I get how people become salty over preachy vegetarians and vegans (and PETA). I've met a few over the years and I can agree that they are very frustrating, often delusional people to deal with.

That said, I think the only reason people refuse to look past preachy (typically young) vegans and at the greater movement as a whole is denial. Most know that eating meat is wrong, but to entertain this feeling is to give in to the idea of not eating meat and this is not an easy road to go down for a lot of people. Cognitive dissonance is one thing, actually going through with a major lifestyle change is another, and many resort to going on the offense against vegetarianism using the existence of "preachy vegans" as their justification doing so.

And I get that. Statistically, most vegetarians give up within a year due to lack of social support. I've been an alternating vegetarian/vegan for more than a decade and have lost friends over it, been ostracized, been verbally badgered/attacked dozens of times (by people often wielding Maddox quotes or arguments) and I've even been in one physical altercation over it (which I did my best to avoid). Being a vegetarian or a vegan can be an isolating, difficult thing to do without the right support and I think a lot of people know this which is why they don't try.

Which is why Maddox pisses me off. If it weren't for the Maddox's of the world and people that enable them, people who choose not to eat meat (or who choose to eat less meat) would have an easier time and the result would be less meat would be eaten. The only real barrier to not eating meat for a lot of people is the lack of social support and supporting people who don't eat (or eat less) meat is the right thing to do for all the reasons you've stated.

Yadda yadda, for not seeing the big picture and for antagonizing vegetarians and vegans so much over the course of his career, I think Maddox is a massive cunt.