Seen a lot of posts on Lemmy with vegan-adjacent sentiments but the comments are typically very critical of vegan ideas, even when they don’t come from vegans themselves. Why is this topic in particular so polarising on the internet? Especially since unlike politics for example, it seems like people don’t really get upset by it IRL

  • jacktherippah@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    I don’t hate veganism. It’s a dietary choice and that’s fine. What I hate is vegans. They’re always pushy and judgmental and hateful and sometimes even destructive in their activism. They’re an annoying group of people and I just don’t want to have to deal with them.

    • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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      7 months ago

      Unfortunately this is a topic like abortion.

      Vegans and pro life folks see what “others” are doing as murder/evil. So naturally, since they view the behavior as absolutely inappropriate, their discussion of the topic is always very energetic.

      I am not advocating for any dietary path, or abortion position in this comment. I’m only describing people’s behavior. Do not misrepresent me.

      • surewhynotlem@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        Then what would we call someone who makes the dietary choice but none of the other lifestyle choices? How would they identify in a restaurant setting? The answer is “vegan”. In the same way that I’m vegetarian but don’t care if I wear leather shoes.

        I’m not saying you’re wrong, I’m saying that English lacks the words that would let you be precise. We need a word for people who are vegan in diet, and don’t care to bother the rest of the world about it. That’s why OPs question keeps coming up.

        • Inui [comrade/them]@lemmy.ml
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          7 months ago

          Plant-based is the label for people who follow a vegan diet (plant-based diet) but not a vegan lifestyle like avoiding leather.

            • Inui [comrade/them]@lemmy.ml
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              7 months ago

              Generally, no. You might see it in grocery store labeling as a tactic to signal the food is okay for vegans but to try and not turn off someone who goes “ick” if something specifically says its vegan. But it’s because “vegan” means the same thing in dietary terms. Vegan food is suitable for both vegans and people on plant-based diets, because the other things vegans are concerned with aren’t related to diet so aren’t relevant to the context.

      • ReiRose@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        I think plant-based is the diet choice and veganism is the lifestyle. I got corrected by someone who was plant based. They didn’t want to associate with vegans

    • Tiefling IRL@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      7 months ago

      It’s an issue of the loud ones standing out the most. I can easily say the same thing about many carnivores I know, who moan and complain if there’s as much as a piece of corn in their meal.

      (Though disclaimer, I’m not vegan)

    • r0ertel@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      I came here to say the thing that you said in better words. I’m on a diet for health reasons that closely resembles the vegan diet, so to keep it simple, I’ll say to people that I’m vegan. Most wait staff don’t care if I ask if a menu item can be made vegan, but family or people I’m dining with will either send hate vibes or go into a long thing about some distant vegan relative who died from malnutrition.

    • Floey@lemm.ee
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      7 months ago

      Yes, some people being pushy and judgemental is the real travesty. Not animals having their autonomy and lives taken. I didn’t realize we were supposed to coddle people who we see partaking in grave abuses.

    • Today@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      My son used to tell this joke - little less relevant now that the giant hand sized vapes are less common.

      If you vape, you’re vegan, and you’re a musician; which one do you talk about first?

        • Today@lemmy.world
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          7 months ago

          That wasn’t one of the three, but I’d imagine there may be some crowds where you bring that up early and some where you hold off.