I don’t believe the “meat eater problem” should be ignored, but rather approached with great care. It’s easy to imagine the negative press and public backlash that could arise from expressing views suggesting it might be better for people to die or discouraging support for charities that save lives in the developing world.
The Effective Altruism community is very small, with estimates around 10,000 people—a tiny fraction of the nearly 8 billion people on the planet. If we want to create a world without factory farming, we need to focus on bringing more people into the fold who care about animals. Spotlighting an analysis that essentially suggests it’s good when young children die and that we should discourage saving them doesn’t seem like the path to growing the movement that can end the horrors of factory farming.
By treating this problem with care, we can ensure that our efforts to improve the world are effective without alienating those who might otherwise join us in the fight against animal suffering.
I don’t believe the “meat eater problem” should be ignored, but rather approached with great care. It’s easy to imagine the negative press and public backlash that could arise from expressing views suggesting it might be better for people to die or discouraging support for charities that save lives in the developing world.
The Effective Altruism community is very small, with estimates around 10,000 people—a tiny fraction of the nearly 8 billion people on the planet. If we want to create a world without factory farming, we need to focus on bringing more people into the fold who care about animals. Spotlighting an analysis that essentially suggests it’s good when young children die and that we should discourage saving them doesn’t seem like the path to growing the movement that can end the horrors of factory farming.
By treating this problem with care, we can ensure that our efforts to improve the world are effective without alienating those who might otherwise join us in the fight against animal suffering.