If that's the case, whales are screwed. You see, killing one whale results in pain for one creature. Its carcass, however, provides pleasure for thousands, if not millions, of other creatures. Let's estimate that some 50,000 creatures, from seagulls to crabs to worms will get some pleasure out of the dead whale. The math is pretty simple. 50,000 > 1. Goodbye, Mr. Whale.
After the whales are all killed, we'll move on to elephants, then rhinos, then hippos and so on*.
* - No point in making sure your life insurance is paid up. There won't be anyone around to collect.
3 comments:
Speaking of which, I've noticed that there are many people who are not quite vegetarians, but they do try to minimize their meat consumption because they are uncomfortable with the idea of killing animals for food. These people are typically vigorously opposed to eating beef or pork, but they are willing to eat chicken and have no qualms about eating fish.
And yet, how many chickens must be killed to give the same amount of meat as a cow? Figuring 3-4 pounds of edible meat on a chicken and up to 800 pounds off of a cow, I'm getting somewhat in the neighborhood of 250 chickens/cow[1]. And, having had ample opportunity to deal with both over the years, I'm not convinced that the cow has much, if any, more intellectual capacity or potential for joy/suffering than a chicken. Certainly not 250 times more.
So, if one is worried about animal welfare (but not worried enough to become completely vegetarian)[2], what should one eat - chicken, or beef?
[1] And then there's the fish. How many sardines are equivalent to a single cow?
[2] Not to mention the point that, if we didn't like to eat them and therefore raise quantities of them, I suspect that cattle would be extinct by now - in the wild state they would be incredibly destructive. Is it better for the species to continue in exchange for being eaten? Especially since "being eaten" is mainly what ended up happening to them in the wild in any case? Or would the pure vegetarians rather see them extinct?
Now them's some good logic!
Good points Tim! I think vegetarians are subconsciously opposed to eating something they can empathize with. It's easier to relate to another mammal than a bird, and easier to relate to a bird than a fish.
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