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Originally Posted by luciferase75
Well I'm still trying to understand the vegan mindset, so bear with me. I know people have different motivations for what they do but as a general rule, do vegans eat as such to minimize death, or it is health? Might it be both, but one takes precedence over the other? Are there any other factors? I'm not going on the offensive here, at least not trying to. I'm truly ignorant of why.
For me, unless God popped down from the heavens and told me so in a very obvious manner, or unless my doctor told me I was deathly allergic, I would not give up a little honey every now and then for anything. Especially on a tortilla with a little butter...mmmm. ...sorry, I'm a little hungry. In that case I'm sure a few bees are killed during harvest (just sliding them off the honeycomb), but does it warrant a complete boycott of honey? Isn't that a little...severe? Or is there another reason? That's what I'm trying to learn now.
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It differs person to person, but I imagine most vegans would say both. Many view compassion as #1 and health as an awesome side effect.
There are other issues as well, such as ecological impact, food security, economics, human rights, etc.
I don't blame you, though. Many find the honey thing to be a bit extreme. But look at it this way. Vegans make simple choices to minimize the harm brought upon the animal kingdom. If you look at the honey industry, hive farms are quite extensive. Many of them essentially cull up to 20% of their farms each year for various reasons, many hives are destroyed accidentally. The other issue is that bees are often transported great distances (for them) for various production reasons, which is also harmful if not deadly to many of them.
Finally, honey is produced by bees at a great expense of labour. They do this to produce food for their colony. We humans allow them to do this simply so we can take it from them. We also take wax, pollen, royal jelly (the queen's food), and resin.
It's simple. Vegans wish to take no part in this industry, as it can be quite destructive to millions of insects.
The alternatives are enjoyed widely. I'm a big fan of molasses, agave nectar, and maple syrup.