Ive been a vegetarian for 20 + years , and my kids 15 and 12 have been vegetarians all their life. Based on the last 20 years, and my families generally good health, I dont think, nutritionally, we are at a disadvantage. And obviously, my week has lasted 20 + years, so that answers part II.
Years ago, when I made my dietary choice, things were a lot different. Being a vegetarian meant u ate steamed vegetables, tofu and sprouts. I can assure you, and everyone here, that those choices were crap. And at that time, did I ever miss a bowl of chili, meatball hero, sausages .... Although i was a vegetarian by choice, it wasnt necessarily for health reasons %100, which meant, I loved to eat things that tasted good. At this point in my life is when cooking became important. Sure it was a challenge, but it forced me to be more creative, try many new ingredients, and expand my cullinary tastes to many different cuisines around the world. This was before there was a cooking channel that spanned the world, or a Thai, Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Japanese ..... restaurant in every strip mall. I guess you can say I was ahead of my time. The problem Ive seen through this dietary journey is that many people who wernt vegetarians were closed minded , and assumed that our diet was limited to the few things i mentioned earlier in the post, or that all we eat is vegetables ( in their raw form). For whatever reason, at almost every social dinner, there was at least one jackass who would hold up a carot or whatever and make a stupid comment , aloud. Getting a few chuckles and pats on the back for embarrassing me and my choices. Thankfully, with the popularity of cooking, eating, food channels, multi ethnic restaurants opening up all over , the health craze, people being less ignorant and being more open minded, and the extreme increase of choices and imitation ' meat ' products out there, i find that not only do I now " blend in " when i sit down for dinners, many times people are more curious to try what I have cooked than what is on their own plate. Not that they are trying to " join the other team" , but just seeing the variety and choices I have and open mindedly trying it. It seems that cullinarily, things have come a long way.
Another problem I see is that some people, when trying a veggie burger, or sausage or whatever, the first thing out of their mouth ( other than the food they dramatically spit back on the plate) is " this doesnt taste like real meat". Well, theres a good reason for that, since it isnt real meat
.When I have a vegetarina product, i dont expect it to taste exactly like what its intended to imitate, but that I can use it in a similar way. A veggie burger on a bun with pickles, lettuce, onions ....tastes great. You just got to think of it as ' something to eat' and not try to compare it to the actual meat burger itself, as they are two different things. That being said, being a vegetarian now is a whole lot different, as products are everywhere, much better looking and tasting . Also much more main stream. I never get in to a heated battle because its just not worth it. All I ask is leave the old tofu sprout raw vegetable vegetarian image at home, because its just not like that anymore ( except for those health freaks, and honestly, they can keep it). Just because im a vegetarian, doesnt mean i dont like the smell of a barbecue, or that i miss a pizza with pepperoni, sausages and meatballs on top. I can honestly say I dont miss chicken or steak at all. My closing note will be, I think if people treated a vegetarian diet as just another cuisine, just as Thai, Chinese, Indian.... it would be more accepted, than treating it as a diet for ethical health freaks ( sure we have our share of these too, im not saying we dont). I think those that are open minded and treat it like this, are the ones who enjoy it and see our point of view.
One more thing, I have been to Vyapti's site and tried many of his recipes. All vegan, and most very good with a wide variety of tastes. You should all give it a shot.
larry