I Just Wanted To Know What Kind Of Vegetarian She Was!

[redbrunja]

I was at my childhood home last weekend, and my mother and I had a friend over for dinner.

As my mom and I were making dinner, I was stealing shrimp for shrimp foo young (and sidenote, dropped one down my shirt and IT VANISHED INTO MY CLEAVAGE NEVER TO BE SEEN AGAIN, I'M NOT EVEN KIDDING) I go, "wait, isn't friend-we're-having-for-dinner-a-vegetarian?'

Mom: Yeah, she's a vegetarian but she eats seafood.



Me: I'm sorry, but that is not being a vegetarian.

Mom: But it's just fish. If I was a vegetarian, that's the kind of vegetarian I'd be.

Me: Fish and shrimp are animals, mom! They count.

Mom: You're right.

[long pause]

Me: So I was reading about the siege of Leningrad, and did you know that cannibalism was so prevalent that the police had a special division to try and stop it?

Mom (disgusted): Really?

Me: I wonder if I would eat human flesh to survive. I want to say no, but...

Mom: ...you're hesitating.

Me: I mean, if I was starving, and my neighbor was already dead right across the hall... I'd probably eat them.

Mom: I wouldn't! How do you live with that afterwards? ...unless I had kids who were starving. Then I'd probably feed them human flesh. But I'd lie, I'd say it was rat.

Me: This probably wasn't the best conversation to have before dinner, was it?

Comments

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I was also taught in the college philosophy intro class that fish don't feel pain. I have no idea.

How on earth do they know that?

[tigerpetals.livejournal.com]

I don't remember what the given reason was. Something to do with their nervous systems? It was a discussion about one philosopher's view of ethics, and how he would have considered it ethical to eat fish - or maybe just some kinds of fish - because they can't feel pain.