Non Sequitur by Wiley Miller for July 20, 2015

No need to get upset about vegans. They’ll be back. The vast majority – as high as 90% according to some sources – eventually return to being omnivores.

In the last 3 days I’ve eaten 5 pounds of blueberries,(beautiful crop this year), a watermelon, (I woke up thirsty and it was ice cold! and crisp! I couldn’t, stop until it was all gone!) and a big bag of Rainer cherries…..Local corn should be coming in soon…And then home grown tomatoes a week or two after that

You think that’s a hot-button word, watch this:.Gluten.

Fatties? A talk show host and a politician from New Jersey, come to mind…..

Eating vegan isn’t nuts. It’s just that a lot of its proponents are. Case in point: comparing the killing of chickens for food with the holocaust in Nazi Germany. Sheesh! You couldn’t make something like that up. People who eat meat don’t try to ram their lifestyle literally down the throats of others. That’s because their diet isn’t their religion, unlike a lot of the vegans out there. And Wiley is certainly putting his spin on this by subtly suggesting that if you eat meat, you don’t want to be healthy.

I tried to be nice to someone the other day, and for my trouble they called a b!+ch, and told me to go f*** myself.

Not just the environment, trying to save ourselves from our own doom is considered liberalism.

Typical liberal name-calling. There’s NO patriot (or anyone else for that matter) who wants to poison the environment! Try again.

lassie?…here lassie….HERE LASSIE..hey has anybody seen lassie…?

Here in South Texas we’ve had tomatoes for over a month. Nothing like a BLT to offend nearly everyone who’s sensitive about what people should eat. Gluten, meat, and not just any meat but pork, which offends several religious groups. It’s also got a vegetable that’s a fruit. Are people still allowed to say “fruit”? One sandwich and billions of people offended or wanting to challenge your definition of what it’s made of. But boy they’re good.

After the breakdown of the central authority, the people divided into smaller armed factions, each jealous of its territory. They adopted passcodes, banners and uniforms to separate themselves from other groups, and zealously drove off any non-members who wandered into their armed camps. Each lived in a constant state of siege duality, being both under siege by all around, and also part of the allied encampment besieging each of those.

Wiley’s stirring the pot again.

I used to bake a loaf of whole wheat bread every week. About a year ago I read a book called “Grain Brain” and decided to give up gluten for a month to see what would happen. In two days the change in my body was dramatic. Without going into details, it felt like I had a new body.

people just want to live their own lives instead of being dictated to every waking minute by a bunch of nosy ninnies. Live your own damn life and let me live mine.

“Pollution…is true blue American.” No, it’s true blue Republican.

People, people. It’s a comic strip. It’s just supposed to offer pithy wisdom in the form of humor and sarcasm. But Joe does have a point; people today do seem quicker to fly off the handle over anything. Especially if we’ve had the issue shoved down our throats by others trying to tell us how to live our own lives.

I once worked with a bimbo who, after watching a “news special” on slaughter houses gave up meat, in sympathy forthose “poor innocent animal victims.” At the same time owners of aFlorida produce company were indicted for enslaving its field workers. Her comment? It was just a bunch of Mexicans. I add gluten to my homemade wheat bran bread.

I just noticed somebody use GMO. Every single vegetable we eat is genetically modified. What is the difference in producing a desired characteristic, such as drought resistance, in the laboratory versus many years of trial and error? Corn, for instance, is so genetically modified and has been for so long that the wild parent plant doesn’t exist. Yeah, I know about teosinte, but it is highly un-likely that it is the parent of maiz.Broccoli is the highly modified flowers of the plant that produces all the cabbage tasting vegetables.Canola oil is obtained from the modified version of the rapeseed plant. The original is so bitter as to be un-usable. Didja ever see a wild banana? It’s filled with seeds. Every variety of banana plant is a clone of all the other plants of that variety. Cereal grains have been bred so that all the plants are the same height for ease of harvesting.The man that bred a strain of wheat that is now feeding India and Pakistan met with so much resistance in the US that he had to develop it in Mexico.

You got that right.

Nothing is safe anymore. Eat what you like in moderation.

Just another stupid straw man argument from Wiley the liberal. No one shouts down anyone for eating healthy.

