Why I am not a vegan

[Monica]

As an anecdote, my mother in law has been a vegetarian for over half her life (20+ years), and she just recently had gastric bypass surgery. Quitting just meat isn't always good enough, even if you do it for your health. Really though if you can cut out MOST of your dairy, that's doing a lot. People get caught up too much in labels. I recently saw an interview with Bill Clinton, who is a vegan, but he said he eats either 1 omelette or a wild caught salmon filet once a week because it helps him feel like he's getting enough protein. There were some people going nuts saying "HE'S NOT A VEGAN!!!!!" It's not about asceticism. It's about making conscious decisions. When I first went "vegan", I told myself that I wasn't never going to have cheese again, or even maybe meat once in a great while. I've had sushi twice and have had little bits of dairy here and there. If you're torturing yourself, you're doing it wrong.

If all the meat-eaters did what you and Clinton are doing, the world would be a better place (and a lot healthier too).