Today, I listened to a podcast on the ethics of eating meat. The interviewee came from a stance that eating animals was inhumane and against society’s moral codes. He stated that eating factory-farmed chicken, pigs and cows was unjust to their well-being and thus a negative on society. Although I agreed with some of his points, he seemed to have a subjective (biased) opinion. When the host, Steve Patterson, mentioned the problems of harvesting grains, like killing organisms that live in and on the crops, the guest quickly adjusted his stance to a monetary theory of moral code.
When it comes to morality, money isn’t part of the equation (in my opinion). Nobody would forgive Kevin Spacey because the ends resulted in a lot of money. He did immoral deeds and was punished for it. Same for the immorality of plowing rabbits, rats, mice and other animals living in fields of grain.
As someone who has been a vegetarian and tried veganism for half a year, and is now Paleo, I feel I have a stance on this subject. My main motive for not eating meat was for everything the interviewee described. It was to feel better about the environment and feel better for the animals that I wasn’t killing. The only problem was that the vegetarian and even more so the vegan diets affected my mood and ability to live the life I wanted. It also made me eat far too many grains that my body rejected.
The one thing that the interview re-enforced was the terrible conditions our livestock is faced with in meat factories. Moving forward, I will try my hardest to get my meat from local, free-range sources. Although this means a bigger hit on my wallet, it makes me feel better for the lives of the animals I’m about to eat. Additionally, by signaling my preference for an organic piece of meat, I’m showing potential organic farmers a chance for profits. My attempts to eat healthier may promote entrepreneurship into the space going forward, limiting the powers of meat factories.