Time for a rant.

I try not to rant much, and I try not to let some of the things I see and hear around me get to me much.  And I promise that I will get back to health and fitness posts after this.  But I feel the need to rant today.  This is turning out to be very similar to the rant I posted last time I ranted, but I feel like being redundant today.

You see, there's new fury running rampant because California had the gall to suggest "No Meat Mondays--" that the average American might possibly be doing a good thing for their health and for the environment by not eating meat for one day per week, which has, of course, has led to an onslaught of vegan-bashing. 

As a vegan member of the strength community, I get that I am in the absolute minority, and I get that my way of life is not for everyone.  I do not push my views on anyone else, just as I would not want others to push theirs on me.  But I am living proof that it is not only possible, but easy to be very healthy, very strong, and very lean without animal products. 

What is comical is that even with documented proof (blood tests, body fat measurements, and so on), people still try to find an explanation for my success-- maybe my heritage is full of vegetarians?  (Nope-- Romanians and Russians are not known for their vegetarianism)  Maybe I should have such and such test done to PROVE that there is SOMETHING wrong with me?  (Dude.  Really?)  Oh, and my favorite-- "Well, you're fine for now, but later on, your brain is going to deteriorate."  (Yeah, after 13 years as a strict vegan, I'm still fine.  And please show me the peer-reviewed, published, irrefutable scientific proof that vegans have brain rot after a certain age.  If it's science you want, I can [and have done in previous blog posts, actually] pull up many peer-reviewed, published scientific articles that demonstrate that people following vegetarian diets tend to be healthier, have less disease, and live longer, higher-quality lives than those who do not).


I do not understand why my food choices, which are all 100% moral choices, make other people so incensed.  I am an animal lover and a lover of life, and I care deeply for the environment.  I do not wish to contribute to the death of any living creature inasmuch as I am able to avoid it.  The manner in which most meat is raised is absolutely detrimental to the planet.  So for me, it's a no-brainer.  When it comes down to it, my food choices are my business.  I am hurting no one (and saving many animal lives) by being vegan, and I am clearly benefiting myself, whether or not others can handle that fact. 

In any case, Meatless Mondays is not a law-- you are not going to be arrested if you don't follow it.  But if you do try it, I guarantee that meatless Mondays isn't going to turn anyone into a weak, sick, Twizzler-munching hippie.  It might give some people a newfound love for vegetables they'd never tried before.  It might help some people realize they don't need fast food every day to survive.  And it might just save the lives of a few animals, and maybe give the planet a little bit of the love it deserves.  But it most certainly does not deserve the fire and brimstone rage that it seems to incite.

Calm down, people.  You can have your two pounds of bacon on Tuesday.