Why do so many people criticise vegans?

[trunch]

I'm a meat eater!

However, I don't understand why people criticise vegans so much.

They aren't hurting me and are trying to save animals and the environment.

What's wrong with that?

Surely people should be more critical of me because animals are killed for me to eat?

Because it’s seen as “woke” and we all know most people don’t like that for some reason.

I admire vegans. I think people who criticise vegans, or teatotallers, are insecure twats who can’t cope with people making choices that reflect better on those people than the twats’ choices do on them.

I am vegan. I feel it's because we show them by example that it is easy and possible, and they therefore have no excuse for their choices to eat meat and dairy - people know we don't need it, they know it is cruel, and vegans' mere existence makes them feel guilty for not making the same choice.

I'm veggie and I do broadly support the vegans but it is a pain as now many of the old veggie options in shops and eateries with dairy and cheese are gone replaced with far inferior tasting vegan options. Also my bestie is now a vegan and we love going for tea and cake together but we are now restricted to places that do vegan cakes, often vegan cafes where the cakes and the tea just aren't as nice and are sometimes pretty grim even when they cost more.

Because SOME vegans enjoy making others feel uncomfortable about their life choices and can be judgemental.

In retaliation, SOME meat eaters now 'fight back' and make fun of vegans, because they feel they themselves are being judged.

And it's a loop!

Personally vegans annoy me because I'm vegetarian, and since the rise of veganism there are far fewer veggie options on menus (cheese!) and everything is plant based 👀 But other than that minor offence, I have nothing against them 😂

I don't hate anyone, regardless of their food preferences.

I do find that some vegans will be very vocal about their choices- even when not asked. I would never tell a vegan/vegetarian/Muslim the benefits of eating meat and pork!

I do have concerns about people trying to feed dogs, cats and young children vegan diets- but don't know anyone personally who does this.

I think a lot of them deep down feel embarrassed that they can't or won't try, or embarrassed about the reality of meat eating.

I also think they see being vegan as placing a value judgement on their own behaviour - even though generally unspoken and implicit, it really triggers people's egos.

And...this is the big one... in many cases it is sheer ignorance.

Because being vegan is a choice that doesn't make them superior but SOME of them think it does.

Sometimes people can be a bit OTT. Like the old joke - how do you know someone's vegan? Don't worry, they'll tell you! More common in newly adopted vegans IME.

People generally don't like being lectured about their life choices, and it's very easy for someone talking about veganism to come across that way (some people do intentionally, and I find it excruciating).

TBH I find it boring for people to bang on excessively on any subject.

@Motomum23 or perhaps it is the other way round as I suggested above - having been veggie or vegan my whole life, I have found that people seem to have an inferiority complex when they meet a vegan or veggie - even at times it would never be raised other than for practical reasons (in a restaurant for example) - you then get the third degree about it from meat eaters, when you're just trying to get something you can eat. It triggers them!

I genuinely don't think it's this because no-one needs an excuse to eat meat.

As you've said, 'it's easy and possible' to be vegan so why would they feel guilty?

I'm not sure what the reason is, but really don't think it's guilt.

Maybe a PP has it right and it's because they see it as 'woke' whatever that means, or perhaps they see vegans as 'preachy' which is silly because obviously not all vegans are the same.

I don’t care what people are/do - just stop banging on about it. 🤷‍♀️

I'm with you on this, as a vegan. It's so bloody lazy to smash it together - I was veggie and then became vegan. I've really noticed a reduction in choices. Let's all have the mushroom risotto 😂

Mind you I am still massively bitter at Pret closing their remaining Veggie Pret stores, because there was sooo much choice in the main Prets....yes that's worked out amazingly.

I have never met a vegan who banged on about it

I have met a number of meat eaters however who do go off on one if you happen to order a veggie meal

I've been a strict vegetarian for over 40 years. I don't run around proclaiming I'm a vegetarian or prothletising about vegetarianism.

However, I've known people who have been vegan for at least 30 seconds who lecture me on why I should be vegan and don't shut up about it. For some, their personality is being vegan or whatever the new fad is.

TL;DR a lot of them are attention seeking pita

I'm sure it's not because they're vegans but there's quite a big overlap between vegans and arseholes that want to tell other people how to lead their lives. It's the latter that people don't like, they don't care what other people do or don't eat.

It's not about criticising vegans. Vegans are entirely justified in making their own choices and eating whatever they wish.

The problem I have come across personally is that many vegans are preachy and superior. They feel that their choices give them the moral high ground and will choose to criticise what others eat. They feel they have the right to dictate venues/menus for a group meal - many I have come across have real issues with other people at the same table eating eggs, cheese or meat/fish even if eating their own preference of food.

It’s weird that vegans are considered to ‘bang on’ about their food choices, when meat eaters do it so often-maybe without realising!

I don't hate vegans or veggies but also don't want to be lectured about my own food choices which (some) do. If they don't, crack on!

We have two vegans in our circle. They always know best, don't compromise and don't keep quiet about it.
At (voluntary) communal meals the theme is always 'there's nothing I can eat'. They never bring food to the potluck.
I've stopped inviting them home for meals or eating out with them. I have done vegan meals for guests but it was never enough.
They also carry on how they have to accept medication not being vegan.

I more or less ignore veganism. My life is too short for this nonsense and telling people (me) of for not to agree on food. We eat a lot of vegetarian food as a family but we won't give up meat, cheese, milk, honey stuff like that. We just fuss about it.

As a former vegan myself, I don't criticise anybody's choice not to eat animal products: an admirable decision in many instances, I think.

I do, however, find the sort of people who confuse dietary choices with a personality to be tiresome.

As with anything in life - it should all be about live and let live, but there are usually a small minority of militant-minded people who insist on forcing their lifestyle choices/religion/political opinions on other people. So it's not vegans per se - it's people who see it as their life mission to convert others to their viewpoint or way of life. I find it deeply infuriating that others think they have a right to preach to others - unsolicited - on matters that relate to personal choice.

It's the same with climate change - I know someone who is now deeply into Extinction Rebellion - fine, you do you, but don't try and recruit me. We haven't spoken since what started as a normal conversation about recycling ended up with her saying that people who DON'T throw soup over priceless art/glue themselves to motorways lack courage and aren't true defenders of the planet.

I was fucking fed up by this point and noted that she had three children - the literal worst thing you can do for the environment is to reproduce (not saying people shouldn't have children of course, but there are numerous studies about how it is one of the most significantly negative things anyone can do for the environment) - I have no children, so told her my soup stays in my fridge thanks.

This! Im a veggie too and totally agree.

Having been vegan or veggie my whole life (mid 40s now) I can tell you that it always was meat eaters that started on me as soon as they found out I was vegan or veggie (if I was eating with them for example). Having grown up this way I have never pushed it on people, but always come up against aggressive meat eaters who want to provoke me or aggressively question me about my diet or ask inane questions like "but don't you want to try a bacon sandwich" or some other rubbish about it being unhealthy and so on.

So I think it has always been thus, that the meat eaters have always started on the veggies, completely unprovoked in most cases (100% of the time in my experience), first. I'm not saying there aren't vegans who go on at meat eaters but as a vegan / veggie my whole life I have never done that and this was my experience.