Vegan landlord bans meat-eaters

[andiesenji]

Unless, of course, it's meat-flavored gum!

Hmm... my mother always maintained that chewing gum made one look like a cow.

She must have known my great grandmother. She said the same thing. She was very strict about manners, life, according to her, being so much more pleasant if one behaved with decorum.

As I was the only girl amoung a herd of nine boys, it was often an uphill battle for her and my grandmother but they fought the good fight and much of it stuck!

We were not allowed gum. That was an absolute....

[srhcb]

For the landlord's sake, I just hope a disabled veteran, meat-eating, mixed-race, same-sex couple don't try and rent an apartment from him. He'll be in for a lot of legal trouble, unless, of course, one of them smokes.

SB (I guess a recent court ruling let's us also add "obese" to the list)

[maggiethecat]

Suppose that, instead of "meat eaters" you substitute, say, "interracial couples," another voluntary life choice?  How sound does the argument seem now?

Exactly right.

I suppose that I might not be anyone's idea of an ideal tenent on paper: I smoke, cook "weird smelling" food and tend to play tango a little too loud on Friday nights. But I'm as mild and lawabiding as any vegan!

[slbunge]

I think that the landlord and some of the respondents are painting with far too broad a brush.

The fact is that vegans are a subset of the larger society (as are smokers, hunters, musicians, and scuba divers). Therefore, there will be x% of vegans who are 'sociable with a positive vibe' and y% who are 'mean-spirited an judgmental'..

It seems wrongheaded to think that all vegans are either 'peaceful and comforting' or 'unpleasant' or 'hypocritical' or whatever. They are just people.

[hillvalley]

As a former vegetarian, I could understand wanting to live in a meat free building. Not because of personalities, which is BS, but because the smell of meat cooking used to make me sick.

For the record, I am a much nicer, sociable person now that I eat meat again.

Edited August 1, 2004 by hillvalley (log)

[Katherine]

For the record, I am a much nicer, sociable person now that I eat meat again.

Do you attribute this to the nature of the diet and its effects on you, or the fact that you can now eat with people of any dietary persuasion?

[Gifted Gourmet]

I sometimes think that denying oneself such a major item in a diet as meat, or even fish, makes one a bit more irritable ...

[stovetop]

I think denying oneself food that grows in your natural environment can cause irritability.

[adoxograph]

I think the landlord is misguided and shortsighted - can he evict if someone, for whatever reason, starts eating meat or dairy? Can they not have a potluck dinner where a carnivorous friend brings over a rack of ribs for those guests that do imbibe?

I'd be tempted, if I were living there, to start making and smoking sausage to sell from my home kitchen. Not for me, mind you.... I don't eat that, Mr. Landlord. :)

[Mayhaw Man]

I wonder if this is the landlord that Mr Zimmerman was speaking of?

I suppose the guy can rent to anyone he wishes to rent to, but I am with those who wonder what happens if someone falls off of the carrot wagon? DOes he have the right to kick them out? I s there something in the lease that is enforcable along those lines? Pretty rediculous if you ask me.

Although I would never rent to those that did not like Okra. Vegetarian or not. You can't trust an okra hater.

[andiesenji]

I suppose that I might not be anyone's idea of an ideal tenent on paper: I smoke, cook "weird smelling" food and tend to play tango a little too loud on Friday nights. But I'm as mild and lawabiding as any vegan!

It has been many decades since I was a renter and back then I kept a pretty low profile.

Now I doubt I would be an ideal tenant because I am much more opinionated than I used to be and while I am law-abiding, I will not put up with any crap from anyone.

A few years back we had an "undesirable element" move into a rental home in the neighborhood and this nitwit came by my house when I was out in the yard and told me he was going to "take over" all the gardening duties in the neighborhood so I could get rid of my gardener. While he stood there flexing his tattoos, I walked into my shed, picked up my chain saw, walked out to the gate, started it, reved it up, then turned it off and asked him if he knew how much damage one of these could do to a leg, an arm or a neck......

That was the last I saw of him although I used to hear him roaring down the next street in his truck with the oversized tires at all hours of the night. Then we had a spate of very cold weather. One of the other residents on that street ran a hose into the street very late that night and when the genius came roaring home he hit the icy patch,skidded about 100 feet and slammed into a light pole. Someone called 911 and the sheriffs found that not only had he been drinking, he had a trash bag full of marajuana. Goodbye nitwit.

Meanwhile several of us had gotten together and formed a homeowners association for mutual assistance. We had discussions with absentee landlords and have had no more problems with bad apples.

