Childhood indoctrination

[The Grand Nudger]

I cannot prove that a world population of 7 billion vegans could actually be supported by the planet. Not all that grows on the planet can be digested by humans and requires ruminant animals to be made available to human digestion. Will enough grow to feed everyone without animal agriculture? I don't think anybody knows.

Pretty easy stuff to figure out, yes. Petrochem (and a host of other sources) is a vastly more useful source of fertility than manure -that's why we use it-. It comes with it's own problems, obviously.

However there is reason to believe that at least where I live there is an abundance of fertile land that could certainly be used to feed the local population comfortably.

Ah, the inequitable distribution of natural resources, wonderful isn't it?

There is no reason to assume that the vast lands dedicated to soy and corn production couldn't be converted to grow crops digestible by humans. Prices would go up, at least at first, and it would require fundamental changes in our food production methods, no doubt. I don't propose veganism would work if everyone started the same day, it's a gradual process.

Prices would go up, and "less than sustainable resource" consumption rates would also skyrocket...not to mention water....this has already been addressed, long ago.

Why does that uncertainty not convince me that I can finally have that juicy steak again? Because in the face of gruelling complexities that I have no hope of completely understanding, I choose to take the naive point of view, as close as I can get to that of a child: What are the direct consequences of my actions that I can see, here and now, if I look?

I suppose there's really no gentle way to put this...so..here goes.

If maintaining this position requires that you willfully ignore the inclusion of all of the negatively valued things that led you to holding position as being part and parcel -of this position-....just what are we even talking about? What you would seem to be asking for here (more accurately) is not that we don't off our fellow creatures...but that you be personally shielded from knowledge of it -or- be excused as as a beneficiary of it.

Now, clearly, you aren't in control of ag. I'm not giving you any shit for opting out of those things you cannot stomach -insomuch as you can (which is apparently far less than you think)-........I'm just stressing that a realistic appraisal of ones position doesn't leave much room for looking down the nose at the other guy in this particular arena.

Perhaps I haven't said enough to make this clear, the notion that it would be unworkable -from a technical point of view- is not at issue, we can do this. However, in order to do this, we would require an increase in related industries that offer no controls, no rights, no nothing - either to humans or to animals- in order to accomplish it. Industries, mind you, which already have track records that read like a demon's resume. What we'd be choosing, in effect, is what point we would like to shuffle all of this misery away at (and the exact status of said misery). Now, personally, I'd rather coddle some livestock for a few years then hit them with the captive bolt - as opposed to cutting a deal with the next warlord or multinational that finds a source of crude in a malleable location. You?

-That-.....or some as yet undisclosed breaththrough discovery (which to my mind, would be preferable to both..as difficult as it is to imagine what that sort of thing may be).