Young children: Trying meat like Trying cigarettes

[Guest guest]

I am aghast that the mother allowed her 6 year old to " try " meat. I think

this is in the same category as " trying " hunting; or " trying " cruelty.

 

We vegetarians must be more firm in our decisions, especially parents. My

daughter has never tried meat and has not showed any interest (beyond

intellectual) in it. But if she did show a desire to try meat, I would

handle it in the same way as if she wanted to " try " driving a car: she is

too young to make that serious a decision. On the other hand, when she

wanted to have her ears peirced at age 9, I was against that, but felt that

the harm was neglegable and limited.

 

Remember, also, if your decision to be vegetarian is based solely on health,

and not on ethics, then if you allow your child(ren) to " try " certain things

that ultimately will harm their health (i.e. meat) then you might as well

give them a pack of cigarettes when they want to be like other kids at a

certain age.

 

John in Atlanta

AtlantaGAIA

 

 

 

unlimitedsolutions2001 wrote:

 

> Help!! I have been a vegetarian for almost 8 years and my youngest

> son who is almost 6 for his whole life.  We have had many discussions

> about " why " we don't eat animals and when he was younger he used to

> tell people " we don't eat animals, we hug them " .  He has been in

> kindergarten this past year and I have taken in a " meat replacement "

> portion of his lunch everyday.  My eldest son (age 12) is a meat

> eater and I have tried to be respectful of his choice--although I

> don't agree.  Tonight at dinner my little one looked at his older

> brother and asked for a bite of his hotdog.  I explained that we had

> vege dogs in the fridge and if he would like I would make him one.

> He started crying and said that he wanted to " try " the meat.  This

> isn't the first time that he has asked.  He leaned over and took a

> bite.  I have been crying ever since and am at a terrible loss on how

> to handle this situation.  I know that we need to talk, but I need

> some words of wisdom to help me along this path.  I am against his

> eating meat.  I tried bringing up that they killed animals to make

> that hotdog.  But he cried and I cried and I felt that we needed to

> talk about this after we got ahold of ourselves.  He told me later in

> the evening that he was just curious.  Please help...it's  all so

> easy when they are small but as they grow they make their own

> choices.  I want him to make the right one.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 5/7/2001 7:00:32 AM Pacific Daylight Time,

AtlantaGaia writes:

 

 

> But if she did show a desire to try meat, I would

> handle it in the same way as if she wanted to " try " driving a car: she is

> too young to make that serious a decision.

 

We plan on handling it the same way, I am hoping that we will be able to

teach him so that in a way so that he will never want to try it. If he does

try it when we are not around (we can't be there every second of everyday

when they are teenagers) then it will not be allowed in the house and I will

not buy it.

 

Sara

Colin's Ap Mama

A baby will only spoil if you leave it on the shelf.

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[Guest guest]

I think that likening trying a piece of a hotdog to trying ciggaretts is a bit

harsh. Kids will be kids and we can say no to both ciggaretts and meat, but that

doesnt mean that the child will not try them anyways. At least he was at home

and he asked, he wasn't pressured into it. If you keep a child under lock and

key and not allowing them to test their borders and be their own people then

they will do it behind your back. And at 6 yrs old he may not understand why he

can't try it, despite explaining it to the depths of the oceans.

 

AtlantaGaia wrote:

I am aghast that the mother allowed her 6 year old to " try " meat. I think

this is in the same category as " trying " hunting; or " trying " cruelty.

 

We vegetarians must be more firm in our decisions, especially parents. My

daughter has never tried meat and has not showed any interest (beyond

intellectual) in it. But if she did show a desire to try meat, I would

handle it in the same way as if she wanted to " try " driving a car: she is

too young to make that serious a decision. On the other hand, when she

wanted to have her ears peirced at age 9, I was against that, but felt that

the harm was neglegable and limited.

 

Remember, also, if your decision to be vegetarian is based solely on health,

and not on ethics, then if you allow your child(ren) to " try " certain things

that ultimately will harm their health (i.e. meat) then you might as well

give them a pack of cigarettes when they want to be like other kids at a

certain age.

