They're not. We're closer to plants than we are to bacteria.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-domain_system

I doubt science matters to most veg's I've known.

That depends on how neurotic they are. (Laziest trolling ever, PS. Back to slashdot with you.)

I'm suggesting it specifically because vegetarian soups tend to have less umami (the savory, "meaty"/MSG flavor). Non-veg cooks can just simmer bones, etc., but vegetarians need to get umami from mushrooms, grilled root vegetables, boiled parmesan reggiano rinds (which are totally awesome, BTW), miso, etc., and vegemite is another option.

It's quite cheap (if you buy it in "I'm going backpacking forever and may not make it back to Australia"-sized jars) and keeps forever (what's it going to do...become more salty?), so it's pretty convenient.

Not trolling, I am just amused at the arbitrary lines-in-the-sand I occasionally see vegetarians and vegans drawing, and was curious about their outlook on this matter.

A lot of people have identities based on loud-but-poorly-thought-out politics/ideologies. Vocal / recent-convert / squeamish teenage vegetarians are hardly unique in this regard, and nor does it mean that intelligent people haven't arrived at similar conclusions for reasons that aren't vapid. As with most things, though, the loud "I believe so hard in cause X" people tend to drown out the thoughtful ones. (Also, the vegetarians I've known have been more pragmatic than the vegans, who are generally more ideological.)

The only group I've seen seriously struggle with the whole "OMG I'm killing bacteria by breathing, what should I do" issue are the Jains, and I find them pretty silly. (I'm not a vegetarian, but when I was...I still found them pretty silly.)

Some vegetarians are amazing cooks, too. Constraints can really drive creativity.

Some vegans try not to eat bacteria. It's usually not a problem for vegetarians.

You're probably thinking of Jains, not vegans.

Close I guess. I'm thinking more of recent convert Buddhist Vegan types. One gave me a 30 minute discussion over the current thinking in their particular vegan community...basically it amounted to being an absolutely impossible task to avoid eating bacteria so they can stay on the list of consumables, but everybody should be mindful of the lives they are snuffing out.

It was all rather eye-rolling. I can definitely see Jains getting in on that nonsense.

Which is pretty funny - Gautama emphasized a practical "middle path" rather than some extremist monastic malarkey, specifically because that sort of crap completely detaches you from daily life.

I've found it useful time and time again to be wary of recent converts of all stripes, whether it's Veganism, Objectivism, Haskell, etc.

> Gautama emphasized a practical "middle path" rather than some extremist monastic malarkey

If I remember, enlightenment was not found in the extremes under Kaundinya.

That message really seems to be lost I think. Both in the purposeful following of an extreme ideal, or in not being mindful of extreme habits.

Even if one is not a Buddhist, the concept of the middle path can be wonderfully freeing from expectations of extreme ideologies that sometimes ferment under civilizations.

Yep, the Buddhist stories say that he spent a while as a rich prince, then some sort of eXtreme(TM) yogi, and neither really worked out for him.

The popular American impression of Buddhism is pretty weird - historically, it's heavily skewed towards Japanese Zen Buddhism, but secondhand, from the Beats* . The way people talk about Zen, you'd think it had antioxidants or something.

* Due to their infatuation with the San Francisco Zen Center, Shunryu Suzuki, etc.