Peter from Sweden

[Peter]

Just gonna make a short intro because it's late and I'm super tired

My name is Peter from Sweden, been vegan since april this year.

After becoming vegan I saw some vids from vegan atheist on youtube and liked the reasoning and after that I found my way here. Actually just found my way here from the latest open letter to that one guy who I don't really know who he is. I'm not into the "atheist scene" if there is such a thing, (hope that didn't sound rude).

Been a really intense time for me since going vegan of gathering info, following groups, read discussions and so on. Seriously need a break from that side of veganism in a sense, been losing sleep over it.

Anyway, I joined here because I like people who can argue with reason and be polite even if not agreeing. I think vegans often have thought out arguments and are pretty consistent with their reasoning. So I think I can learn a lot from hanging around here.

I'm not sure if I'd call myself atheist, I'm more like a mild hippie slash agnostic haha. I'm sure there will be threads for that.

Anyway, nice to be here and talk to you people soon I hope.

[brimstoneSalad]

Welcome Peter, congrats on going vegan!

I think the "atheist scene" would be more "new atheism", or secular activism. That's OK, it's not or everybody. Most of us are more active in environmental and animal welfare circles.

I hope you like it here, feel free to start a thread about something you'd like to discuss.

[Lightningman_42]

Just gonna make a short intro because it's late and I'm super tired

My name is Peter from Sweden, been vegan since april this year.

Welcome to the forum, Peter! I hope you like it here.

After becoming vegan I saw some vids from vegan atheist on youtube and liked the reasoning and after that I found my way here. Actually just found my way here from the latest open letter to that one guy who I don't really know who he is.

Do you mean Matt Dillahunty? I don't really know who he is either. Apparently he was a part of The Atheist Experience, but I haven't watched it myself. TheVeganAtheist respects him greatly and holds him in high esteem, I think for being a vocal atheist who is rational and persuasive in most (but not all) respects. The poor arguments he made against veganism, as well as the comments he left under the first video by the VA criticizing him, displayed some rather severe intellectual dishonesty and willful ignorance. Since this is all I really know about him, I have a bad first impression of him. I find it difficult to have any respect for him, but maybe I should give him a chance...

I'm not into the "atheist scene" if there is such a thing, (hope that didn't sound rude).

No offense taken. If you're referring to some kind of "atheist movement", then I don't think most atheists actively participate in that. Personally I dislike many of the aspects of organized religion (unsubstantiated beliefs, confirmation bias, willful ignorance, etc.) but I'm not convinced that theism in and of itself is a bad thing, and so I don't consider myself an antitheist.

Been a really intense time for me since going vegan of gathering info, following groups, read discussions and so on. Seriously need a break from that side of veganism in a sense, been losing sleep over it.

I had much the same experience as a new vegan, and I guess maybe I still do (been vegan for over 14 months now). I care deeply about the well-being of animals, and so it's important to me to be able to present nonvegans with strong persuasive arguments (well-substantiated with scientific evidence and logical reasoning) that might convince them to consider becoming vegan.
Are you much the same way? I know you said you've been researching a lot already, but if you always want to learn more and get better at promoting veganism, then it might be a good idea to research any aspects that you haven't already researched. For example, some vegans care mostly about the ethical aspects of the vegan lifestyle (like me), but ethical arguments for veganism can be stronger if you're knowledegable about the environmental and health aspects as well (but maybe you've researched all aspects already; I don't know).

Anyway, I joined here because I like people who can argue with reason and be polite even if not agreeing.

Well said! I agree.

I think vegans often have thought out arguments and are pretty consistent with their reasoning. So I think I can learn a lot from hanging around here.

Maybe we can learn from you too.

I'm not sure if I'd call myself atheist, I'm more like a mild hippie slash agnostic haha. I'm sure there will be threads for that.

Anyway, nice to be here and talk to you people soon I hope.

Look forward to seeing your perspective on various topics.

[Jebus]

Welcome Peter, I'm a Swede as well. There are a few more Swedish occasional posters in our community. I understand why you are not into the "atheist scene". It's really easy being an atheist/agnostic in Sweden as they are in the vast majority. Once one lives in a religious country, like the U.S., one gets so sick of religious rhetoric that it gets easier to identify oneself as an atheist/agnostic who wants to seek out other similar type of thinkers.

[Lightningman_42]

Welcome Peter, I'm a Swede as well. There are a few more Swedish occasional posters in our community. I understand why you are not into the "atheist scene". It's really easy being an atheist/agnostic in Sweden as they are in the vast majority. Once one lives in a religious country, like the U.S., one gets so sick of religious rhetoric that it gets easier to identify oneself as an atheist/agnostic who wants to seek out other similar type of thinkers.

Jebus, what part of the U.S. did you live in? I was born and raised in the Bay Area of California, and religious rhetoric never really overwhelmed me. I suppose its prevalence in the U.S. (a large & diverse country), varies greatly from state-to-state. I wasn't raised religious, and did not dislike religion until I researched it myself, learned about its inherent problems, and started speaking to atheists who were raised as religious theists. I've often wondered what it would feel like to spend time in a state where religion is more pervasive than in California...

[Lightningman_42]

Welcome Peter, I'm a Swede as well. There are a few more Swedish occasional posters in our community.

Speaking of Swedes, I would recommend to everyone on this forum to subscribe to the YouTuber Oskar Jungell. He is a vegan-atheist-skeptic-Swede with plenty of fascinating videos (mostly concerning ghost-hunting). I love his video "Let's make oat milk" which I've linked below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sxvx93lMyyA

[Jebus]

Jebus, what part of the U.S. did you live in? I was born and raised in the Bay Area of California, and religious rhetoric never really overwhelmed me.

You live in one of the most liberal (and non-religious) parts of the U.S. My first year was in Georgia which can be tough for an atheist. I then spent three years in San Diego which would have been fine except that I studied at a Nazarene university.

[TheVeganAtheist]

Hi Peter from Sweden! Welcome to the forum. Agnosticism and atheism aren't mutually exclusive terms. Agnosticism pertains to what you claim to not know, while atheism pertains to what you profess to not believe.