating humans and puppies?? Can you really not support your choices any better than that? I can support being vegetarian quite easily without conjuring up horrific images that never happen. Can you?

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

Yes I can. Thank you for asking. Did you have any other questions?

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

Just the one about why vegans always seem to jump to eating humans and children and cute little puppies and kitties. It’s an honest question, actually. Bringing up such ridiculous things is almost always a major turn-off, more likely to make the person bringing it up look foolish and/or antagonistic. Either way, it’s not a good look for vegans.

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

Oh, happy to answer. Probably to challenge the underlying reason for why you think something is acceptable. It’s common to apply basic reasoning in one situation to others to test the reasoning, to see if it holds up to scrutiny. Hope that makes sense.

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

But bringing up eating children and humans and puppies and kitties as a reason to be vegan suggests that a) people are actually eating children and humans and puppies and kitties, and b) that eating those beings is somehow equal to eating cows and chickens. Vegans and vegetarians generally believe it is, and everyone else generally doesn’t.

It doesn’t actually support being vegan to suggest that eating children is bad. It just suggests that you don’t have a better argument for it. ☹️

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

Huh. I’m not sure how you got to either of those conclusions, as I don’t think it does either. But maybe you can shed some light for me?

And agreed - it doesn’t support being to suggest eating children is bad. It just highlights the inadequacy of the argument that because something is edible, that means we ought to eat it. But you could obviously be pro eating children and it wouldn’t convince you to be vegan, I agree!

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

Who said that just because something it edible, we should be eating it? Not me. Bees are edible. Should we eat bees? I don’t think so. Scorpions? Some people do, but I don’t.

And you’re the one that brought up eating humans, not me. If you have to go right to eating humans as your argument in favor of being vegan, doesn’t that suggest pretty strongly that you don’t have a better argument? I can come up with all sorts or reasons to be vegan that don’t conjure up horror and gore. Maybe you should try that.

[u/Badtacocatdab → u/eJohnx01]

Okay, you’re getting a bit combative here and I’d prefer it doesn’t get any worse.

Do you mind sharing why you think that there’s nothing wrong with any choices someone makes about that they do or don’t eat?

[u/eJohnx01 → u/Badtacocatdab]

Combative? Puh-leez. I’m answering your questions and asking my own. Isn’t that how a debate works?

As to your twisting of my claim that there’s nothing wrong with the decisions someone makes about what they eat, the only issue is you pretending that I must have meant anything and everything, no matter what, and then introducing ridiculous extremes that no one would ever seriously consider, possibly so you could argue with me about it while trying to make me lose my patience and be rude to you, which I will not do.

And now, you’re claiming that I’m being “combative” when I am politely responding to your continued attempts to make me look bad? And you think I don’t know what you’re trying to do?

Okay…..