It all matters. The conditions they were raised in matter, the killing of an animal who does not want to die matters. Construct for me a hypothetical where I have to pick between an animal that suffered and then was killed, or an animal that had a good life and then was killed, and I will pick the latter. Add a third choice where no animal need die, and I’ll pick that one every time it is available.
You should think about meat eating this way: that whether or not killing an animal or causing lots of unexpected suffering is your conscious objective, you know with a substantial certainty that those results will ensue. Because you act knowing the certainty of the consequences, you are responsible whether or not the consequences are your intended objective. This is a common standard we use to determine intent in the criminal justice system.
It all matters. The conditions they were raised in matter, the killing of an animal who does not want to die matters. Construct for me a hypothetical where I have to pick between an animal that suffered and then was killed, or an animal that had a good life and then was killed, and I will pick the latter. Add a third choice where no animal need die, and I’ll pick that one every time it is available.
You should think about meat eating this way: that whether or not killing an animal or causing lots of unexpected suffering is your conscious objective, you know with a substantial certainty that those results will ensue. Because you act knowing the certainty of the consequences, you are responsible whether or not the consequences are your intended objective. This is a common standard we use to determine intent in the criminal justice system.