Isn’t factory farming a clear-cut case of injustice? A pretty standard view of justice is that you don’t harm others, and if you are harming them then you should stop and compensate for the harm done. That seems to describe what happens to farmed animals. In fact, as someone who finds justice plausible, I think it creates a decent non-utilitarian argument to care about domestic animal suffering more than wild animal suffering.
As my last sentence suggests, I do think that justice views are likely to affect cause prioritisation. I think you’re right that justice may lead you to different conclusions about inter-generational issues, and is worth a deeper look.
“A pretty standard view of justice is that you don’t harm others, and if you are harming them then you should stop and compensate for the harm done. That seems to describe what happens to farmed animals.”
I think this only applies to people who are contributing to the harm. But for a vegan for is staunchly opposed to factory farming, they aren’t harming the animals, so factory farming is not an issue of justice for them.
Isn’t factory farming a clear-cut case of injustice? A pretty standard view of justice is that you don’t harm others, and if you are harming them then you should stop and compensate for the harm done. That seems to describe what happens to farmed animals. In fact, as someone who finds justice plausible, I think it creates a decent non-utilitarian argument to care about domestic animal suffering more than wild animal suffering.
As my last sentence suggests, I do think that justice views are likely to affect cause prioritisation. I think you’re right that justice may lead you to different conclusions about inter-generational issues, and is worth a deeper look.
I think this only applies to people who are contributing to the harm. But for a vegan for is staunchly opposed to factory farming, they aren’t harming the animals, so factory farming is not an issue of justice for them.