"I'm a vegetarian, but I eat fish" - Page 6

[madskye]

I'm pretty sure that vegetarian who eats fish is actually a vegan.



I was joking. I didn't mean to kill your thread.

I eat meat, but DH is ovo-lacto vegetarian. It's not that tough to figure out what you eat? I'm amazed at how many people think they are veg and still eat fish.

[NinaBruja]

Originally Posted by madskye

I'm pretty sure that vegetarian who eats fish is actually a vegan.

lmao

i showed my friend this thread and this is what she said
"they always accuse us of being obsessed with labels
but they are the ones who are clinging to a label, one they dont require"

i couldnt agree more

[Relynn]

:

[mom2keira]

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[ChristaN]

Originally Posted by Relynn

Well, after 14 years of vegans saying they eat fish, honey,etc. My dh has had it with the vegan label and says he will now only tell people he follows a "plant based diet".

The problem he is going to run into there is that it defines his lifestyle choices only in terms of what he will consume (diet), not what he will wear or otherwise utilize. I can't imagine saying that I am vegan and eat fish, although I do think that line on honey and white sugar (bone char) seems to be fairly blurry btwn different people who use the term vegan. Likewise on leather, wool, etc.

I do get what you are saying about the fact that one should not need to preface the term vegan with the adjective "strict." The blurring of the line does seem to necessitate it, unfortunately, though.

[HelloKitty]

Yeah maybe "plant based lifestyle" might be a better description for him. Of course than he will get the usual "Why don't you just call yourself vegan?" and all that the discussion will entail!! There's just no perfect answer for everyone unfortunetly.

[kallyn]

I would like to suggest that perhaps fish-eating people label themselves as veg due to ignorance and not malice/flippancy/wishy-washiness. I think that this ignorance is propagated by at least 3 different things:

1) The Catholic idea that fish is not a meat, which has pervaded pop culture.

2) Actual vegetarian literature. I'm not veg now, but I used to be, and I had a few books about how to get started in vegetarianism that included definitions of all the different kinds of veg*nism - including pescovegetarian and pollovegetarian. These were listed IN veg books as being veg. I don't have the book on me right now, but I believe one of the offenders was The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegetarianism. Here are some examples of online veg resources that say this:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/CO.../cc040316.html
http://www.intellectualloafing.com/a...etarianism.htm
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/veget...TypesofVeg.htm
http://www.co.mohave.az.us/WIC/Vegetarian.htm

3) People coming in contact with pescatarians who mistakenly call themselves vegetarians due to reasons 1 and 2.

Anyway, I'm not saying it's not annoying/difficult for ya'll, just that it might be useful to try and figure out WHY people do this so that you know how to combat it.

[EviesMom]

And as a former vegetarian married to a still vegetarian (eggs and dairy, yes, but no meat, including fish, chicken stock, etc.)... I have said when people ask that "I *eat a mostly vegetarian diet* and dh is vegetarian." I don't say that "I am a vegetarian but eat fish and poultry."

The difference being that I am not vegetarian anymore, but my diet is still 80%-90% vegetarian. I am very used to foods that omnivores are sometimes confused by, such as quinoa and bulgur and to let people know that they do not need to do a meat dish side for me. Relatives in particular seem to do this if they have a vegetarian dinner and have ominvores coming, adding baked chicken or fish as a side dish. I don't, however, say I'm vegetarian in other settings, like restaurants. I order what I want to order, and if I ask if something has red meat or pork, I don't say that I'm vegetarian, I say that I don't eat red meat, or don't say anything about why.

[richella]

Originally Posted by HelloKitty

There's just no perfect answer for everyone unfortunetly.

I think this says a lot.

[sheilajolene]

I don't mind people who are "vegetarian except fish" as much as I mind those who are "vegetarian but eat chicken". Yeah, there is no good description for this stuff, but labeling as veggie if you eat animal is just silly.

[loraxc]

Just have to say that the exact situation I try to avoid by labeling myself "vegetarian" (even though I VERY occasionally eat certain fish) happened to us the other day. We went to DH's adviser's house for dinner and were served farmed salmon. You know why? Because at some point we mentioned that we sometimes eat certain fish (which to him meant "Oh, good, we can have fish").

[HelloKitty]

EEEK, loraxc that's awful. What did you do?

[loraxc]

I ate a small piece. As did DH. It was just the two families eating together, so we couldn't really eat around it. DH made a comment, however.

Adviser: Oh, I hope you eat salmon!
DH: (semi-jokingly, but not really) Well, it's wild Alaskan sea salmon, right?
Adviser: (sheepish): Uh...well. No.
DH: That's a shame. Well, I suppose we'll have to make an exception. We don't normally eat it.

[HelloKitty]

That's a tough position to be in.

[jaxinsmom]

usual converstation starter with ppl I don't know:

DH: She's vegetarian.
Person: oh really?
Me: not technically, because I do eat fish, so Im a pesco-vegetarian, but prefer a veggie diet whenever possible.

the end.


Not sure what is so complicated about that. Like a previous person said, ppl choose this diet for a variety of reasons, for me it was health. It does get tiresome trying to always explain my eating habbits to ppl or my choices; occasionally I don't ~ and I can see where that could lead to confusion among the 'true' vegetarian/vegan community.

sorry *waving white flag*


I'll try to be more specific in the future...

[sheilajolene]

Originally Posted by jaxinsmom

usual converstation starter with ppl I don't know:

DH: She's vegetarian.
Person: oh really?
Me: not technically, because I do eat fish, so Im a pesco-vegetarian, but prefer a veggie diet whenever possible.

the end.


Not sure what is so complicated about that. Like a previous person said, ppl choose this diet for a variety of reasons, for me it was health. It does get tiresome trying to always explain my eating habbits to ppl or my choices; occasionally I don't ~ and I can see where that could lead to confusion among the 'true' vegetarian/vegan community.

sorry *waving white flag*


I'll try to be more specific in the future...

I've never heard of Pesco-vegetarian. What does that entail?

[jaxinsmom]

Originally Posted by sheilajolene

I've never heard of Pesco-vegetarian. What does that entail?

It simply means that you follow a vegetarian lifestyle for the most part and will on occassion eat fish.

Unfortunatly there is no Pesceterian Living thread, and I really don't want to read about ppl eating pork, beef, chicken etc...so I stay away from the other 'food threads'. I feel that I am very respectful to the ppl here and their choice not to eat fish and don't make a point to announce my ... pescaterianism (there, now I've spelled it three different ways ).
Hope that clears things up...