I know a total of 2 vegans. They're actually pretty cool. We make fun of each other all the time. We got out for dinner together once in a while too. They are cool enough with my menu choices. They don't even cringe when I order the blue rare steak. Although they do make mooing sounds when I do eat it. It's pretty hilarious.

I don't have any real life vegan friends.
 

Not that I'm bothered 'cos my friends are all fricking awesome and I love them all to bits.
I'm so lucky that 99% of the vegans I have encountered on the interwebs are cool. Seriously, I can count the A holes on one (maybe 2) hands.
But then I don't visit sites that aren't cool, that vegan site I had an "encounter" with a few weeks ago hasn't seen my vegan ass since, and it won't ever again. Their loss.
I'd rather spend my precious interwebz time with people that are gonna make me laugh and smile and generally feel good.
Like you guyz.

 

Awww... you made me all warm and fuzzy inside now. I do lurk alot around vegan forums, but I do that for general info purposes. I am the kind of guy that likes useless info. Past two weeks I have been doing the same with YouTube, but that has given me an unnatural hatred towards my computer screen. Especially this kid Onision.

It may be the type attracted to the site. Dunno, but like Jeni said, majority?

My reason for citing the non-vegans on this site is if you made certain generalizing statements of non-vegans based on this site, I doubt it would represent the broader spectrum.....no matter the reason.

I think you may be correct.
 The sites I have build my opinion from are filled with activist types.
 This site, by its name alone does not actually give the activist a warm feeling of acceptance. (its what I like about it)
 It is possible to be a vegetarian, or a vegan and not be an a-hole about the whole thing.

I have known vegeterians for a long time before I knew about the reasons why they went vegeterian. The reason why I didn't knoiw why they went vegeterian was because they never threw it in my face. Never explained to me why they are and why I should become like them. It was one of those "Sorry, I don't eat meat." and that was the end of it. This was family of about three cousins, Aunt and a Grandmother. Now I know why for at least one cousin and the aunt is because they don't want to eat a cute animal. Fish are ugly so they are ok to eat. Grandma isn't a full blown vegeterian because of her advanced age of 89 she has a hard time digesting meat. She does sneak in a couple of pieces of my Dad's smoked turkey or ham once in awhile.
 
But, when I was in the Navy, my boss was a vegan. He completely shatters the whole vegans are healthy 'argument'. The guy is 6'5" and weighs somewhere in the ballpark of 250 lbs. Not healthy at all. In fact he had to revert to vegeterian because he had a hard time paying for and figuring out what was vegan and what was not. Never shoved it in any of our faces, but we were bored one day and asked him why he went vegan. So as a joke he showed us Meet Your Meat video. I have to clarify that he violently hates PeTA with a passion that I would say rivals or exceeds most of us. He once said that one of the first things he wanted to do when he won the lottery was rent several helicopters carrying thousands of gallons of red paint and dump it on PeTA's HQ. Unrealistic yes, but it is the thought that counts.
 
Those hardcore vegans who are so vocal on the internet are vocal because it's much easier to come up with convincing arguments by taking their time to type one down as opposed to a face to face match with someone. This doesn't apply to all of them of course. Usually those are 'me toos'.
 
The way I look at it, I would say 90% (opinion) of the more vocal vegans and vegeterians are 'me toos'. In other words, they felt like they had to belong somewhere and already had some kind of feeling big or small that eating animals are wrong. So they read and watch the first pro-vegan articles they find on the internet and take it all in as gospel. I doubt any of them go past that point to read anything else that might oppose that new view they have. Over time, they may develop more fundamentalist views on that lifestyle or some will do further research. I always like to read vegan boards and see a Petard get their life crushed because those vegans on that board bash on them for being part of PeTA. Makes me all warm inside.
 
That is why I do not hate vegans or vegeterians. I hate the "holier than thou yell as loud as I can" ones. The quiet ones don't get in your face and if they do it's because chances are you just insulted them.

I assume some people who choose a vegan diet are simply fake and trying to get attention or find some meaning in their lives. Not all of them are like this, I agree, but the ones I've encountered seem to do it for selfish reasons. (Losing weight, making friends with other vegans, ect). They find a place to fit in - and adopted the ideals.

But like Bluze up there, I seldom have any real vegan friends. The vast majority of my encounters involve finding them on the internet - where it feels like they dominate. There's always one vegan somewhere finding something to complain about regarding society. I never understood how they appear to have so much control online-until I realized it was simply a matter of their self-righteous ideals - "normal" people (and even some people who prefer vegan diets) normally don't openly spread their messages online. I find they also feel more comfortable online because they're not personally facing someone and confessing their "vegan wages". In society, people still tend to frown upon it, or simply not care. You can actually find this whole self-righteous things with overly religious people as well.  They both tend to state similar things. Overly religious people basically say; "Eff you you're going to hell stupid ones!!!" While vegans prefer the; "Eff you your mass murderers who rape cows one day you'll dieee".

I'm sure there are plenty of vegans who come onto this forum or lurk. Some may just think it's futile to argue. Some "hard core" ones like to swear and speak of rape and blah blah blah.

I know ONE vegan who is very silent about her veganism because her diet choice doesn't define her. Which I respect entirely.

Why does it seem that the majority (90%) of veg*ns all
1. Praise obama
2. have a great dislike for religion
3. embrace socialism
4. think they are superior to all others in the human race.

since others have opened up and shared, at the risk of being run off by an angry mob, I will do the same, just so we know where we stand.
 1. I do not like or respect obama at all
 2. I dislike organized religion and most of the things they do, however I am a Christian and do try (not so well at times) to live that lifestyle
3. There are some programs that could be considered social that I agree with, but for the most part I want people to work for what the have when they are able.
4. My wife constantly assures me that I am not superior to anyone in the human race or some sub species of life forms. She has informed me that I will agree with her..

Problem is that vegans get a bad name is because of a small percentage of them are the loud fundamentalist types. And yes, those types will fit in the above especially the "I am better than you, you fucking pus sucking, animal torturer, rotting corpsemuncher."

This is so true. But it's true of most fundies.