But I definitely want the new vegetarian president to post recipes, as part of his/her weekly address.

This isn't to disparage vegans, it's an acknowledgement of the number of American industries that would stand in direct opposition to vegan principles, making it unlikely that they would get the votes.

Nor is it likely that the cattle industry, for example, will allow a vegan to be elected and challenge their industry.

perceived to be an activist or not.

If someone were as broadly likeable as Clinton and not perceived as a threat, possibly, but the opposition would hammer him or her on it.

We already had a vegetable as President from 2001-2009.

I have pinged Vegans and joked about eating pork chops. What has happened to me recently is that when I eat meat, I feel horrible in parts of my body. My diet is now more vegetable based and parts of my body that were hurting feel better. I won't stay from meat, it has substances that our bodies need. But I have reduced the amount of meat I consume, even my beloved pork chops.

that's the book that did it for me too! I read it and was floored by the back-to-back facts. I gave up meat then as did my wife, and we raised two healthy daughters as vegetarians, both now college age. One has joined me in veganism, the youngest still consumes some diary.

The oldest tasted meat and ate some fish (we knocked that out about '92). The middle one licked a few pieces but never ate any. The youngest is a meat virgin (in more than one way) and I don't expect any of them to regress. Our basic rule was "if they're old enough to know what they're eating the it is their choice". My eldest's first experience (3, maybe 4) with that was when my mom was nuking some turkey for my step-dad. She asked what it was and I said, "Turkey, do you know what that is?" She responded, "It walks." We let her try it. She had a bite or two but that was it. She's 21 now and still a solid vegetarian.

We eat eggs and dairy. My wife works with someone who has a shitload of chickens and more eggs than she knows what to do with. We give her herbs and produce and she gives us eggs. I try to buy Rutter's milk because it is all from local small farms. We grow a shitload of our own food. My wife just made hot sauce from our own peppers, onions, carrots, and store-bought vinegar.

I respect vegans, unlike those who don't understand anti-meat eaters, but I like eggs, cheese, and milk. John Robbins is vegan despite growing up with a swimming pool shaped like an ice cream cone. He turned down the family fortune. But I'm not willing to cross that line. I'm vegetarian, but what's called "ovo-lacto". On a side note, my wife is 49 and a slender fox (3rd degree black belt) and all three of my daughters are slender muscular fighting machines (2nd degree black belts). The "how do you get enough protein?" line requires me to suppress laughter. You pretty much CAN'T get too little protein - magnesium and potassium are more of a problem. So is iron if you're female.

I present my wife and daughters as evidence that a vegetarian diet is not only healthy, but profoundly beneficial.

I'm going to stop the rant here because otherwise I'll get into meat slaughter factory issues. That could take up twenty pages of scrolling.

It's probably the reason I have never wavered or cheated as a vegan. Very compelling stuff.

I am getting there> total veg
esp. this time of the year, in the midwest with the bountiful harvest in fall

They've even got new blossoms. There's no frost in sight, but the temperatures are dropping a bit. The peppers went apeshit this year.

you can't get from other sources.

why can't we?

"Vegetarians are good and noble people. Hitler was not a good and noble person. Therefore he was not a vegetarian."

not a vegetarian.

or quoting second and third hand sources. people who knew him said he was a vegetarian.

Hey, every once in a while FOX gets something right!

President Clinton is now a vegan. Do you think he is invited to less social functions because of it? I think if people knew someone was coming who was diabetic or vegan or on a low sodium diet they would go out of their way to make sure they had something suitable to offer them.

I'm a vegetarian and when someone said that in front of me I looked at him directly and said "Really? You would trust me more if I started eating meat again? What kind of crazy thinking is that?"

i know first hand the strange reactions you get from some people. Many people get defensive even if you don't go into your reasons for being vegan, many start immediately with the ridicule because they feel threatened with having to face what is for many an extreme example of hypocrisy. I know people who consider themselves animal lovers who don't have a second thought about buying food from factory farming operations.

What they really mean to say is that they are pet lovers, people who enjoy having pets, closing their minds to the fact that every time they buy bacon, ham, beef, whatever, they are contracting for the gruesome death and even more ghastly and brutal tortured short life of, for example, a pig, who if you've ever known one, you know they are smart friendly interesting and interested four legged fellow mortals of ours.

if the past is any indication, my reply above will be answered by people who will tell of their intent to eat some meat and exclaim the lick-smacking tastiness of it, as if that is going to hurt me or make me recoil in horror. I've been a meat eater, I know if can be tasty but i gave it up years ago when i realized the price of it was way, way too high and of course I don' t mean in money.

veganism is the single biggest thing we as individuals can do to help our own health, the planet and of course, the animals.

