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Comment by regnum | Hacker News Reader

After I watched Forks Over Knives on Netflix it took me about 2 years to become 100% plant based, but I've been doing it now for over a year and I can guarantee you I'll never go back.

I work in an industry where I see the side effects of the Standard American Diet, and if you saw the health effects I see you'd switch too.

Here in Austin we have several monthly potlucks based upon the Plant Pure Nation pods idea, which makes it easier to find like minded people and new recipes. Also, Facebook groups like McDougall Friends is great for support, if you need it.

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If emergency room doctors made laws, motorcycles would be illegal.

We're all susceptible to being deluded by our naive realism. Like how I think anyone driving faster than me is a maniac and anyone driving slower is a moron. The objective reality is that everybody thinks that.

Or perhaps they'd be subsidized as it brings them business :P

I wish. The insurance on my R1 outweighs my other bikes and cars, combined. And I honestly can't blame them. That thing is breathtakingly fast.

This study found that 70% of drivers think they're "above average": http://www.theaa.ie/blog/70-of-drivers-rate-themselves-as-ab...

So 71% of the predictors are actually correct.

That actually seems like a pretty good metaphor, because the motorcycle is probably only legal due to historical inertia, not modern analysis.

If the motorcycle were invented today, do you think it would ever be legal? In America, perhaps, but probably not in countries that are more heavy-handed with regulation and bear the costs of public healthcare. It's an insane and dangerous vehicle.

I have several friends who have survived nasty car crashes and fully recovered. The only one who had a nasty motorcycle accident... well, his heart's still beating, but I'd hardly call it life.

Cars are the dangerous thing on road. Banning them would eliminate half of all motorcycle accidents, cite below. Idiots riding without helmets and being intoxicated greatly skew the fatality statistics.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorcycle_safety

Findings from motorcycle safety study.

75% of accidents were found to involve a motorcycle and a passenger vehicle.

Almost half of the fatal accidents show alcohol involvement.

In the multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of those accidents.

The report's additional findings show that the wearing of appropriate gear, specifically, helmets and durable garment, mitigates crash injuries substantially

The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents.

> Per vehicle mile traveled, motorcyclists' risk of a fatal crash is 35 times greater than a passenger car.

Wow, that's even worse than I expected, relative to a baseline that isn't very safe to begin with. It's unconscionable to keep these on the road.

You meant cars of course, as they cause 75% of those accidents?

(And others, often involving pedestrians.)

I'd expect most of the accidents caused by motorcyclists to involve excessive speed.

I'm open-minded, but I'll always go with the data. As Dr. Kim Williams the president of the American College of Cardiology said "There are two kinds of cardiologists: vegans and those who haven’t read the data."

>If emergency room doctors made laws, motorcycles would be illegal.

From a completely callous perspective, we'd miss all the healthy young organs that enter the donor pool. They don't call them "donorcycles" for nothing.

Austin is also home to two of the most delicious vegetarian burgers: Arlo's and Hopdoddy. Haven't found any that compare and I try one every time I see it on the menu.

> I can guarantee you I'll never go back [...] if you saw the health effects I see you'd switch too

TFA has this:

> health can be an effective “foot in the door” approach to increasing the number of vegetarians and vegans, but often not enough to keep people animal-free for the long-term.

I'm pretty sure most of the people who switched back felt like you do now. "Ever" is a long time.

I'm actually leaning towards the fact that all the starchy carbs vegans/vegetarians typically consume are far more harmful to health than meat. Just look at all of the amazing results coming out regarding a low carb diet and the positive health effects (consuming meat or not).

The amazing results coming out of a low carb diet? Just look at the recent news of The Biggest Loser trainer Bob Harper's heart attack. That's what low-carb will get you. Watch Forks Over Knives. Read The Starch Solution by Dr. McDougall. Look at any data not funded by the meat, dairy, and egg industries. It all points to the opposite of the popularized myth that starches are bad. I wish you the best of health!

I've been considering going vegan after seeing "Raw":

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4954522/

What stops you from trying?

Me and my friends also go to McDonald's Friends, where we regularly enjoy Big Mac eating contests. Maybe we'll meet there someday.

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