This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »
AmbivalentFriability · 26-30
The ones I've had some kind of emotional connection with are non-food animals. I imagine if I'd ever been friends with cows like I am with cats and dogs, I wouldn't eat them. It's hard to eat an animal when you picture the face of one of the same species that you've loved, every time they come to mind.
I feel guilty and disturbed every time I eat it, but if I am honest, beef, poultry, pork, and fish are faceless and anyonymous to me. I let them be (faceless and anonymous). I know I'm going to eat them anyway, so why make myself miserable with guilt for it? I don't think I can be guilted into doing anything long-term, and my self-punishment doesn't make their lives any better, so what's the point?
I've made steps towards veganism, but reverted overtime everytime.
I like to think that I'll be able to go full vegan with time once I live on my own. I guess we'll see.
I feel like I am in a position where I can live comfortably without animals having to suffer and die for me, so I really should be making choices that reflect that.
I feel guilty and disturbed every time I eat it, but if I am honest, beef, poultry, pork, and fish are faceless and anyonymous to me. I let them be (faceless and anonymous). I know I'm going to eat them anyway, so why make myself miserable with guilt for it? I don't think I can be guilted into doing anything long-term, and my self-punishment doesn't make their lives any better, so what's the point?
I've made steps towards veganism, but reverted overtime everytime.
I like to think that I'll be able to go full vegan with time once I live on my own. I guess we'll see.
I feel like I am in a position where I can live comfortably without animals having to suffer and die for me, so I really should be making choices that reflect that.
SW-User
@AmbivalentFriability: Thank you for yet another thoughtful answer. It really makes you wonder about just how much people are willing to permit when something is faceless.
Like how we buy our clothes from sweatshops without thinking about it. Our electronics from Chinese factories that exploit their workers to the point where they would rather kill themselves. We buy diamond jewelry a symbol of love, despite the fact that the diamonds were mined by slaves or used to finance wars in Africa. People in the States buy illegal drugs that is fueling a violent gang war in Mexico and supplying cartels with the money and power they need to continue it.
We support so many things that we would be appalled if we knew what happened behind the scenes. When the blood is on someone else's hands, it keeps us from ever having to think about it.
It makes me wonder, how when we look back at slavery and think about how awful it was and how evil you had to be to participate in it, would people realize that it was just considered normal back then. Slaves for the most part were seen as faceless workers that existed for the benefit of their masters. Since white people were mostly freemen in the US, why would they care if slaves were being beaten, separated from their families, or worked to death? It didn't affect them. And if someone made a lot of noise about how wrong the practice was and how cruel their treatment, how would other people react to that person?
That's the thing with eating meat and animal products. It's been normalized. It's so ingrained into Western culture that it's everywhere. Meat is on every menu for every meal. It's not even about survival or ethics or anything like that. It's for our convenience and our pleasure. And it's hard to go against a culture like that. Vegetarians and vegans are mocked all the time, particularly on the internet. On top of making the commitment to eliminate and restructure a big part of your cultural diet, you have to withstand the incredulity or the scorn of people that think your choices are foolish. And if you have friends or family that you want to eat with, an extra effort to avoid meat needs to be made solely because of you. It's not an easy decision for people to make.
Between people opting to take the path of least resistance and not wanting to be an outcast, your options aren't very appealing. I think awareness is the first step, but given the responses I've gotten so far, we haven't even gotten that far
Like how we buy our clothes from sweatshops without thinking about it. Our electronics from Chinese factories that exploit their workers to the point where they would rather kill themselves. We buy diamond jewelry a symbol of love, despite the fact that the diamonds were mined by slaves or used to finance wars in Africa. People in the States buy illegal drugs that is fueling a violent gang war in Mexico and supplying cartels with the money and power they need to continue it.
We support so many things that we would be appalled if we knew what happened behind the scenes. When the blood is on someone else's hands, it keeps us from ever having to think about it.
It makes me wonder, how when we look back at slavery and think about how awful it was and how evil you had to be to participate in it, would people realize that it was just considered normal back then. Slaves for the most part were seen as faceless workers that existed for the benefit of their masters. Since white people were mostly freemen in the US, why would they care if slaves were being beaten, separated from their families, or worked to death? It didn't affect them. And if someone made a lot of noise about how wrong the practice was and how cruel their treatment, how would other people react to that person?
That's the thing with eating meat and animal products. It's been normalized. It's so ingrained into Western culture that it's everywhere. Meat is on every menu for every meal. It's not even about survival or ethics or anything like that. It's for our convenience and our pleasure. And it's hard to go against a culture like that. Vegetarians and vegans are mocked all the time, particularly on the internet. On top of making the commitment to eliminate and restructure a big part of your cultural diet, you have to withstand the incredulity or the scorn of people that think your choices are foolish. And if you have friends or family that you want to eat with, an extra effort to avoid meat needs to be made solely because of you. It's not an easy decision for people to make.
Between people opting to take the path of least resistance and not wanting to be an outcast, your options aren't very appealing. I think awareness is the first step, but given the responses I've gotten so far, we haven't even gotten that far