Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 18, 2006

Currently, I am very interested in social and political philosophy and ethical issues. I felt a strong sense of connection to the ideas of Peter Singer while taking Ethics from Keith. I find animals to be valuable for a number of reasons, one of which is for their aesthetic value. So, I took the plunge.

Factory Farm 40

Factory Farm Factory Farming Morals Factory 40

Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 7, 2008

An enormous volume of material has already appeared on the conditions under which animals live and die on factory farms, and more is almost certainly on the way. What the vegetarian wants, surely, is that we should stop eating meat even if our liking for it exceeds our revulsion at the suffering endured on factory farms.

Factory Farm 40

Factory Farm Factory Farming Vegetarian Meat 40

Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 6, 2009

Beyond the environmental impacts of meat production there is a basic ethical issue involved. So here is an even more modest proposal than roasting Fido: Try eating only what animals you are willing to kill with your own hands. Dogs were bred to be companion animals; pigs and cows are raised as food.

Los Angeles 40

Los Angeles San Francisco Factory Farm Factory Farming 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 5, 2007

To the Editor: “ A Factory Farm Near You ” (editorial, July 31) does not mention any issue of the morality of factory farming—treating living beings as factory products. Cruelty to animals on such a scale should be the centerpiece of any discussion on raising animals for food.

New York Times 40

New York Times Factory Farm Factory Farming New York 40

Animal Ethics

FEBRUARY 6, 2008

There is no doubt a good deal of truth in this last point as well, and we are here presented with a serious moral problem concerning the world food supply. Michael Fox , "'Animal Liberation': A Critique," Ethics 88 [January 1978]: 106-18, at 116-7) But even this fails to establish a case for vegetarianism.

Vegetarian 40

Vegetarian Fox Factory Farm Factory Farming 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 31, 2008

My view, then, is not that which it has often been taken to be in discussion and which Singer, Regan, Clark, and others blast in their work; I am not suggesting that, because they lack language, animals can be factory farmed without suffering. Animals are moral patients, but not moral agents.

Suffering 40

Suffering Animal Suffering Factory Farm Factory Farming 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 26, 2007

It might be argued that any decrease in suffering for farmed animals is good, morally speaking. Someone might argue that there is no incompatibility between (1) working to decrease animal suffering and (2) working toward the abolition of factory farming. What do you think of this ?

Factory Farm 40

Factory Farm Factory Farming Animal Suffering Farm Animal 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 2, 2008

And thanks to federal corn and soybean subsidies, factory farms saved an estimated $3.9 It’s time that our tax dollars no longer finance the inhumane conditions—for workers and animals and the climate—of factory farms. I have visited many of the grotesque factory farms that now corrupt our rural landscapes.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Factory Farm Factory Farming 40

Animal Ethics

MAY 23, 2007

I’ll leave the question of infant care to the physicians, but I know firsthand that an adult vegan can enjoy robust physical health without contributing to the cruel suffering of animals on today’s factory farms. It’s appalling that anyone would think that a diet based on a dubious morality would build a human infant.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Vegan 2007 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 31, 2008

There is a difficulty about drawing from all this a moral for ourselves. But then we can say this because we can say that all those are bad moralities, whereas we cannot look at our own moralities and declare them bad. It is natural to feel sympathy for animals who are suffering. This is bad faith.

Morals 40

Morals Factory Farm Factory Farming Neglecting 40

Animal Ethics

JUNE 4, 2009

For an explanation of this feature, click on “Moral Vegetarianism” at the bottom of this post. In fact, animals used for food do suffer a great deal. This includes refusing to support business firms that cause, or profit from, animal suffering. The question arises: Why should such indirect causal influence have any moral import?

Vegetarian 40

Vegetarian Morals Protest Protesting 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 15, 2006

As such, they are likely to be better moral reasoners , as well, both in their ability to identify moral reasons and in their ability to appreciate these reasons. Given their knowledge of nutrition already hinted at in Gale's reasoning above, they realize that no one needs to eat animals or animal products in order to be healthy.

Vegetarian 40

Vegetarian Factory Farm Factory Farming Morals 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 20, 2007

12): While this is a step in the right direction toward reducing the animal abuse inherent in all factory farming (from the chicken’s point of view), it’s still a long way from what nature intended. Let chickens be chickens, and avoid the whole moral dilemma by going vegan. Jean Bettanny Port Townsend, Wash.,

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Battery Cages Factory Farm 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 23, 2006

Jonathan Hubbell, a philosophy major at the University of Texas at Arlington, is the newest member of the Animal Ethics blog, and once again, I would like to welcome him aboard. In his fresh and candid first post (available here ), Jonathan admitted that he is struggling with the issue of ethical vegetarianism.

Factory Farm 40

Factory Farm Factory Farming Morals Meat 40