My friends will often make jokes along the lines of "the animal's suffering makes it taste better". I've played along so far...I think a lot of people use humor to deal with cognitive dissonance. If they're acknowledging out loud that animal suffering is an ingredient in their diet I think that's a positive thing and I'm not going to suck the fun out of the room in response to that.
I'd like to find a way to pivot from those kind of hit-and-run jokes to actually discussing veganism in a way that might change people's minds. I don't want to come off as combative, overly-serious, or self-righteous though...I'm probably the only vegan most of them know (I'm in the midwest where trucks, guns and meat are pillars of civilization) so I feel it's important to not play into negative stereotypes.
I'd like to find a way to pivot from those kind of hit-and-run jokes to actually discussing veganism in a way that might change people's minds. I don't want to come off as combative, overly-serious, or self-righteous though...I'm probably the only vegan most of them know (I'm in the midwest where trucks, guns and meat are pillars of civilization) so I feel it's important to not play into negative stereotypes.