Mad, Not gonna take it anymore

As I was going about my business yesterday, I pondered the fact that vegans are frequently receivers of some nasty verbiage. I tried to think up all of the vegan cut downs used by confused eaters of meat who just try so damn hard to prove that our way of life is wrong. The usual suspects in way of arguments are usually that: animals do not have souls, plants are alive so how can you eat them, nature wants you to eat a mix of available foods, animals wouldn't be on this earth if we weren't supposed to eat them, and so on. My reasoning for cutting animal products from my diet is simply because I LOVE ANIMALS. I owe that realization to my husband as he helped me to come to this conclusion many years ago. You can argue your tongue off with all of the passion and facts but when it comes down to it, there is nothing anyone can say that proves otherwise when it comes to my love for animals. YES, I do make many sacrifices to live the way I do, but I cannot tell you how amazing it is to live in such harmony, knowing there is not leather on my feet or skin/blood on my plate. Lets examine the differences between name calling when it comes to vegans/vegetarians versus meat eaters.
VEG: Tree Hugger, Granola, Hippie, veganity (i guess this is the animal free insanity), self-righteous morons, twig eaters, "like the Taliban", oh and my favorite and most offensive VAYGUN.
MEAT: murderer, cannibal, butcher, etc.
If given a choice, I would rather be a tree hugger or twig eater than a murderer. I have never gone to the extreme of calling anyone who eats animals as such. I am a rare specimen, an educator, not a whiner. I think the name calling is an interesting tidbit that comes up often on my google searches when researching the word VEGAN. When I think about how much peace my lifestyle brings me because of the ability to separate myself from any animal suffering is something you cannot buy. Yeah, I know it feels good to go out to dinner and buy yourself a nice steak to savor for dinner. But, try to buy the sense of calm and love I feel when I choose NOT to. I am the lucky one!
I would like to dedicate this post to my vegan friend Michelle, who is an amazing person in general but I do owe this peaceful life I live, to her. Thanks M!