Animals aren't less conscious than you are.
Sounds like you're quite firm on this, though I've heard many arguments to the contrary. Don't you consider some animals as more conscious than others? The ability to respond to pain doesn't encapsulate consciousness for me. I think neuron count matters in terms of our actual consciousness. Ravens, elephants, dolphins, primates, etc... I think it's been demonstrated some animals have higher levels of consciousness than others. We as humans engineered cows to be meat factors. They would not survive in the wild as they exist now (neither would many of the crops we've engineered to maximize food output). I view this issue as still open in that some animals are part of a sustainable ecosystem providing fertilizer and serving a roll to feed the community. Ideally, their lives should be pleasant, healthy, and pain free. I get that if you're view all animals as equally conscious, then this would be a horrifying stance to take.
If you read my content and honestly think I communicated "kill things for fun" then I'll no longer waste time responding as that's clearly a troll position to take. No where at all did I suggest anything like that. I don't even know what "repress our terror by investing into a symbolic order" means.
I think all animals have a value as living beings. If we expliot them to the maximum via killing, then this is horrifying regardless of how you try to equate it rationally - "they have less neurons so it's ok". Watch an animal like a pig get slaughtered, it's terrifying and painful to watch. And completely unnecessary since we created bread and stuff.
"Some animals are part of a sustainable ecosystem providing fertilizer and serving a roll to feed the community." We're obviously reading very different research about the huge environmental costs of meat production and how horribly wasteful it is. Also no community in the developed world needs meat to survive.
So you think saying -"The meat I enjoy (murder... tasty, tasty, murder)" isnt trolling vegetarians? It does imply an amusement in killing animals. So you did suggest it and I fully stand by my presentation of your views. You see killing animals as funny. You kill animals by proxy when you fuel the supply chain.
If you think I'm trolling by presenting you with your own views then you don't know what the meaning of the word is.
It's very simple. You don't get what game your playing. It's been going on for billions of years ever since one cell realised it could it could steal another cells energy it collected from the sun.
Your eating yourself, literally. One common ancestor - dna.
It's real hard trying to get the point across; we're not on the top looking down. We're not special or above anything because we're smart. Darwin knew this. People can't seem to get that. All living things have value in reality. Outside of our phoney dimarcations. Human Concioussness is the new God - it makes us feel special and it really shouldn't. We're not that smart, we're pissing upstream all the time.
Look up terror management theory about my last point.
I didn’t intent to troll vegetarians or vegans with that comment. It’s a joke I’ve heard most of my life, and I thought it was fairly common and uncontroversial in the way any off-color popular joke would be. I see how you or others could take it differently and for that I apologize if it implied something I never intended. I don’t think it implies enjoyment in killing, but enjoyment in eating because our species is omnivore and does enjoy meat (for the most part). My family uses locally sourced CSA for both our meat and vegetables. All the meat we eat has been grass fed, pastured, and lived a good life. You assumed something about my perspective there. We’ve visited and met with our farmers directly. I’ll be the first to agree with you mass meat production is an atrocity, and I don’t support it other than an occasional treat eating out as a family at a restaurant. I support the farm-to-table movement in restaurants as well and hope we see more of it.
If you want to blame me for billions of years, that’s your prerogative, but I think I’m doing my best here to honestly address a complicated issue.
I appreciate your views, but I don’t practice Jainism. I do see distinctions between species. I do think different animals have different levels of consciousness and that does inform my thinking on the topic becuase to me, capacity to feel joy, pain, and complex thoughts does directly relate to morality.
Thanks for bringing up TMT. I enjoyed skimming the Wikipedia page.