Do you agree with Richard Dawkins?

[mediamogul]

You require an argument to show you that our survival kills animals, no matter how much we may want to avoid it, seriously? Fine, just give me your pet solution, and I'll run a clinic on which animals it kills and why. Then, after that, I'll give you a longer list of animals that suffer, but stubbornly refuse to die nonetheless. Then you can tell me whether or not it's "necessary" and whether or not this price seems to be the "lesser of two evils".

My point is that I choose not to buy animal products to support the practice of causing animals suffering. Given the structure of our current system of production it is difficult to find "cruelty free" products. I understand that our current lifestyle and agriculture system will result in the death and suffering of animals. I understand that my lone decision to not eat meat will not save the animals but it doesn't mean I have to engage in a practice that I am ethically opposed to. I would certainly advocate for the more humane treatment of animals barring the ability to completely eliminate the practices. This is something I at least agree with my meat eating friends about, that they would like to see animals treated humanely. This would be the realm of applied ethics.

I'm not judging you for your compassion. I'm not attacking you for it. I'm simply saying that "because we have empathy" does not provide some rock solid objective, logical argument. We're awful selective with our empathy aren't we? I'm asking you why I should extend my empathy, not why I should have it. I'm asking you if by following my own sense of empathy it's possible that I may actually be causing yet more "unnecessary suffering" to some other group of "sentient" creatures. How am I to decide which of two separate sentient creatures to side with if a conflict arises?

I did not try to base my argument upon it. I merely responded to your comment. Compassion literally means to "suffer with". It is the idea that the suffering of others causes us to suffer emotionally. That we "feel their pain" in some sense. This is a feeling that binds us to humane treatment of others and animals. I think it is a very useful feeling. People who lack compassion are generally folks capable of committing cruelty.