No, no, no, no, no, a thousand times no!

[legalmoose]

Can You Be a Vegetarian and Still Eat Meat?

Um, no. If you eat meat, you are not a vegetarian. Vegetarians, by definition, do not eat meat, they eat plant-based foods. If you are mostly vegetarian and occasionally eat meat, you are still a meat eater. End of story. This is not a difficult concept, people!

The truly annoying part is that when people refer to themselves as vegetarian and then eat, say, chicken or fish, they make it that much more difficult for those of us who are vegetarian, who know what that means, and who really and truly don't eat meat. I can't believe the number of times I've been told/asked, "But it's just a little bit of chicken/fish/meat/egg/etc..." Ugh! That's the point, I don't eat it, but thanks.

Comments

[zoltrix.livejournal.com]

I could never give up meat. I love Beef. Chicken and baby chicken fetuses are a staple. And of course animal products such as cheese, milk, icecream, honey...yum!

[thespisgeoff.livejournal.com]

right.

i'd much rather people say "generally I eat vegetarian-style" or "i avoid red meat," rather than "i'm a vegetarian" when they're not actually living a vegetarian life.

[pinkfish.livejournal.com]

That's what people used to say. If they want to say, "I'm a flexarian", they can go ahead and do that, though I think it might be construed to mean they keep their ankles behind their head.

[joxn.livejournal.com]

You can eat eggs and milk and still be vegetarian. But not a vegan, which I understand that you are.

[childeofthesun.livejournal.com]

Okay, this is what I have come to understand about the whole vegetarian thing. I was always under the assumption that veggers didn't eat red meat, but that white meats (aka fish, pork, and poultry) were still okay. Then there were the ovo-lacto-vegans, who don't eat any meat, but will eat meat by-products, like cheese and eggs. Then you have the die-hard, uber strict vegans...no meat, no meat by-products. But this is just me. I honestly couldn't do it. Feel free to correct me where I'm wrong.

[eyow.livejournal.com]

Um...Merriam-Webster says that a vegetarian is someone who practices vegetarianism, and that is defined as "the theory or practice of living on a diet made up of vegetables , fruits, grains, nuts, and sometimes eggs or dairy products." No fish/pork/poultry mentioned.

[lilituc.livejournal.com]

Wow. Just wow. That was one of the stupidest articles I've ever read.

[william-mize.livejournal.com]

I didn't even click the link, but I bet myself ten dollars that it's about "flexarians" or some such nonsense.
Sounds like a cult.
I've been a vegetarian for almost ten years and it still boggles my mind when people ask "So you still eat seafood, right?"

Good LORD, people.

[grok.livejournal.com]

I suspect, that while annoying, these people who incorrectly refer to themselves as vegetarians are actually just stupid and/or misinformed and not intentionaly trying to make things difficult for actual vegetarians.

[the-dibbler.livejournal.com]

O_o

yeah and i'm a nudist except for when i wear clothes.

[tracytracy.livejournal.com]

lol - well - I AM a nudist and I wear clothes cause otherwise I'll be arrested everytime I try to go to work. Analogy doesn't quite fit :)

[saltbox.livejournal.com]

As you know, I don't eat meat except when it's an ethnic food I've never/rarely had and really want to explore (i.e., my "cultural exception"). It was the only way I could balance my interest in (a) changing my environmentally damaging consumption patterns but (b) retaining my ability to explore, in an experiential way (as opposed to intellectually and academically, where I already have 30+ books on food history and sociology, and this is on top of any recipe books I have), ethnographic food trends.

To my friends, I explain the whole situation. But, lately, to people I will never encounter again---for instance, at restaurants---I do occasionally use "vegetarian" as a shorthand, much as you might be annoyed at me for that. For the very reason you describe---I don't want people sneaking little bits of chicken/fish/meat/egg/etc into my food when I'm trying to avoid meat or telling me "it's just a little bit". But that is far more likely to happen if I explain "I don't eat meat except for certain cultural exceptions" because this far too difficult for many people to get, on a surface level. Believe me, I understand your concerns about this shorthand making it difficult for people who never ever ever eat meat. But I think by limiting it to people who I'd never encounter again, that's avoided, because those people would never see any non-"vegetarian" behavior of mine in the first place. And I think it probably helps the concerns of "true vegetarians" by raising the percieved demand for vegetarian food.

[italhorseman.livejournal.com]

you are so cute when you get angry. by the way, it's my experience that you are not a vegetarian...;-)