The great moral question and dilemma... (Main Forum)

by James, Australia, Sunday, April 29, 2012, 15:16 (388 days ago) @ Brian Coyne

Brian,

The food chain does create a dilemma about for belief in a benevolent personal God. Because from any (human) point of view, it is revolting. It requires the suffering and death of the prey at the hands of the predator. Despite suggestions to the contrary that plants "feel", it seems more likely that they do not have the same nervous mechanisms that we have to feel pain. And this is the big difference between being a herbivore and an omnivore. Now, of course, there is a kind of dimmer switch in terms of pain and consciousness within nature, so that one is entitled to question the degree of suffering of an oyster as against a pig or cow.

I wouldn't be surprised that future generations will move towards vegetarianism, not just for environmental reasons, but because the combination of modern economics and production systems to the production of meat must invariably involve more cruelty to animals than is necessary.

After listening to the recent debate on the ABC about whether meat should be on the menu, it was very hard to justify any form of meat eating in this day and age - except for the fact that most of us enjoy it, and a lot of people have jobs because of it.