Not a vegan but a vegetarian. It is stunning how much people will react to that.

giving someone crap over it is absurd.. yet there are people who will do that to be a jerk.

Theoretically, of course.

Ixnay on the ostingpay or you'll wake up and find a head of lettuce in your bed.

I doubt that would keep anyone from voting for a candidate.

I think that if the Constitution were amended to allow for more than two terms as President, he could be elected again easily, should he decide to run again. He has an approval rating on the lines of 60%, and his meatless diet has not hurt that one iota. I think it depends on the person whether or not they are electable, rather than their diet, especially when people go meatless for health or religious purposes.

take someone of the caliber and reputation of Bill Clinton

well, actually sinful, about someone who don't eat the meat the lord god a'mighty give us when he put animals down here for us to have dominion over." ~ One of my republican in-laws

I think that for a vegan to be elected president, he or she would have to have been forced into veganism for health reasons, but that he or she still liked to hunt and fish.

to the margins. I love Dennis and have always supported him, but he seems to fall a nano beam short of the charisma needed to get there. That's what it takes, charisma, and that is what Obama has. He would have had that magic charm even if he didn't quaff down sausages. This is what got him into the White House where other African Americans didn't get any further in the primaries than Dennis did. Eating has nothing to do with it.

If some democrat (because it would never be a republican) was very fit, healthy and pleasant, and didn't parade around his diet, then maybe. If that same person stated, when confronted, that it was for health reasons alone, then sure. Mention animal welfare or the environment, and he's toast. If at any point, say in college, he petitioned for a humane law, protested a Petland or dog track, or gave $10 to the Humane Society of the United States (note: PETA deliberately not mentioned) then he's in trouble.

For example, folks of my sort...ain't getting elected to much of anything. Ever.

That said, it would still be a tough road for even the aforementioned candidate. There are far FAR too many folks in this country (and some on DU) who lose their everfuckingloving minds when veg*ism is even mentioned. There are folks that are either far too selfish or far too stupid to attempt to wrap their minds around such a thing.

like they are a vegetarian or they're on a special diet for their health.

If they're vegetarian like Bill Clinton for health reasons then the candidate's health "issues" will always be troublesome.

If they're vegetarian because they're pro-animal rights (or concerned for the planet's health etc), then the candidate's "whackiness" will be emphasized.

But beyond all of that, refusing food is troublesome in our culture - its rude. Barack Obama takes one bite of something and pronounces it "tasty", and he's off the hook. Everybody laughs and smiles and the episode's over. If he refused it, even one bite, it would become a political football.

I think you may be pointing to the fundamental or at least one of the fundamental reasons it would be problematic.

A lot of "plain" vegetarians do it for heath reasons (think Bill Clinton), some people just don't have the genetics to deal with a lot of saturated fat in their diet. Veganism, on the other hand, is a ethically and ideologically driven lifestyle and it's preachiness tends to turn people off.

*weeps in the corner*

Shit.

Oh, I have to warn you that you're going to see a big purchase at Total Wine on the statement. It was for a thank you party for the volunteers, I swear.

so I can only imagine what a vegetarian running for president would be called.

for other reasons.

I think someone who simply had adopted a vegan diet (perhaps simply for health reasons) could easily be elected. It wouldn't really be much of a political issue.

I think someone who embraced the "principles" of veganism and was active in causes like animal rights, the cruel treatment of animals, etc. would have a more difficult time because presumably they'd want to have some sort of policy agenda regarding those, so it would be fair game and they'd have to justify it, debate it, etc.

Perhaps he or she would care more about the environment that our food grows in and the food we feed to our livestock that in turn, feeds us.

IOW, have more respect for our food chain and go to war with corporations that do not.

I went mostly vegetarian this summer ( I still eat local seafood) , joining my sons girlfriend ( but for different reasons) and surprisingly my son and his best friend have also gone almost completely vegetarian. Everyone in the house is learning to cook without meat and to shop without meat.

I never would have thought my son would lean towards a non meat diet, but he surprised me. Our next generation has some pretty amazing members.

and who became President in 1911 was a vegetarian. And in Mexico, being a vegetarian is odd (I know this from recent experiences).

When was the last time we had an actual obese candidate for President? Bill Clinton was merely overweight.
Being vegan is seen as being pretty healthy to me.

And we don't pick really short candidates either. Not in modern times. The last 12 Presidents were at least above 5'9.

Politicians are like changing dirty, caca-tastic diapers (and voting in Crook County, IL): do it early and often.

but if Obama was an Atheist i don't think he would.