John Allan - token veganism

[Guest guest]

Yeah but isn't it a bit shallow to judge people on how they look?

 

It seems everyone does it though. Conforming with conventional dress

can sometimes get you in places where you can have more of an effect

on things than if you were excluded because of your looks. Look at

the Green Party candidates, or animal rights spokespeople on TV -

most look conventional and they have to do this maybe because they

would be pre-judged and their message may be lost (or not even given

the opportunity to be heard at all). People seem ready only to accept

people they can relate to, pidgeon hole etc, or even wear

the " uniform " of respectability/power.

 

Equally, looking " conventional " can also exclude you from

the " alternative scene " , so maybe they're just as bad!

 

I'm afraid to say that I do work in an American corporate 4 days a

week; they have a dress down policy all week now (used to just be

Fridays) and some of the workers look more hippyish than people you

see around Camden (although management have to keep reiterating the

dress policy - you're supposed to wear their idea of casual,

corporate casual, yuk! they've even set-up discount schemes at

conforming shops!). The point is its become a bit trendy to 'go

hippy' (at least some way).

 

So the fashion industry being as fickle as it is, you can get people

just wearing it because its trendy, and it says nothing about what

they believe in. But anyway, surely you wouldn't want the way you

dress to become a kind of uniform would you?

 

I think real hippys used to say it doesn't matter how you dress, what

you do etc, its what you aspire to, believe in, who you are inside

etc. Often this never gets out because you've already been pidgeon-

holed (is there a non-animal term for this!?).

 

Personally I really like the hippy look (on both men and women), and

dread-locks, but it would probably look silly on me, so I look like a

real conventional, but when people start talking to me (if ever!)

they probably go away thinking " vegan weirdo " !.

 

Its the age old problem: By not conforming am I infact conforming?

Logically it might just come down to whether you are in the majority

or minority. So when veganism becomes the majority (I read today that

it will be 2050 based on current growth rates), we'll all be boring

conventional conformists, and I would be glad!

 

Jane - I'm a bit worried about your husband not liking minorities.

What exactly do you mean?

 

--

Rob