You think that got a reaction? Try saying “Christian”!

I love vegans , they taste great.

Umm… I have seen some pretty porky people who at least claim to not consume meat. Calories are calories, whether they come from animals or plants, and if you consume enough of them you’ll need your own ZIP code.

Matter of fact, one might argue that going veg for “weight control” purposes is simply admitting a lack of will power, in effect saying, “I can’t stop cramming food into my mouth, so I’m going to cram in the foodstuffs that have the fewest calories per mouthful.” In the extreme case, you could just chow down on paper pulp (oh, wait, there actually are low-calorie/high-fiber versions of “bread” containing cellulose pulp on the shelves at the supermarket).

@AtmaI have absolutely no scientific basis for what I am about to say but I believe there is a direct correlation between GMO’s used to develop strains of disease resistant wheat .crops and the sudden development of gluten allergies in humans and cats and dogs in the U.S.Nowhere else in the world are people as gluten intolerant.

I also believe that, like all other food allergies, some people are really allergic, while with others it is psychosomatic.

Just too true. Partially victims of advertising/promotion out of control. I am from an island where the obnoxious pseudo meat called ‘Spam’ is overly consumed. Leading death is diabetes of course.

The problem isn’t the diet, it’s the proselytizing. Nobody’d care about someone’s choice of diet if the followers weren’t constantly haranguing everyone else to follow it or be damned to hell for eternity.

Everything in life is either illegal, immoral or, fattening.

People are becoming less and less content with their lives and are striking out at others with a lack of civility. Then of course the fact that someone who is just outright rude can get away with it these days where years ago you would get smacked has a lot to do with this equation. I doubt diet has a whole lot to do with it.

Being a vegan has nothing to do with “being healthy”. A vegetarian might claim that he chose the diet to be healthy, but refusing to wear a wool sweater can in no way be construed as a choice to make you healthier.

“Fruit in moderation … and pig out on vegetables "~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.The only folks who can take your advice are wwwaaayyy above the middle class. Have you priced fruit and vegetables lately? A lot of people who LIKE fruits and vegetables are substituting other fattening, less nutritious foods because their budgets won’t allow such luxurious foods now.

A vegan diet can be healthy, but there are plenty of plant-based foods that are not healthy at all, and very much contribute to obesity, such as corn syrup; too much of starchy vegetables and fruits such as corn, green peas, tomatoes, and bananass; sugar, flour, and too much vegetable oil.

Oh, yes, and potatoes. I can easiy get fat just eating too many potatoes, prepared any way, even just baked and broiled and plain with no animal products such as butter or milk.

Based on previous comments about this subject on this strip. I feel like the 4th wall is being broken.

I was born with an aggressive form of Crohn’s disease (which, among other things, prevents absorption of nutrients). I’ve had to work with nutritionists my entire life, and constantly need to change what I eat because what agreed with my guts for one month might bother them the next.

Massive and sudden weight loss is another symptom of active Crohn’s, but can also indicate malfunction of the pancreas. Ballooning weight can be associated with pancreatic malfunction, too. One of those malfunctions is diabetes, but diabetes can happen when you have pancreatitis, too.

There are many who associate the skyrocketing numbers of Type II diabetics in the US with consumption of sugar, consumption of meat, or just generally too much food.

All I know is, the only things that stick with me these days (long enough for me to absorb nutrients) are protein and low fiber veg.

Ironically, bacon saved my life when I was 6 months old and had my first major Crohn’s episode. (Of course, doctors back then had no idea why I was losing weight and blood; Crohn’s had only been identified a short time earlier, and not in infants).

The doctor who took care of me luckily fed me by IV (a big deal back then, since needles were heavy duty metal things. I still have the scars on my ankles as those were the largest veins available.)

When I was stable enough to be sent home, the doctor told my parents to feed me bacon fat. My parents kept kosher at that time, so they asked if it could possibly be chicken schmaltz instead. ‘No’ the doctor told them, ‘Not fat enough. Infants must have fat.’

So they did as he instructed (nobody questioned doctors back then), and it worked.

