How Stupid Are Vegetarians?

India probably has more vegetarians than any other country. Far more.

India’s obsession with vegetarianism is evident everywhere. There are restaurants which advertise themselves as “Pure Veg”, Jains who cover their mouths with scarves lest they involuntarily swallow an insect and Hindu Brahmins who refuse to eat from a kitchen that is also being used to prepare meat dishes.

Another place where this fascination for vegetarianism evidences itself is in the Government regulation that all food products that are manufactured, sold or advertised in this country must indicate whether they consist only of vegetarian products or not. This is done by means of a small colored circle enclosed inside a square on the product or advertisement. A green circle and square indicates that the product is vegetarian and a red circle indicates that it isn’t.

Now this is all very well for products which may lead to some sort of confusion. For example, an oil may have vegetable or animal origin. For such products I can understand the need for a color clarification. Surely, you wouldn’t want a chaste Brahmin incurring the wrath of the Gods for having consumed a product that had an animal based ingredient in it! But the other day, I came across an advertisement for Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). The billboard had a picture containing a few juicy chicken drumsticks. And of course, in the corner sitting quietly was the customary red circle inside a red square!

Talk about superfluous! An advertisement for chicken has to specifically announce to the world that it is not vegetarian? Do they believe vegetarians are stupid enough the order chicken by mistake?


Dumb Vegetarian: Ah yes, Kentucky Fried Chicken! This sounds like a nice place to stop for a meal! Could I see the menu please?

Waiter: All we have, sir, is fried chicken.

Dumb Vegetarian: Would that by any chance be vegetarian?

Waiter: Yes sir! It’s fried in pure vegetable oil by a Brahmin priest and the chicken ate nothing but grain all its life!

Dumb Vegetarian: Well then, I’ll have a bucket please. But wait a minute! What do we have here? A red circle? You lying scoundrel! This isn’t vegetarian! (Fervently mutters prayers to a few deities.)


You see the point? If there wasn’t the red circle, a lot of vegetarians might get fooled into believing that chicken is indeed a vegetarian food!