Looking for advice/opinions
OK guys, here is my problem:
Prior to being "born again vegi" I bought a car. I mainly bought this car because it fit my price range, but it came with an all lether interior. Even back then I felt this was a draw back because I live in Michigan and our temperatures range from boiling hot to freezing cold, not exactly leather or pleather friendly. Anyways, now I am back in the vegetarian fold and my main reason for coming back was due to animal cruelty. So how does this look that I drive around in a car chock full of dead cow? I have no money, seriously I am a very broke college student and buying a new car is beyond out of my reach right now, so what do I do? I can't imagine showing up at a rally or even in this car, but I have no other transportation options...so what do you guys think? Am I the worse vegetarian in the world or is this something other vegheads can understand???
Thanks alot, I appriciate your honest responses (but please don't inniahliate me!)
Capture
When you know better, you do better. :)
I have leather bags and belts from years ago that I purchased in my pre-vegan days. They've lasted me all these years ... I just kept using them, as I'm also on a budget and can't afford to replace everything. Plus, I think it's more environmentally friendly to simply use what I have until it becomes worn out than to buy something new that I don't really need.
Personally, your car wouldn't bother me - especially since you purchased it prior to being vegan. It would be a bit extremist and over the top if others shunned you for this IMO.
I'm with CrunchyCapitalist on this one. Next time you get the chance to get a de-cowified vehicle, go for it. Otherwise, use what you have.
OMG! Thanks guys! That totally makes sense to use what you have untill it is no longer viable. I just kept having all these nightmears that I would show up for a vegi/animal cruelty function and be ostricised for my pre-vegi, leather car. Hopefully it will never be a preoblem, but I still feel like a bit of a hypocrit having it....I bet it will be more of a problem with non-vegans, it will be a great point for them to use against me...oh well.
Thanks for your opinions, it really helped!
Capture
i agree with the others, throwing away your past animal goods seems more wastful than if you used them
i have some old engineer boots I cant get rid of (although I seldom wear them), I beleive I have a few items with wool in them too
I agree that you should still use it until you're ready to buy another car.
If you do go to a rally and are afraid of being shunned, then maybe toss some blankets over the seats.
ha ha, make sure to ride your bike to any future vegan conventions!
no but really, i guess it depends what your reasons are fro vegan/vegetarianism, but i think most people would say use it until it is worn out. i personally do it for mostly sustainability reasons so i am just a very conscious consumer or anything (using up any kind of natural resources is hard for me.. honestly i don't like the ENTIRE food system even plants... i am serious, i just know that plants are MORE sustainable than animal prducts so i abstain from those) so it actually hits me harder when people say they 'threw out/got rid of' their old stuff (unless they bought used replacements.. that's a little better). i have shoes from pre-veg days (and even ones that were given to me that people were going to trash) that i have no problem wearing that have leather. and as far as people viewing you as 'hypocritical' i think that if you tell people why you do what you do they will respect you more (this is usually the way people feel about me. it may just be because they are less afraid that i will be preachy?), not less.
i kind of went off about why i am vegan, but definitely keep it until it is not usable.. i think it is a less hurtful thing to do!
I went through the same thing with wool blankets. During the winter, the temperature dips into the 40s in my bedroom, so I use every blanket I have. Some are wool that my grandparents had, who gave them to my mom, who passed them on to me. I was thinking of getting rid of them because I don't think they'll ever wear out. I ended up keeping them because it seemed more environmentally responsible to put a cotton cover on them than to give them away and consume more resources by buying microfleece.
There's not a lot of judging here, but what I see from people in general, is that those who judge think poorly of people who do "less" than they do. The same people think that anyone who does "more" is going overboard. I don't worry too much about those people, because they have such a narrow, skewed focus of what's right and wrong.
Just chiming in, first to agree with what's been said, and second to wonder if there, like here, you can get cloth seat covers. If they're uncomfortable in the heat/cold you might look on line for model-specific seat covers and see what they cost. They're usually easy enough to self-install. It's an idea and you won't sweat to death every time you sit in it.
As to those who are so "veggier than thou" that they would go so far as to tell you to get rid of your car because of the leather...ask them if it's better that the cow died in vain. By using the leather until it wears out you are in a way honoring the animal's life.
This topic has been brought up before and there are many of us here that still have leather and basically... lots of non vegan items in our possesion. There's nothing wrong with it. I still have leather couches from before I was vegan that I will donate when I move. It's worse to throw things out and let them end up in a landfill. There is no reason to purchase replacement items until you need them.
Thanks guys!
All of you make very good points, I guess I just feared being judged and possibly ridiculed becasue of the leather. Probably speaks more to my low self esteme then my commitment to vegetaarianism! Maybe if I hang out with you guys long enough that will go the way of meat too ;)
Thanks for all the warm fuzzies! (((((HUGS)))) to everyone!
Capture
I agree with the other posts. Getting rid of something because it isn't vegan doesn't really solve the problem of so much waste in the world. Sometimes we do face the dilemma of keeping something that is leather versus buying something that is plastic or cotton (and ultimately really destructive to the environment in its own way).
Don't worry too much about people judging you. I've been cornered by non-veg*ns who are confrontational and say things like, "But your shoes are leather!" and I usually reply that I'm not perfect, and that's not the point. The point is to work towards alleviating suffering as much as possible and we each have our own path.
When I got my car even though it has cloth seats, I bought a very cheap ($15) set of seat covers and my seats are protected from wearing out too fast. With leather or vinyl seats, it's been my experience that in hot weather, they get very, very hot and you would want to put a cloth covering over them for that reason. If it also hides the fact that they're leather and you're ashamed of them, no one has to know that! ;)