"Vegetarians, and their Hezbollah-like splinter faction, the vegans, are a persistent irritant to any chef worth a damn."

If a vegan eats a meal, and doesn't post all over social media, smugly telling everyone all about it, is s/he really vegan?

We can't win here. Mass agriculture is also an enormous detriment to our environment. Plants are living things and there's some chance that they may also suffer from being slaughtered. Not to mention the fact that our bodies are built to be omnivores and some of us have dietary needs that require animal-based protein. According to Psychology Today "Plant proteins are not only harder to digest and absorb, but the foods they come from are high in “anti-nutrients” that rob the brain (and body) of key minerals and other essential nutrients..." https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/diagnosis-diet/201712/top-ten-tips-healthier-brain-in-2018

I've got two words for you... Clean meat. Or, cellular agriculture. Aka growing real meat without animals. Millions of dollars are being invested in clean meat start ups right now and the projected time to bring product to market is not as long as you think it might be. Just this week, the USDA and FDA jointly held their first-ever public meeting on cellular agriculture where the heads of both agencies declared their support for making the U.S. a world leader in this new field.

Love the idea. Hope it works out better than this... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnXfLGcENnI

Well, now I know why I've had a craving for a nice rare steak all day.

@6 Word is the taste is pretty damn close to the real thing. The difficult part, from what I've read, is getting the fat content right, which determines texture and juiciness, obviously two very important factors in determining the burger's deliciousness. https://www.engadget.com/2018/03/21/cultured-meat-public-perception/

@8 why are you lumping me in with the indiscriminate meat eaters?

Snopes does not agree that vegans live longer. One study showed that they may have lower mortality rates from specific diseases, but all-cause mortality between vegans and meat eaters is about the same.
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/do-vegetarians-live-longer-than-meat-eaters/

I also think it would be worth separating vegans who exist on frozen soy products from those who eat real food to see if there are health differences.

@8 For the record, I'm a fan of plant protein, from lentils to tempeh to black beans to tofu. I'm very happy to have plenty of days without any meat or dairy consumption at all. But I'm not doctrinaire about it.

Eating vegetarian or vegan is fine. Evangelizing vegans are obnoxious.

This is why people hate vegans: "Some people just can't enjoy a meal unless they know that some suffering and death led to that food arriving on their plates. Some people believe their taste buds take precedence over doing what's best for the environment..."<<<<

There is plenty of damage done to the planet by agriculture in general, including the growing of all food vegans eat; there are millions of people on this planet who need to eat what is available to them and that includes animal products (mostly animal products people in first world countries won't touch); and even if the entire world went vegan (which isn't even remotely possible or in any way sustainable) damage to the planet and the climate will continue, unabated, until human beings have ceased to exist ~ but don't let any of those facts disrupt your sanctimonious narrative.

Oh and let's not forget all of the human exploitation and suffering that is involved in growing plant foods.

@17: Goodness gracious dear, I guess the only remedy now is for total human extinction.

Just cutting open the inevitable storage plastic conitainer and getting a whiff of meat that marinated in its own juices for days/weeks makes me want to hurl and I haven't even brought up feed lots, slaughter house conditions, and stuff that was ground weeks ago. Most store bought meat is gross these days. Shouldn't be too difficult to cut most of that crap out of one's diet.

That settles it...
Bacon cheese burger for lunch today!

@21: Okay - that's the way YOU feel.

@22: And Beef Bourguignon for dinner!

I love how conservative men market themselves as ruff tuff and strong, yet they're too weak to make minor dietary changes

@24 Hating Vegan propaganda and loving tasty meat is one of the few things that the left and the right can still agree on. Bacon has always had bipartisan support.