I have several friends who are vegetarians. They eschew meat of any sort, but will include eggs and milk products in their diet.

At the party Saturday night we had a table of food devoted solely to vegetarian dishes. Some foods were suitable for vegans and labelled as such.

One of the vegans sat next to me at dinner. I told him that I understood (and sympathized with) vegetarians because the treatment of animals raised for food and their brutalization at the hands of the slaughterhouse people was unconscionable.

He said that eating meat supported the torture of animals and he could not be part of it.

But what about eggs and milk, I asked. The first food for infants is mother's milk. Eggs and milk are animal products, yes, but do not harm the animal in the process. He said that the terrible conditions under which the animals are housed and the fact that, in the end, they are also slaughtered for meat led to his decision to eat no animal products at all.

I said I understood. Talk turned to the evils of war, the bombings, mutilations, torture, all to secure oil for our petroleum-based economy. I asked him if he was going to give up all driving and all use of plastic utensils and products (including his computer), in light of the fact that they are oil-based items. Use of plastic stuffs and driving an internal combustion vehicle supports the evils of war, one step removed.
Silence.