Anger on Main Street

Vegans might privately feel angry, feel judgemental, believe all omnivores are stupid, etc. … but we must stop right there. We don’t need to show it - it’s too easy to knock them down with it ... which is why we shouldn’t get angry. It may feel good, like letting off steam, but it doesn’t work. The only thing that works with omnivores is good natured exchange. (Don’t forget, we’re not trying to get people to sign the pledge here, just get them to sign-over a few thought-responses on behalf of animals)
Preparation, for vegan-advocating, starts with tolerance and moves progressively towards trying not to be a pain in the arse, evangelical-wise. Veganism is heavy medicine. It needs to be dished out in small doses. At first.
At first they’re wary, suspicious, dismissive ... they may even hate us. So, obviously, as representatives of veganism we ourselves shouldn’t ever be people-haters. If they hate us then perhaps a wee problem it is, for them not us. If they feel threatened by vegan ideology (the effect on society, the effect on the economy, the effect on children), we don’t need to amplify that threat by being aggressive, pushy or unfriendly. Every vegan today once hated vegans. Now that’s a bold statement but nearly true. We hated what they stood for. Almost all of us did. It was weirdly the same before I admitted to myself I was gay, I was revolted by other gays. Not now!!! As vegans we mustn’t ever act hostilely towards not-vegan people. I put it as strongly as that. We need to keep a sense of proportion here (as in ‘we’ miniscule numbers of vegans amongst ‘them’ humungous numbers of not-vegans!!). If we are going to be hated let’s be hated for good reason. It’s such a pity to waste a good hate!
However good our arguments we can still seem as if we’re up-our-own-spout. To shake that image (unfair though it may be) we need to get rid of that ‘shocked-surprise’ look, drop the anger and stop feeling superior. Mind you, anger is okay, but it’s like the salt and pepper in food - good for dramatic effect but we overdo it at our peril. Too much spoils everything. I doubt if animals use it. And while we’re on the subject, it’s the same with judgment. I doubt if animals ‘do’ judgement ... in fact, I’ve heard that it can’t be found anywhere else in the universe, except here, amongst the angry humans.
Vegans think they can get away with it (showing anger) because they have so much to be angry about - there being so many animals, being put through so much unimaginable torture, every day - that’s worthy of getting-angry-about, surely? Sure, but I believe we should try our level best to hold it in, hold the energy of it, transform it to @#** perhaps. But there couldn’t be a more efficient waste of beautiful emotional energy than using it up on anger. Anger is dead. It comes from before. Now there are more powerful and less destructive ways of communicating ... than by getting violent with our words and vibrations. We don’t need it.
If we can keep it in our pants all the better. If we can’t it’s best to stay indoors. Make the tea for our family of demonstrators, for when they come home from Main Street. All that shouting will have made them thirsty.