Since you’re talking about Germany: Tofu has been unfairly demonized here (maybe because it can serve as a meat substitute).
It is a great source of nutrients and protein. It can be prepared in many different ways. It is environmentally friendly, can be conveniently stored and has a relatively long shelf life.
and paywall
I’d just like to interject for a moment. What you’re refering to as vegan, is in fact, GNU/vegan, or as I’ve recently taken to calling it, GNU plus vegan.
Are you me? I worked in a butcher’s shop after school. For me, it was like a job in any other factory, except that the clothes smelled a bit disgusting in the evening. Curing pork belly I never made any connection and didn’t feel any remorse. I was happy to have quick and cheap access to meat. Eating meat was part of the identity in my circle of friends.
The pendulum only swung around when I lived among complete strangers for a while. But I also realize that not everyone gets that chance in life.
That’s okay. There are many people who only know their food as a bite-sized anonymous mass from the supermarket. who think that cows just give milk all the time. They don’t know how piglets are bred. That you can walk into any barn and see unfathomable suffering in every corner. Who have never heard of forceful impregnation, confinement crates, premature separation, tail docking, mulesing, torture breeding, teeth clipping, CO2 chambers, castration, steroid growth, veal crates, tethering, weaning rings, induced moulting, sheep dipping… and we haven’t even started on the illegal cruelties.
In this state of blissful ignorance, you might regard someone who associates eating a steak with rape as crazy.
I used to be like this too. And to be honest, there are times when I wish I could return to it and just dismiss vegans with a downvote as exaggerating and annoying.
I would trip over your description “a vegan restaurant that serves a bit of meat” as well, because it doesn’t make sense to call it “vegan” then.
I can understand why someone would want to prevent the term “vegan” from being watered down.
If a supposedly vegan restaurant suddenly offers non-vegan dishes, this carries more weight for vegans than if some other restaurant tinkers with its menu.
You may have already advertised the “vegan” restaurant in good faith and now they’re stabbing you in the back.
The change also shows that the owners themselves are not vegan. And then, of course, you question everything: were the ingredients ever properly screened? What about the wine? Were the chairs covered in leather? Were the candles made from beeswax?
Just imagine a “vegan” restaurant that has an advertising banner for the elephant circus hanging on the door. Outrage would be justified. But they even put fucking meat on the menu.
“Vegan” is a statement. People should not tag it on their business if they’re merely coicidentally plant-based and don’t actually care for animal rights.
It would certainly have been more conciliatory for everyone if the mods had made it clear in the thread why they were upset about the comments. On the other hand, I can also understand if they were not in the mood for the hundredth discussion and would rather take the “easier” route and delete the comment. But I also think it’s excessive to justify it with “fake vegan”. You’re vegan if you leave your hands off the animals. Semantic considerations are not necessary.
That being said, it’s wonderful that you’re both vegan and that the topic is obviously important to you. Don’t let a loose string on the jointly pulled rope divide you. We have more important battles to fight.
Vegan btw
Why is it an insane comparison?
Cows, pigs, sheeps, etc. are raped (no consent) and sexually assaulted (against their will) for dairy, meat, wool…
I’ve seen a lot of hate towards vegans online, admittedly being someone who partook in that several years ago myself to a small degree.
Then you probably understand that the hate is primarily a coping mechanism because vegans propose arguments that question their lifestyle. It’s a “them” problem, not a “you” problem.
If you value consistency, don’t let a few jerks push you into a behavior that isn’t true to yourself. Don’t come up with fake reasons for why you neglect to partake in rituals that don’t respect the rights of animals.
State your real reasons. This is also better for the animals. If someone then wants to start a discussion, you can still politely refuse.
Although we have seen a small decline in traffic, in no way is it what the graph is showing (which some have incorrectly interpreted to be a 50% or 35% decrease). This year [2023], overall, we’re seeing an average of ~5% less traffic compared to 2022.
Although I agree with the rest of the comment, I would suggest a less brutal activity, such as a hiking or bird watching.
These also require less equipment.
Hell, ban all advertising, data capture, use of analytics in content discovery, etc for non-adults.
Wait. You mean no social media AND no ads?
I would browse the internet as a “child” all day.
don’t give more to someone then they give to you
I tend to disagree on that one. Random acts of kindness/selflessness to people, even complete strangers, can bring bonus satisfaction to your life (and sometimes will be paid back). Make it a habit to give to people, when you have the chance, especially if it is low effort.
If you have people around you that just constantly leech off of you, then I agree: don’t let yourself be sucked dry.
Most of the experience, including your examples, is not specific to Germany. The notion that tofu is not for “real men” can be seen in other meat-heavy societies. Just like the idea that tofu is not a filling meal. In pop culture, it is often associated with weak traits (e.g. “soy boy”), and described as tasting bad or bland in general.
In Germany, a special permit was required until the 1990s to produce certain types of tofu. If you offer people something with tofu, many still turn up their noses or laugh because they think you’re joking. I don’t notice this as much with any other widely available food.
There is also far too much discussion about whether something can be called tofu sausage, tofu burger or tofu butter. But I think here we’ve passed the low point and common sense is slowly gaining ground.
Sometimes you still come across the false claims that tofu raises estrogen levels and that the rainforest is cut down to produce it.