mr.arrison wrote:I used to teach in an inner city school, and it was rare as shit to find a kid who didn't have complete shit for lunch . . .
If there ever was a parent that was concerned enough to try and raise their kid vegan (or even vegetarian) I found it to be awesome and laudable.
as a (non-vegetarian) parent and former teacher I agree. while it's fucking retarded to expect your kid to survive completely off rice milk and apple juice, people can live and grow eating almost any damn thing, provided there's a little variety and nutrition in there. even the kids who show up for school with a mountain dew code red, some "lunchables", and a jumbo butterfinger get taller, although they can't pay attention for shit. for a parent to show a little interest in what the kid is putting into their body is part of the job. the kids whose parents gave them
anything that wasn't pre-packaged: ham sandwiches on white bread, tortillas and cold steak, pb&j, tofu dogs, apples, etc tended to be able to make more of the situation of being in school. the food itself isn't even half the issue, it was more of an indicator of the parents' level of attentiveness, but I can't count the number of hyper-ass dorito-fed punks who were put on ADD meds and/or pulled out for "exceptional" programs (ie special-ed, extra tutoring).
my own feelings about vegetarianism and veganism are mixed. I think that in terms of wanting diet that is healthier, nicer to animals, and of lower environmental impact both are respectable philosophies but I don't think most vegetarians/vegans live up to these ideas in practice. I also think that veganism/vegetarianism is something of a luxury . . . I don't think I've ever known a poor (not slumming) one or one from a poorer country that wasn't India.