 

John in Atlanta

AtlantaGAIA

 

 

 

unlimitedsolutions2001 wrote:

 

> Help!! I have been a vegetarian for almost 8 years and my youngest

> son who is almost 6 for his whole life. We have had many discussions

> about " why " we don't eat animals and when he was younger he used to

> tell people " we don't eat animals, we hug them " . He has been in

> kindergarten this past year and I have taken in a " meat replacement "

> portion of his lunch everyday. My eldest son (age 12) is a meat

> eater and I have tried to be respectful of his choice--although I

> don't agree. Tonight at dinner my little one looked at his older

> brother and asked for a bite of his hotdog. I explained that we had

> vege dogs in the fridge and if he would like I would make him one.

> He started crying and said that he wanted to " try " the meat. This

> isn't the first time that he has asked. He leaned over and took a

> bite. I have been crying ever since and am at a terrible loss on how

> to handle this situation. I know that we need to talk, but I need

> some words of wisdom to help me along this path. I am against his

> eating meat. I tried bringing up that they killed animals to make

> that hotdog. But he cried and I cried and I felt that we needed to

> talk about this after we got ahold of ourselves. He told me later in

> the evening that he was just curious. Please help...it's all so

> easy when they are small but as they grow they make their own

> choices. I want him to make the right one.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

>

> AtlantaGaia wrote:

> I am aghast that the mother allowed her 6 year old to " try " meat. I

> think

> this is in the same category as " trying " hunting; or " trying "

> cruelty.

 

As I remember the original posting, the family is half vegetarian and

half omnivore. It is going to be harder to take a moral stand against

trying meat when half the family is not vegetarian. And some people

would argue that a 6-year-old can make some kinds of ethical decisions

for himself. I would not be so hard on this mother. Susan

>

 

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[Guest guest]

I would prefer that my child try cigarettes. At least s/he would ONLY be

harming him/herself.

 

Sometimes we just have to stand firm and show how much we mean it.

Ambivalence is quickly noted by children, and then our values seem less

important.

 

I try to compare it other values I would NEVER allow my child to " try. "

Lying? Stealing? Sex? Of course not. Will they do those things without

my blessing? Probably. But they will know for sure that I stood completely

against them and never waivered.

[Guest guest]

John in Atlanta wrote:

> I am aghast that the mother allowed her 6 year old to " try " meat. I think

>this is in the same category as " trying " hunting; or " trying " cruelty.

 

I am so disgusted by this attitude. " We vegetarians " (as John put it) are very

diverse. And each family does not choose to parent in the same way, either. I

do not see vegetarianism as a religion with rules passed down from generation to

generation. The way I see it, vegetarianism is a way of life that different

people choose to adhere to in the way that is best for them and their families.

It's people with attitudes like the above one that really turn people off to

vegetarianism in general. A little more tolerance might encourage more people

to eat less meat.

 

To the woman who wrote the original question, I am so sorry that you received a

response like this.

 

Personally, while I eat no meat, dairy products, or eggs, and encourage my

children to do the same (it is never in the house and we don't purchase it for

them), I have not forbidden it for them. We only stopped eating dairy about a

year ago, and my children still remember what it tastes like. My

four-and-a-half-year-old, on her own, has decided she no longer wants to eat

dairy pizza at her friends' birthday parties, and I am very proud of her. That

is the way I choose to parent, and I still feel I have the right to call myself

a vegetarian.

 

Deirdre in NYC

[Guest guest]

John in Atlanta wrote:

> I am aghast that the mother allowed her 6 year old to " try " meat. I

> think this is in the same category as " trying " hunting; or " trying "

> cruelty.

 

I am so disgusted by this attitude. " We vegetarians " (as John put it)

are very diverse. And each family does not choose to parent in the

same way, either. I do not see vegetarianism as a religion with rules

passed down from generation to generation. The way I see it,

vegetarianism is a way of life that different people choose to adhere

to in the way that is best for them and their families. It's people

with attitudes like the above one that really turn people off to

vegetarianism in general. A little more tolerance might encourage

more people to eat less meat.

 

To the woman who wrote the original question, I am so sorry that you

received a response like this.

 

Personally, while I eat no meat, dairy products, or eggs, and

encourage my children to do the same (it is never in the house and we

don't purchase it for them), I have not forbidden it for them. We

only stopped eating dairy about a year ago, and my children still

remember what it tastes like. My four-and-a-half-year-old, on her

own, has decided she no longer wants to eat dairy pizza at her

friends' birthday parties, and I am very proud of her. That is the

way I choose to parent, and I still feel I have the right to call

myself a vegetarian.

 

Deirdre in NYC