Philosophical Vegan Forum

Trolexander D wrote:Can anyone of you tell me how to reply to each comment separately like you guys did? Sorry I'm new here.

You see the quote button? Press that. Type the code [.quote="(Name goes here)"], then punctuate it with [/quote] around which part you're responding to. (I put the period there so I don't make a new quote.)

RedAppleGP wrote:

Trolexander D wrote:Can anyone of you tell me how to reply to each comment separately like you guys did? Sorry I'm new here.

You see the quote button? Press that. Type the code [.quote="(Name goes here)"], then punctuate it with

around which part you're responding to. (I put the period there so I don't make a new quote.)[/quote]

Thank you.

knot wrote:There's also a lot of evidence that suggests that animal products are bad for our health.

There are also a lot of evidence that suggests animal products can be good for our health, granted we choose the right one's and maintain moderation.

That might as well be an argument for eating human babies, If I was in a country where that was legal, would there be nothing wrong with me eating human babies?

Unfortunately I think of any country that allows cannibalism.

brimstoneSalad wrote: However, if you are in the middle of a grocery store, and you just happen to be craving human flesh because you like the taste, you would NOT be justified in killing your friend for food.
The same way you are not justified in killing dogs, cats, pigs, fish, etc. IF you have other healthy and nutritious things to eat instead.

Why should it only apply for extreme situations? If there are healthy and nutritious ways to eat meat on normal basis, is that okay?

Trolexander D wrote: There are also a lot of evidence that suggests animal products can be good for our health, granted we choose the right one's and maintain moderation.

A proper vegan diet can meet all the nutritional needs. Plus, from what I can tell, red meat can cause cancer.

Unfortunately I think of any country that allows cannibalism.

Does that make it morally acceptable?

brimstoneSalad wrote: Humans have, through technology, mostly removed themselves from the 'food chain'. We farm, and we can choose to grow what we want to eat, and we have eliminated or controlled the vast majority of natural predators that could kill us; even most diseases.

True. So now if I choose to eat a balanced diet, consisting of both plants and animals, how is that going to be wrong?

RedAppleGP wrote: A proper vegan diet can meet all the nutritional needs. Plus, from what I can tell, red meat can cause cancer.

Too much of anything will cause harm to our body. So if I eliminate red meat from my diet, will it be okay?

Does that make it morally acceptable?

No, and it is irrelevant to this topic.

Trolexander D wrote:

RedAppleGP wrote: A proper vegan diet can meet all the nutritional needs. Plus, from what I can tell, red meat can cause cancer.

Too much of anything will cause harm to our body. So if I eliminate red meat from my diet, will it be okay?

No, and it is irrelevant to this topic.

I don't think you quoted it properly.

Trolexander D wrote: Why should it only apply for extreme situations?

For the same reason it's only OK to kill other human beings in extreme situations. If you will otherwise die, then you can kill somebody to eat, or in self defense if that person is attacking you. This is justified to protect your life. If you must do something harmful, you can do so and be justified. If you don't need to do it, then the harm is not justified, and your choice to do harm is wrong.

Trolexander D wrote:If there are healthy and nutritious ways to eat meat on normal basis, is that okay?

If there are healthy and nutritious ways to eat human meat on a normal basis, is that okay?

It's not a question of whether you can do it, it's a question of whether you need to. And the science says we do not need to.

ADA wrote:It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19562864

That is the scientific consensus on nutrition. It's a simple fact that we don't need to eat animal products to be healthy, and there's no credible evidence that says otherwise.
There is a lot of pseudoscience and quack medicine that claims meat is necessary, don't be fooled by yellow journalism.

It's also true that we don't need to kill and eat other members of our own species to be healthy, and there's no credible evidence otherwise -- despite the fact that our ancestors did it for millions of years.

Trolexander D wrote:True. So now if I choose to eat a balanced diet, consisting of both plants and animals, how is that going to be wrong?

Because there are balanced diets containing only plants, fungi, etc. Balanced means balanced in terms of nutrition, that is protein (like beans), starches (like whole grains), fats (like nuts). There are many ways to balance a diet, and pig cow or chicken meat is not any more necessary to do so than human meat.

The reason the choice to include meat is wrong is because it's a choice to cause more harm instead of less harm. Because it's a choice. If you didn't have a choice in the matter, then it couldn't be wrong.

I've not bothered much about vegans and their diet so far, because you choose what you eat and that's none of my business. However I recently came across one of TheVeganAtheist's video, where he made an impression that veganism is not just another option, it is the right option, which indirectly implies that I, as a meat-eater, is doing it wrong.

That is why came here, to learn that if that is actually true. I wanted my views to be challenged and prove (if possible) that TheVeganAtheist is right after all. I'm open to new ideas and interested to listen to opposing ones to mine.

Basically, I think there's nothing wrong with meat consumption. I didn't choose to eat meat because I like killing animals or love the taste of meat, I'm born as an omnivorous being and I'm biologically designed/evolved to be one. So, to abandon it and adapt a vegan diet, I must see a significant advantage to take that leap. Like how driving cuts down travel time compared to walking on foot (the 'natural' way in this context). So far, I'm not seeing any such advantage, neither to me nor the animal.

Feel free to change to change my mind though. That's what I'm here for.