veganism: My position is that I'd rather be a plain vegetarian, but I can't see how veganism isn't ethically superior. What are the merits of lacto-ovo vegetarianism? I don't mean that I wish you to bash vegans in the slightest; I just want to hear a friendly pitch for your side.|||I have been vegetarian for over 20 years. I get as close to being a vegan as I can but do consume some dairy. I am not sure that, for me, I can get my daily protein (which I am religious about making sure I do) without some small amount of dairy. So for me, the vegetarian lifestyle ensures healthy eating. I would be vegan if I thought I could do reasonably. Being vegan is very healthy and a goal, but much harder to do in a healthy way than just being vegetarian. This explains my journey if interested http://www.xomba.com/becoming_vegetarian鈥?/a>|||I am a vegetarian and I cannot explain the merits of my diet over veganism. Veganism is definitely the ethically superior diet. I am cutting down on dairy and only buy free range eggs from someone who keeps chickens in their backyard, completely free range and doesn't kill the male chickens. Dairy cows are treated terribly. Dairy cows live for a third of the life of the average expectancy for cows. They are raped, give birth to calves who are taken away from their mothers at just two days old to be slaughtered and turned into veal (after being fattened up for weeks alone in a confined space). It would be very difficult for someone to argue that eating dairy products isn't cruel.|||I am personally an ovo vegetarian, but I would be vegan if not for where I got my eggs. I have 9 chickens, they live in the stall my horse used to sleep in, it is huge and warm and has a huge door that is almost always open to let them roam around and scavenge outside. My chickens are happy, friendly and I love them just as much as I love my dog and my cat. I know exactly how my chickens are treated and where my eggs are coming from, and I don't have any problem eating them. When they stop giving eggs, I am guaranteed that they will not be turned into meat because I will keep them as pets until they pass away. I will always own my own chickens so that I won't have to put money into the factory farming industry. I do not consume milk as I had a milk allergy as a child that I kind of ignored, but as I started cutting out milk products it has started up again and now even a tiny glass of milk makes me incredibly sick and coats my throat in a layer of mucus. Veganism completely cuts out all animal products, therefore reducing their contribution to factory farming to zero. Vegetarianism, although we do not consume meat, may also choose to consume milk and eggs, and if they are not from local sources, then you could be contributing to factory farming and the animals are killed for consumption when they cannot produce any more eggs and milk. Cutting out meat is a huge step for anyone, and sometimes people work from there or they are happy with being a vegetarian. I personally won't bash someone for drinking milk or eating eggs, but its always good to be aware of where those products come from.|||They seen videos on websites like PETA about dairy farms and chicken coups. Little do these vegans know that PETA is a known scam and doesn't have any facts to back up their claims. I'm a vegetarian and I believed that crap when I was first became a vegetarian (13 now 18), but then Better Business Bureau pointed out that it was a scam. PETA members are involved with killing animals and making some of those videos you see on their website. Yes, they address some real things like animals getting beat at circuses and slaughter houses, but they also kill animals themselves. They want money out of the ordeal. Another thing is, just because there are a few videos here and there on the internet about dairy farm horrors and chickens being abused for eggs, doesn't mean ALL are like that. Dairy farms and egg farms have nothing to do with actual slaughter, but false propaganda says different. These farms have video cameras and regulations they need to follow. Whatever got caught on camera obviously got put on the news before and they shut them down. Just don't believe the ones you see on the internet, especially from PETA. Oh yeah, and I forgot to put down that people do it for diet reasons. Some people just don't want any animal products in their diet for weight loss.|||Ethically superior? HAHAHAHA! Ethics and morality are created and shaped by each individual's mind. There's no absolute measure to them; only subjective through different perspectives. Comparing the ethics of vegetarianism and veganism is like comparing the colours green and yellow; there's no absolute way of determining which are better.