And after my weight fell to 89 pounds this past year, I added bacon to my diet. In moderation. I’m now 103 pounds. Still have bad blood chemistry from my pancreas, still borderline diabetic, but not constantly starving .

Sorry about the length. By the way, sugar doesn’t ‘cause’ diabetes, either…

Oh, by the way, those nutritionists who offer recommendations on staving off Type II diabetes that is associated with weight gain urge exercise as well as moderation in food consumption. Sitting around a bar and nursing a beer all day doesn’t qualify as exercise, so just being a vegan won’t keep Bob from a second heart attack…

I was a vegan until I started having certain health issues. Went to doctors, had tests done…no one could figure out the problem. Finally I asked a friend who is a hair stylist (and works along with people who do nails). She asked me about my diet. Told her I was a vegan. (I am older now) and she said that “at your age, unfortunately, you need more protein than even the best vegan diet will give you.” And I’d done my research, so was on a GOOD vegan diet. I started eating low fat cheese and low fat chicken (I have cholesterol issues) and my health issues resolved themselves almost instantly. I’d rather be vegan, but better than that, I’d rather be healthy.

Actually I got curious about how pudgy the “Jazzy Vegetarian” is on PBS. Turns out vegans consume far more sugars & carbs than norm; unless they have a good workout routine they tend to be less healthy & more overweight.

People don’t like the word vegan because deep down, they feel guilty for their diet. They don’t want to admit it, of course, so they cover it up with anger and defensiveness.

Wiley’s absolutely right.-I think guys like Rush Beck take ordinary words and declare them political propaganda just to keep their listeners angry, and on the lookout for other insidious left wing plots.- Just use the phrase “normal temperature” in public, and watch all the conservative’s heads explode. (Figuratively.) -The phrase has been used as long as people have paid attention to the weather, but now TV stations can’t use it because the crazies have decided that it’s Global Warming propaganda.

Food perverts.

@sueamarlucan

“Trying to force everyone to save themselves with YOUR ideas of being a savior is what we consider liberalism”-———————————————————————————————

Please look up the word, “liberal”, in the dictionary. Your (lack of) understanding of the word isn’t just wrong, it’s the polar opposite of the definition.

How can you tell if your friend:a) is a vegan?b) has run a marathon?c) is gluten-free?

Answer:Don’t worry, they’ll tell you.

http://www.livescience.com/33991-difference-fruits-vegetables.html

All this reminds me of a joke (adapted for this column): A fanatic vegan group hears of a 100-year-old man who ate nothing but plant-based foods. While assisting his hand in signing an affidavit to that effect, there’s loud belch in the other room. When asked what that was, the old man replies “Oh, that’s Pa, just enjoyin’ his cheeseburger.”

Well, the Decline in Common Courtesy seems to track amazingly well with the Rise in popularity of Rush The Limp and Glennbeckistan on Talk Radio..Personally, I think it has a Lot to do with the lack of any significant Pay Raises over the last 30 years in spite of ever increasing Cost of Living.People KNOW that they are getting Screwed and are Mad about it, but have somehow been convinced that It’s All Their Own Fault.Oh, and Obama’s, too, even though it Started 30 Years Ago..So, they are Mad and Frustrated but have no clear idea Who to take it out on.God Help the Wall Street Bankers when they finally Do figure it out.What’s the Modern equivalent of a Pitchfork and a Torch? .

Is it possible to live and let live? Or mine your own business.

Ignorance and irritability are almost worshipped nowadays.This country doesn’t seem much like the one I grew up in.

Vegan is NOT as healthy as it’s cracked up to be. If you’re vegan and you’re not taking certain supplements, you are going without some very healthy things found in meat and not in veggies. So let me help you work out your brain cells by NOT telling you what they are—go find ’em and be surprised.

Things typically eaten by vegans that can make people fat:1. Granula by itself2. Smoothies with lots of coconut milk3. Coconut milk as a base for soup instead of using cow’s milk

When I see a Vegan Olympic champion in a really physical sport like marathon or weight lifting or wrestling, I’ll consider it to be a healthy lifestyle.

Vegas tend to live on the edge of major malnutrition issues usually only seen in the deeper parts of the Third World if they are not extremely careful.

We’re omnivores by nature.