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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To find mumsnet so hostile to vegans?

348 replies

RebornFlame · 27/08/2019 17:19

No based solely on but inspired by a couple of threads in the last few days. I’m not quite vegan yet but plan to be fully by the next few months and none of my friends, about quarter of whom at vegan are not sanctimonious or preachy at all.

Also please stop bashing vegan cakes! They’re yummy!!

OP posts:
BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 13:43

She’s not tee total then. Seems someone who only has the occasional drink. Loads of people like that.

Chillisauceboss · 28/08/2019 13:48

@BertrandRussell and @zzzzzzzz12345 sorry that was my point. You can't be a meat eating vegan... just like you can't be an
Alcohol drinking teetotal

zzzzzzzz12345 · 28/08/2019 13:51

@Chillisauceboss, whoops sorry! The beliefs on here are so weird that I thought you were serious! I completely agree.

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 13:51

Sorry @Chillisauceboss - how to miss the point in spectacular fashion! Blush

LolaSmiles · 28/08/2019 13:56

I’m with Bertrand, they are not vegan. They are people who eat vegan food when it suits them, even if that’s the majority of the time. It’s like people who call themselves vegetarians but eat fish (YOU ARE NOT A FUCKING VEGETARIAN!). It’s attaching a cool label when actually you sometimes want to tear the cooked leg off an animal and chow down on it.
Grin

my teetotal friend drinks occasionally
So they're not teetotal.

Some people are so in need of a cool label to make a fuss over how different they are when it's really quite a boring and typical existence:

  1. Reducing consumption of meat and animal products = great, but not vegan
  2. Drinks rarely but sometimes enjoys an occasional alcoholic drink = great, but just like any other person who doesn't drink frequently and not teetotal

Next up, I'm off on a date with my wonderful husband... We just don't have the piece of paper to make it official yet (so not married).
Or, I'm a homosexual man, except for on the 26th of every other month when I'll occasionally fancy sex with a woman.

LolaSmiles · 28/08/2019 13:57

Chillisauceboss
Cross posted with you!! Grin

I also thought you were serious. A recent vegan thread had people self-IDing as vegan saying it was fine to eat eggs and cake. There's some serious kool aid going round.

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 13:59

“I’m with Bertrand, they are not vegan. They are people who eat vegan food when it suits them, even if that’s the majority of the time”

They are not even that. They are people who eat food. Vegan food is just food. So is vegetarian food or meat or fish. All just food. It’s only specifically vegan food when it’s part of a vegan diet.

HugsAreMyDrugs · 28/08/2019 14:00

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

Like I said before, I hear more meat eaters preaching about preachy vegans than I actually see these preachy vegans.

Nothing in the OP suggests she preaches but it hasn't stopped you judging and making assumptions.

NoIDontWatchLoveIsland · 28/08/2019 14:12

She's started a thread on mnet saying mnet is hostile to vegans. That in itself is being a bit OTT about veganism imho. Starting conversation about it like it would matter to anyone else what food you like. I don't feel the need to discuss that I'm an omnivore with anyone?

Perunatop · 28/08/2019 14:14

A vegan diet is rarely healthy for children. This is MUMsnet where children are important.

Chillisauceboss · 28/08/2019 14:19

@Perunatop my child is a healthy vegan verified by my Dr and HV - it takes effort which I'm willing to do and she has a great and varied balanced diet with supplements in line with all babies and toddlers needing additional supplements

HugsAreMyDrugs · 28/08/2019 14:21

Actually meat eaters do discuss what they eat constantly. You share recipes, you post pictures on social media of your meals, you discuss what you had for dinner last night, food companies advertise their non vegan food constantly...you just don't notice it because It's the norm.

Of course when vegans do all of these things then suddenly it's preaching and ramming their beliefs down everyone's throats...

The OP started a thread because she wanted to ask a question because of something she noticed. How is that different from a lot of other people who start threads here?

NoIDontWatchLoveIsland · 28/08/2019 14:27

But we don't emphasise that our recipes are carnivorous or whatever...we just talk about food. Why can't vegans do the same... it's just food.

HugsAreMyDrugs · 28/08/2019 14:29

Again probably because omnivorous (which is what you mean by carnivore I'm assuming) is the norm.

And plenty of meat eaters do bang on about their juicy steak and how they love meat and could never give it up...

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 14:29

Because if a vegan was asking for dinner ideas or restaurant recommendations, it would be a bit daft if they didn't mention they were vegan, wouldn’t it? Hmm

LolaSmiles · 28/08/2019 14:33

HugsAreMyDrugs
Lots of people share recipes and food ideas. Nobody is suggesting anyone shouldn't.