We have a very diversified group in this area, many nationalities and ethnic groups, we even have two families of little people (they work in the wings of airplanes doing tricky technical stuff is spaces where big people find it difficult to work), dog, horse, bird and reptile fanciers.

People here can paint their homes any color they wish, can have flags, wind toys, wind chimes, bells, whatever hanging in their yards. The only thing we do not want are human predators.

[hillvalley]

For the record, I am a much nicer, sociable person now that I eat meat again.

Do you attribute this to the nature of the diet and its effects on you, or the fact that you can now eat with people of any dietary persuasion?

Definately because I now eat with people of dietary persuasion

[Gifted Gourmet]

Guess this pretty much excludes Fergus Henderson ...

[Jinmyo]

Although I would never rent to those that did not like Okra. Vegetarian or not. You can't trust an okra hater.

Okra is the Devil's knuckle hair.

[cakewalk]

I sometimes think that denying oneself such a major item in a diet as meat, or even fish, makes one a bit more irritable ...

Or chocolate. Denying oneself chocolate most definitely creates irritability. This is a known fact.

[Jinmyo]

I sometimes think that denying oneself such a major item in a diet as meat, or even fish, makes one a bit more irritable ...

Or chocolate. Denying oneself chocolate most definitely creates irritability. This is a known fact.

THAT'S NOT TRUE!!!

[Gifted Gourmet]

Denying oneself chocolate most definitely creates irritability. This is a known fact.

THAT'S NOT TRUE!!!

Always so calm and collected, Jinmyo? Nothing ruffles your feathers ...

[Susan G]

Jinmyo, since you have made it clear that chocolate is *never* one of your cravings, avoiding it does not constitute denying oneself. The touchiness must therefore have other sources - - like the heat!

[Mabelline]

Where's the stamp-your-foot emoticon when you need it ?

[Busboy]

I think the landlord is misguided and shortsighted -

Bit of an understatement, that. I'd say he's being a self-righteous, judgemental pr***. I find it slightly bizarre (or a testiment to the open-mindedness of eG-ers) that anyone even deigns to seriously discuss this moron. He should be flogged with a leather whip and for his stupidity and his propert handed over to Outback Steakhouse to be used as a meatlocker.

Not that I'm anti-vegan. Just anti- s-rjp's.

[Susan G]

Actually, I had more in mind not so much his "discrimination" based upon diet .. what I want to get at is his assumption that a vegan tenant is more sociable and gentler and healthier ...

I've been thinking about this for a few hours - - great topic!

Unless the building's owner is himself a vegan, I hardly understand how he believes that vegans are *more* sociable than omnivores. For me, part of being sociable means sharing food. Any group with dietary restrictions will find it easiest to socialize with only their group..........like the Orthodox who keep kosher.

As for the "gentler" part........I doubt it. The focus of veganism is on being kinder to plants and animals, not to humans, and I know which kindness I care more about!

As for the claim to being healthier - feh. Unless these vegans are getting regular shots in a doctors office, they're deficient and/or anemic.

Edited August 2, 2004 by Susan G (log)

[Gifted Gourmet]

I've been thinking about this for a few hours - - great topic!

T'was my pleasure to give you something worth ruminating about!

Any group with dietary restrictions will find it easiest to socialize with only their group..........like the Orthodox who keep kosher.

Sure beats trying to chat with someone who offers you a bite of his ham sandwich ...

As for the "gentler" part........I doubt it.  The focus of veganism is on being kinder to plants and animals, not to humans, and I know which kindness I care more about!

You got that exactly right! The assumption that what one eats makes one a kinder, more decent fellow, is based upon faulty assumptions in the first place ... shallow reasoning ...

As for the claim to being healthier - feh.  Unless these vegans are getting regular shots in a doctors office, they're deficient and/or anemic.

Maybe yes, maybe no, on this point ...

[cakewalk]

Any group with dietary restrictions will find it easiest to socialize with only their group..........like the Orthodox who keep kosher.

I'd say this is a question of attitude and personality rather than diet and its particular restrictions. While it might be "easier" to socialize with only like-minded people, there are many who chose the "less easy" route. One's diet does not determine one's personality. Unless, as I mentioned before, you deny yourself chocolate!

[Susan G]

As for the claim to being healthier - feh.  Unless these vegans are getting regular shots in a doctors office, they're deficient and/or anemic.

Maybe yes, maybe no, on this point ...

I need a medical doctor or a nutritionist or a vegetarian to weigh in here.........I believe I remember correctly that a totally vegetarian diet leaves one deficient - in something which only a meat-based amino acid provides. It's either Vitamin K or an iron precursor which one needs shots to supply.............can someone help me out here?

[Jinmyo]

So this guy only rents to veterinarians?