Comments on: Saturday Link Roundup http://thesolution.org.nz/2009/11/07/saturday-link-roundup/ For a better world... Mon, 21 May 2012 01:26:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: David Tong http://thesolution.org.nz/2009/11/07/saturday-link-roundup/#comment-47 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:17:40 +0000 http://thesolution.org.nz/?p=149#comment-47 Peter,

I’m not unsympathetic to Emily’s position. When it comes to meat options being more tasty than vegan ones at BBQs, to be honest, I can’t remember whether the meat options were more tasty. I’m pretty sure that processed (bread) sausages and chicken nuggets taste worse than Fries schnitzel, and worse still than homemade chickpea patties, etc.

The thing I found hilarious when Emily first said at work that she was tempted to hit a chicken nugget was that THAT was the meat that tempted her. I could understand more if it was a steak, or a good home-made burger pattie or whatever.

I think this really comes back to culture and convenience. And that, I think, is one of the biggest barriers.

However, I’m not entirely sure if vegan junk food options like fake meats are things that we entirely want to promote, especially when they’re heavily salted, processed as hell, and imported. I’m not sure if we want to simply encourage replacing a junk food omnivorous diet with a junk vegan diet!

]]> By: Peter Sankoff http://thesolution.org.nz/2009/11/07/saturday-link-roundup/#comment-40 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:19:51 +0000 http://thesolution.org.nz/?p=149#comment-40 Love the roundup in vegan news. Great job.
Found Emily’s blog the most interesting – and as you can probably guess, I’m more sympathetic to her “meat culture” argument than you. I think she makes a valid point. BBQs and going out with friends can occasionally suck, mainly because we are surrounded by meat options that are more tasty than the non-meat ones. This goes back to my earlier blog point of the need for more vegans in order to get better vegan options. I agree with you that in many ways, it is easy enough to go vegan – if you care enough to do so, but I also see the point of it being hard. In Auckland, my wife and I hardly ever go out to eat these days, because we’re tired of the same old same old. Another reason we’re excited to head to Melbourne this week – but that’s for another blog. We cope with it because we care about the issues – a lot. But to turn around people who area on the fence, lukewarm, etc., the viability of alternatives is a significant point. You can continue to say “It’s easy, I have lots to eat, It’s possible to do” until you’re blue in the face – and I don’t disagree with you. But I feel dismissing the concerns of those who are concerned about good options is a mistake. I think we have a lot of work to do to address those options! Vegan advocacy and altering the balance of vegan options available is an important part of “the solution”.

Just my two cents….

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