I originally created this as a page, but I think it functions better as a post. Be back in a few days with some travel experiences and lessons learned.
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I'm not sure of the origin of this cartoon, as I've seen it on more than one blog, but it makes a good point: it's hard to be a true vegan in our society. Heck--it's hard to even be a true vegetarian.
As I've discussed on my "Why Vegan" page, part of the reason I chose to move towards veganism was because I discovered that things I loved as a vegetarian were actually not vegetarian at all.
At least in my mind, "vegetarian" has always meant someone who doesn't consume any animal product that required the animal to die. Thus, no beef, chicken, fish, etc., but also no leather or silk (although some seem to be divided on that last one). So when I discovered that most cheese is processed with rennet, an enzyme mainly sourced from veal calves' stomachs, I realized that cheese was not okay with me. Further reading and research brought up the great sugar conspiracy, and I realized that much of what is considered "vegetarian" today is really not.
This was one of my top reasons for taking the final step to veganism, but I wonder how many other vegetarians know about these things? Was I living in the dark for 15 years? Are there vegetarians out there who search out rennet-less cheese, and only use organic sugar? How many vegetarians research the contents of their cosmetics and body products to make sure they don't contain carmine/cochineal, gelatin, glycerin/glycerol, or guanine? I know that until a few months ago, it never crossed my mind.
So how are we defining vegetarian these days? Is there still a focus on preserving the lives of the animals that produce our food and body products? Because if so, I think vegetarians as a whole have a lot to learn. Maybe the cartoon was a good thing.
