Our non-vegetarian society

I was informed in no uncertain terms by people who know that Americans are not going to vegetarian diets en masse anytime soon.  How stupid of me.  I guess the constant bombardment of the public by fast food hamburger ads and the whole meat is the center of the plate thing (I admit my own inability to break free from that paradigm) is hard for a vegetarian diet to counter.  The problem being most people perceive vegetables as something to be boiled, steamed or fried with minimal additions besides copious amounts of salt and or fat.  Even the Chinese traditions are overtaken by meat as a casual inspection of the average buffet restaurant bears out.  There are good vegetarian cookbooks out there, but it would seem a re-education program must be part of the solution to adding more vegetables to our diets.  Good vegetarian cooking also takes more planning and prep time.  With our increasingly on the go lifestyles, cooking is seen as a nuisance, not as the vital experience it should be.  What is more important than cooking and eating together as a family!