Revolted by seeing others eat meat

[hibbledibble]

I am struggling with this a little, and wondering how to deal with it.

I am just starting being vegan with veganuary, but have been a lifelong veggie. Never eaten meat and have no desire to. The idea of eating flesh disgusts me.

I however realise that others have different beliefs and respect that. I don't expect others to be veggie around me.

Last night I went out with a friend for dinner. He got a huge plate of meat (pretty much 2 dead birds) and was pulling apart at it with fingers. The smell and sight was revolting for me. I didn't say anything or do anything as I don't think it would have been right, but honestly it bothered me a lot, and it is still bothering me the next day.

Any idea how I can best manage this? I accept most of my friends aren't veggie. Should I not go out for dinner with them? Is it acceptable to suggest veggie places?

You don't have the problem OP. All those people eating meat, what percentage of them would kill and prepare it if it wasn't in a nice plastic tray. If they had to watch a video of the animals short life they would not eat them.
To the pp who mentioned sheep - but they only get to live for about three months!

You are mistaken if you think this is a safe place to post this- most people on here are trolls and enjoy posting horrible comments to make the OP feel like shit.
However I hope you find a solution- you should definitely suggest a vegan place to eat. My best friend is a vegan and we often eat out at vegan places and I quite enjoy it to be honest! Xxxxxxxx

I am not veggie, I eat meat, but I find people eating ribs revolting so I can understand your reaction. Do what others have suggested and propose a veggie place.

ladybirdie "most people" are not trolls at all, what childish nonsense

I would be more than happy to eat at a vegan restaurant recommended by my vegan friend. I wouldn't be happy to do it every time we went out, though, as I enjoy other foods too. It isn't reasonable to expect a whole social group with varied dietary preferences to eat vegan every time they go out socially (nor was OP asking for that).

If you want an echo-chamber of vegans going "eeeuuuw, dead birds" that's fine for you, but OP isn't going to get much out of that, is she? As the point of the thread was the question of eating out with friends who are not vegans and coping with their dietary choices.

@Greensleeves some people

That isn't what you posted, though is it?

Ha I stand corrected sorry. Just saying that nearly every thread I have read on here ever someone has something horrible to say nearly all of the time. And as this seems to be a 'controversial' topic, I wouldn't expect anything less.

No, that's true. MN can get pretty fighty at times. But there's pretty much always good advice in there, even if it's not what you wanted to hear.

Vegans are often an easy target for abuse on here, other group would not be treated the same way.

Groups

Nobody is abusing them here, though, so why are you bringing it up?

I think the advice had been quite balanced. As with any difference in beliefs in a friendship group, some give and take is required.

I have friends from various different religions, and I myself have none. I do not force my beliefs on them and they don’t on me. I’ve been to their weddings and they’ve been to mine. I’d expect a similar give and take approach to food - I’d not take a vegan to a steak house because there’s unlikely to be anything to cater for them. I’d not be happy if they refused to sit and eat vegan food at a mixed restaurant because someone had ribs or a steak.

Find a few good ‘go to’ places op that your group likes and that does a variety of food. A reasonable expectation would be that they sometimes also join you at a vegan restaurant.

Some of my veggie or vegan friends wouldn't have even gone to a restaurant where meat was on the menu. I eat meat at home but would never in a restaurant, I just don't trust the quality or freshness, silly I know. There are so many international vegetarian options available now, I find them much more interesting.

I eat a low meat diet and a lot of veggie food. When I do have meat it's a small amount here and there and almost never large joints.

I can't stand people eating chicken thighs, spare ribs, rack of lamb etc. I hate meaty finger food and hate watching others eat it.

But that's MY issue and MY problem. I would be totally unreasonable to try and steer eating out choices because I don't like it.

I'm veggie, and I find the thought of eating the flesh of dead animals almost cannabilistic. I think they're descriptive terms rather than emotive. I can understand your revulsion and would suggest that you eat out at places that don't involve whole chunks of dead animal on the plate.

Yup meat is vile and watching others eat dead animals knocks me sick. However we must respect other people and what they eat. Eating is a very personal thing so you really should keep this to yourself xx

Well I do understand that we all have to respect each other and their choices etc but to some people eating meat is so wrong in the way that slavery or wife beating is to others. Maybe one day people will look back and see how uncivilised and barbaric we were now. I hope so.

I am not saying my friend was rude by using fingers, just that it was unpleasant to see. As a vegetarian who has never eaten meat, I didn't realise that Quaip was difficult to eat with a knife and fork. It is totally alien to me.

Humans are omnivores, who historically have eaten a plant based diet with very occasional meat, so saying we are carnivores is factually incorrect.

Personally I disagree with eating meat as I don't believe in slaughtering animals, regardless of how ethically they have been raised. I also doubt that a lot of meat that is labelled as high welfare actually is, due to previous mislabelling scandals (eg horse meat).

OP, I feel the same. Animal carcass is not something I want to see on a table, or smell.
Lots of vegans feel the same, and it is becoming less acceptable to kill other animals needlessly.

I have lots of non-vegan friends, they always eat plant-based around me.

You might find www.liberationpledge.com/ interesting.

I’m vegan but I think we all must remember that it’s similar to religion and politics - best kept to ourselves. Nobody likes a pushy evangelical 😂

I have lots of non-vegan friends, they always eat plant-based around me.

Really? I wouldn't even consider not eating meat around my vegan friends and relatives. Surely what I eat is none of their business and vice versa.

Wow, just read that Liberation Pledge page.

Do people really make a public show of refusing to sit where meat is being eaten? Even my newly slightly tiresome about it super vegan cousin wouldn't go in for that kind of carry on.

And I would just like to add that I have absolutely no problem with veganism.

But unless you only ever want to hang out with other vegans then you have to accept different strokes and allow other adults to make their choices about what they eat.

hair, yes people do.

You might find this info from their page enlightening:

The historical campaign against foot binding in China struggled for 1000 years. Education, lobbying, and countless other methods made no traction in stopping what was (like eating animals today) considered a “traditional” practice.

But in 1890 campaigners found the magic bullet. They created a public pledge where families could group together and promise to:

never bind their daughters’ feet; and
refuse to allow their sons to marry women with bound feet.
These pledges, while initially difficult, grew like wildfire and, after 1000 years of suffering, completely ended the practice of foot binding.

We can do the same for animals by refusing to participate in violent practices, but also refusing to accept violent practices in our community.

Are you seriously comparing eating a substanve which humans have evolved to be able to eat to child abuse?

Think what you like about other people's eating habits but the 'i'm going to make a statement if anyone consumes meat near me' is exactly the reason the 'vegans never stop goinf on about how they are vegan' stereotype exists.

Vegetarians don't eat meat. Yey I've never met an evangelical vegetarian who insists on commenting on other people's food choices or expecting everyone to eat at vegetarian only restraunts to cater to their personal views.

I’m vegan but I think we all must remember that it’s similar to religion and politics - best kept to ourselves. Nobody likes a pushy evangelical
This ^^
There is a time and a place to discuss. Pushing your personal views down everyone else's throat is so tiresome.