(April 28, 2011 at 11:03 am)Zen Badger Wrote: The fact is, we have evolved as omnivores and we require meat as well as vegetables.
They seem to have this idea that in nature animals live in some sort of happy co-existance where no really gets hurt.
One suspects they've watched "Bambi" one too many times.
It's an ethical choice, simple as that. Noone's denying that we're omnivores and that there's a great deal of cruelty in the wild, but that argument simply isn't comparing like with like.
We are animals, after all, and I personally think that we have a moral obligation to minimize the suffering done to our fellow creatures, no matter how lowly they are. As long as they suffer, I think it's wrong to turn a blind eye. I'm sure a philosopher like Shelly Kagan can be more eloquent about it, but it's a simple and fair ethical stance. Comparing it to a religion is rather insulting, especially when coherent arguments can be made by both sides, and I fucking hate it when people think veganism for moral reasons is some form of "extremism."
