ugggghhhh I'm afraid I might be walking right into trouble with this one because veganism so I'm putting it behind cut in case I need to delete it, but:
yes, a vegan diet can cause devastation of various plants and habitats.
but factory farms are also cruel to their employees and the animals and they destroy communities and surrounding habitat as well. the crops the grow to feed the animals also involve destroying lots of native habitat so we can have enough soy and corn for them.
both can rely on exploitative practices against humans.
what I'm saying is they are both evil in some way because any system under capitalism is inherently exploitative, and what you choose to do with that information is up to you.
obviously eating local would be ideal. I like to try my best to buy local produce and meat whenever I can. but a lot of people can't! right now I can't! I have to go to the food bank and eat what they give me, and sometimes that includes animal products. I am just grateful that I get to eat. a lot of people live in food deserts and literally have never even had the chance to hold a fresh apple before. to deny them any amount of food is cruel, and sometimes a microwave burrito or a lunchable at the bodega is all you have access to. these people are not morally bankrupt or immoral in any way for just that reason! they are just trying to survive like everyone else. and sometimes the chicken from the factory farm is all you can afford or even access and your family has to eat. humanely raised meat is more expensive and that's out of reach for a lot of people.
I was a vegan for eight years. I started at 19. I was young and idealistic and had just watched Earthlings and read some books about the meat industry and I was horrified. I was trying my best in a world that I didn't understand yet. I was misguided but legitimately trying my best with the information I had. (this was back in 2006, so there weren't nearly as any resources as there are now).
but even then, what I hated most was vegans who expect that the whole world will be vegan if we just proselytize enough. it won't!! to think it could is unrealistic and asinine. there will always be people who eat meat, for health reasons, for religious reasons, for cultural reasons, for practicality reasons. even just because they like it! and that's okay!! obviously it would be preferable if you could get it from a small independent farm because they treat their animals a lot better. or you could hunt your own meat. but that's a lot more expensive and out of many people's reach.
a lot of vegans hated me because I was pro-hunting in the case of doing it for food. hunting for food can help cull deer populations etc. it's our fault they overproduce in the first place because humans killed all their natural predators, but until we can get those predators back in the wild, it's the kindest thing to do so the deer don't end up starving or getting hit by cars because there are too many of them. not to mentions indigenous people whose lifestyles and needs surround animal products.
I was kind of obnoxious about it by bringing it up in relevant conversation (cooking, talking about food, etc) but it was nothing like people were to me. they'd do things like eat a cheeseburger in my face chewing with an open mouth and go on and on about how delicious this dead cow was. it was shitty! I'm wasn't forcing my food choices on them, why were they doing it to me? and they were so gross about it. like, any normal person, vegan or no, would be disgusted by what some of these people did. so we can't deny that people on both sides can really suck. but some people were really interested and asked if I could teach them to cook! so not everyone was shitty. just like in almost any other situation. it's the person, not the diet.
but if someone told me, "I'd be vegan but I just can't give up food xyz," do you know what was most effective? saying "yeah sure keep eating xyz and just stop eating what you're comfortable with. every bit helps." jumping on them about how bad dairy products or eggs or whatever would just scare people away and make them less likely to even try.
mostly, when I went out back then, I would just look at the menu ahead of time quietly order something that I knew was vegan or would make sure I had something to eat at home and could just munch on a plate of fries or something so I was still involved in the table. and it was fine.
instead of preaching, I made delicious vegan food and shared it with my loved ones. I didn't say anything about what was in it unless there was an allergen I needed to share. and when someone would say "this cupcake is awesome" or whatever I'd say "yeah! you'd never believe it's vegan, right?" because food is a bonding experience for people. food is one of the most culturally important things to humans. it's how we show hospitality and love, it's how we share our personal and generational history. and when my friend's little old Italian grandma who did her best but didn't realize an ingredient wasn't vegan but still went out of her way to try, I think that means a lot more than ideological purity. she was trying to be loving and take care of me the best she knew how. and it meant so much that she tried! I didn't eat it then because I was afraid the butter would mess up my stomach and we were at a party that I didn't want to leave early, but I made sure to thank her profusely over and over and took it home (I gave it to my roommate) because she didn't have to do that. she could have just only made chicken alfredo and lasagna and not even try.
I didn't know agave was in danger when I started to eat it instead of honey. now I know and don't eat agave anymore! I didn't eat honey because it was made by a living creature until I realized the bees can leave whenever they want so it is in the bees' and the beekeepers' best interest to treat them well. sometimes it literally is just ignorance and being blinded by my own misguided morals. I wouldn't buy new leather but I kept all my old stuff and would thrift (this was back before thrift stores started charging insanely high prices).
I still eat and make a lot of vegan food (beans and rice are super cheap after all) but that's because I like the way it tastes. I do not eat a lot of meat due to health issues, and I have a food intolerance to dairy and gluten. so vegan and vegetarian food with meat once or twice a week is a pretty good solution for me, medically. but someone else might not be able to eat beans or legumes, so we would have entirely different dietary needs.
I'm rambling I know but I have so many thoughts on this, more than I cold reasonably share in a post. but I've seen a lot of vegan vs anti-vegan stuff around my dash and I just wanted to weigh in with my experiences and what I've learned.
anyway please don't kill me with rocks this is just my opinion based on personal experience