Think about these 5people:

  1. I found an amazing brownie recipe on Pinterest at the weekend. I'm going to bring a batch in for Monday's meeting.
  2. I got some great mince for my shepherd's pie from the local farm shop. Really reasonable and locally sourced. I was impressed.
  3. (After being told their lunch looks nice) thanks, i had this amazing mixed grain salad for tea last night with roasted veg and thought I could have the rest for lunch. It's surprisingly good cold too.
  4. Talks about a great recipe they tried at the weekend that they want to do again.
  5. (When asked what they did at the weekend) We went to this vegan cafe because someone said it did the best vegan cakes in the areas. It was amazing. Literally, like there were 500 different vegan cakes and bakes and it was so refreshing because it's so hard to find any vegan snacks anywhere when you go out. Last time we went out, I had to get Simon to make us both some sweet vegan treats because we just knew it was going to be impossible to get a snack anywhere because nobody accepts that some of us want to live a cruelty free lifestyle. This place was great though. I'd definitely go there again. In fact, my brother was laughing at me being vegan so I'm going to take him there next week to prove to him that he's wrong about vegans talking about it all the time and then he'll see that he can still have his Saturday morning coffee stop and brownie without supporting cruelty.

Person 1 is coeliac
Person 2 eats meat but is trying to make more sustainable choices
Person 3 is vegan
Person 4 is vegetarian
Person 5 is vegan

I wonder who is going to get on everyone's nerves.

daffodilrosedaisy · 28/08/2019 14:34

I'm vegan and I agree, but then I usually stay out of such threads as I know arguments usually ensue! Mumsnet is a great place as people give their honest opinions, which most of the time is useful, but sometimes I think it's a shame when it's a topic people will never see eye to eye on, and people are full on rude... and vegans/vegetarians/meat eaters are one of those topics. I've also seen vegans be rude to vegetarians on here, so I suppose it's not one way!

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 14:43

But person 5 is a pain in the arse regardless of their vegan ness. Have you never had a similar diatribe from a meat eater going on about this lovely little restaurant they’ve found that nobody else knows about.........?

smotheroffive · 28/08/2019 14:52

Vegan food is different food and is a categoy of food that needs naming for what it is.

Its a bit like saying well Halal food is just food. Yes, it is,but its vital for many to hear that its halal, like vegan. It woukd be horrific for a vegan to be mislead, same as for halal.

Calling everything just food would be too simplistic, these are important distinctions, so I cant agree about the everything just food idea.

What about diabetic, or diet/reduced fat, etc?

LolaSmiles · 28/08/2019 14:53

BertrandRussell
Oh yes I have, and it's mildly annoying, however they tend to shut up once they've had their moment about their little restaurant.

They don't feel the need to punctuate their recount of the restaurant with endless reminders about how "and they serve meat you know" or break up their anecdote to remind us all how difficult their life is for their dietary preferences before resuming. That's my point on person 5. They couldn't possibly say they'd discovered a really nice cafe that had a surprising selection of vegan cakes and then move on (which would be interesting to everyone), they had to make the whole thing 20 times longer by making sure everyone knew they were indeed a vegan, as if there was any doubt. Grin

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 15:16

Oh come on- admit it. You’ve never actually met a person 5. She’s just a stereotype from a sitcom or Viz magazine.

BertrandRussell · 28/08/2019 15:18

“Vegan food is different food and is a categoy of food that needs naming for what it is.”
It only has to be named for people who can only eat that sort of food. For omnivores it’s just food.

MitziK · 28/08/2019 15:24

I hate antivegans.

I'm not vegetarian or vegan, but I can't have cows' dairy and tend to avoid wheat (autoimmune diseases that affect joints, tendons, skin and your gut are bastards). I can, however, eat meat and fish that still looks like a lump of animal, goat or ewes' products, eggs, fruit, oats, veg and nuts/pulses/seeds/beans.

I've worked at places where it's been compulsory to attend events/eat what's given and sat in front of tables of pure beige with a cup of water.

I also walked into one restaurant for a do where I was thinking 'Brilliant choice, this is the perfect place to get something I can eat without it affecting anybody else', only to be informed before I'd even sat down that everybody was having a, b and c and if I was about to announce I was vegan, I could fuck off now as In This Team We Eat Meat.

And the number of times people thought they were being clever about 'mmm bacon'. I like bacon a lot. I like crusty bread bacon rolls with butter and ketchup a hell of a lot. But I can't fucking eat them and a strip of bacon by itself just doesn't have the same appeal, so piss off. The lectures about eating disorders and attention seeking weren't particularly welcome, either.

If I go out, a vegan meal means I can just look to see whether there is a significant amount of wheat involved - the rest of the thinking has already been done for me. Same applies where there are requests for dietary requirements - it cuts down the explanations.

In short, if you don't want to or can't eat animal products, you have to tell people or they will automatically assume you eat dairy/generic beige shit or be incredibly unpleasant. At least if you've told them, you know they're deliberately being unpleasant to you, rather than just generally.

Dontsweatthelittlestuff · 28/08/2019 15:35

I have no idea who is a vegan on mn. You are all just pixels on my screen so I have no idea what you had for lunch and why would anyone feel the need to share this info.

OwnerofanAngryCat · 28/08/2019 15:53

Was anyone here on the old BBC Archers message boards and do they remember Ruthie the Vegan from Liverpool.

She was totally deranged, and a very nasty woman who pretended she was a social worker. She kept popping up to talk about yummy vegan brownies and to shout abuse at anyone who mentioned they were not a vegan. She also wished that someone's son would die in a plane crash.

Iicr someone (who I have think was also vegan)on the board knew her in real life and would go out of their way to avoid her.