A lot of people are driving a little bit less this year than they were in previous years. There's a number of reasons why, with some just not wanting to pay $4 a gallon, and others being very concerned about global warming. The extent to which people reduce their driving varies quite widely, too. Some folks drive just a little less than they used to, others take public transit whenever it's feasible to do so, and there's even a few folks who got rid of their cars and bike everywhere.
If you choose to bike/walk/bus most of the time, you'll rarely (perhaps never) be accused of being a hypocrite because you heated your home in the winter. People just kinda recognize that you're reducing your oil dependence in the ways that are comfortable for you, and that it's okay as long as you don't try to force them to match your commitment. They don't really expect you to go cold turkey and stop all fuel/energy consumption completely - 'cause doing so would be almost suicidal in today's world. Instead, we all recognize that it's admirable to at least reduce our carbon footprint, even when we aren't willing or capable of eliminating it entirely. It's not likely anyone would ever suggest your only options should be using 100 gallons of gas day or never using combustion or non-solar electricity at all, with no middle ground being sensible in todays world.
On a similar note:
Some people eat less than they did in previous years. There's a number of reasons why, ranging from just reducing the amount of gunk clogging your arteries, to concerns about the morality of eating animals or even logic concerning the amount of land and water needed to support an omnivorous diet. The extent to which people reduce their consumption varies quite widely. Some folks count their calories but otherwise don't really change their habits, while others eat no red meat or eat only free-range/humanely treated animals, and some folks who go vegan. It's a wide spectrum, with eating healthy at one end, and the somewhat puzzling extreme of breatharianism at the other.
So far, it sounds very parallel to those who drive less.
However, as vegan or vegetarian, you actually have to put up with people you barely know constantly giving you shit about it. I get that all the time, despite it being over 10 years since the last time I tried to convince another human being to match my commitment and stop eating meat. Yet, because I chose to remove meat from my diet, today I had the "pleasure" of being called a hypocrite by a friend because I still eat plants. For some reason, this really smart guy, and close personal friend, didn't stop to consider that some vegetarians may just be trying to reduce their impact on the world. Instead, he mocked vegetarians and implied they are insensitive schmucks for not considering the plight of the vegetable, our silent prey. He even went so far as to say that most people go vegan just because vegetables can't scream, and followed up by saying that since you can't avoid ever killing a microbe, there's just no point in not killing and eating animals.
Funny the way that double standard works, isn't it? :) I'm not mad about it, and an apology is not needed, but it seemed a reality check was in order. Dude, I love ya, but you're way off base on this one.
Edit: Which, admittedly, is probably your intent - and I'm probably too close to the issue to see the humor of your broadcast.
10 comments:
He stipulated
...become a vegetarian to be compassionate towards life...
Seems to me he was mocking those who say "I won't take a life" or "animals are to cute to eat".
Is it a double standard when a stipulation is proposed?
Yeah, I did say in there that if people just like eating vegetarian or feel healthier eating vegetarian that I support that, "Two thumbs up". My podcast was about the hypocrisy of "compassionate vegans" who see the killing of some life forms as divine bliss and the killing of others as akin to the Holocaust.
And there is plenty of shit given both ways on both the diet and fuel consumption issues. I think the goal should always be to find what is right for yourself and try not to be critical (for reasons other than comedy) of other people's choices. We like to think that we are making the right choice and a way to reinforce that is to tell someone who does things differently that they are wrong. It's like Muslims hating on Jews, bicycle riders hating on SUV drivers, and PETA hating on ranchers. It is also like Jews hating on Muslims, SUV drivers hating on bicycle riders, and ranchers hating on PETA. Operational Belief Systems.
And this was from the same guy's podcast that recommended teens avoid tobacco before the age of 18 and instead use marijuana.
Remember, I'm not angry. If you think this post sounds angry, that's just the effect of the imperfection of text-based communication. We're still cool.
I'm totally calm - though I imagine that same audiopost by Jake could have really pissed me off if I'd stumbled across it on a really crappy day. As such, it was worth my mentioning to a friend that he's skirting the line and pushing a button that some days is wired to explosives.
Earlier this year I got a painful lesson on my temper, and how people don't expect it to come flying out of nowhere. Better to draw attention to the trigger now, then let us all get surprised by it later.
It's my flaw, and I'm working on it, but educating my friends about the things that set me off seems to be a good starting place.
Again, totally calm, but certain statements call for rebuttal...
Seems to me he was mocking those who say "I won't take a life" or "animals are to cute to eat".
Which is exactly why my wife is a vegetarian. I guarantee you she'd be offended and angry about it, so I haven't shared his post with her.
Compassion is also a factor (though far from the entire reason) why I'm a vegetarian.
I'd find it personally very hard (emotionally) to kill most "food" animals. Therefore, I don't think it's right for me to pass my dirty work off to someone else.
There's a lot of other reasons why I personally am a vegetarian, though. (I'll enumerate them if you request, but it's too preachy to spout without a genuine interest).
But in a very real sense, my wife and I are the people he was writing about, though I don't think Jake realized it.
Is it a double standard when a stipulation is proposed?
Well, have you heard anyone give people shit who are driving less only because they don't want to pay $4 a gallon?
I mean, seriously, have you heard anyone say "Money is an awful reason to drive less? You should either spend your whole salary on gas or spend not a cent. Middle ground is ridiculous and baseless!"
I'm guessing (prior to this comment) the answer is no. It's possible that your experience is different than mine. If so, please educate me.
Here's where I'm coming from:
I take the bus quite often (and my wife does every day). No one ever gives me crap about that. Sarah's job even pays for her bus pass to reward her for not using a spot in their limited parking garage.
I don't eat meat, and I get shit for that all the time. Most people who give me crap about it once, repeat it frequently, and sometimes feel the need to escalate.
I've had people bring me an magazine at work that had a picture of a guy pointing to his canine teeth with a slogan along the lines of "proof that God wants us to eat meat".
I've had relatives "forget" and slip small amounts of ground beef into side dishes and tell me they were vegetarian. I've had the restaurants do the same, but at least then I'm a stranger in the midst of their dinner rush, so it's likely to be an accident/oversight. But when a family member tells you "I made this vegetarian just for you" and then you find beef in it, outrage ensues.
I've had bosses schedule business meetings at restaurants who's only vegetarian item were a single side dish. When I complained, they said "well at least there's something" and kept scheduling it there.
My podcast was about the hypocrisy of "compassionate vegans" who see the killing of some life forms as divine bliss and the killing of others as akin to the Holocaust.
No one really thinks the killing of animals is akin to the holocaust. The holocaust?
Seriously, has anyone ever suggested to you that you should be prosecuted for warcrimes because you ate meat?
Who's honestly out there calling for jail time for meat eaters? The toppling of government systems supported by carnivores? Dropping bombs or invading other countries to stop the consumption of meat?
No one.
Realistically, you don't need to point out to said vegetarians that they're being hypocritical.
Truth is, we already know it, and we don't appreciate someone waving it in our faces. We acknowledge that we can't stop all harm, that, short of suicide, we can't reduce our impact on the planet to nothing.
But we take an step towards reducing the impact we have. I can live off X resources (food, water, square footage of agriculture, etc) per year. Or, I can eat meat, and use some multiplier times X since the animals also consume food, water, and square footage. I choose to use the lesser resources when and where I can do so easily.
It's very comparable to choosing to drive less often.
Point being, I've yet to hear anyone get called a hypocrit for driving less, when they could be driving not at all.
Post a Comment