That’s the problem with sentience, isn’t it? There’s a few ways to go about it. There was the works of rene decartes. He argued the hard point that animals are not sentient, and that pain is not enough. I would likely go for a different position. Sentience alone is not enough for moral consideration. You being sentient is not alone sufficient for you to be cared about. At most, sentience assures that you have some type of perspective in present only, but it does not entail that you care about anything, including death or suffering. Moral agency is what gives moral consideration directly. Moral agents can respond to moral positions and therefore be classified as moral or immoral. You don’t call a lion immoral, after all. Animals are not moral agents, and therefore whatever happens to them cannot be classified as a moral issue. That would be a categorical error. Despite this, I often ruminate on whether veganism may be the choice for me regardless of my position, since animals not being moral agents doesn’t really affect my position on their care and well-being. Perhaps when I know I’m secure, I will make the swap to veganism. Assuming I find that I really can reach all my nutrient goals and requirements with the same consistency.
maybe you are and maybe you aren’t, but i don’t have the energy to try and convince you why murdering sentient life is a bad thing
That’s the problem with sentience, isn’t it? There’s a few ways to go about it. There was the works of rene decartes. He argued the hard point that animals are not sentient, and that pain is not enough. I would likely go for a different position. Sentience alone is not enough for moral consideration. You being sentient is not alone sufficient for you to be cared about. At most, sentience assures that you have some type of perspective in present only, but it does not entail that you care about anything, including death or suffering. Moral agency is what gives moral consideration directly. Moral agents can respond to moral positions and therefore be classified as moral or immoral. You don’t call a lion immoral, after all. Animals are not moral agents, and therefore whatever happens to them cannot be classified as a moral issue. That would be a categorical error. Despite this, I often ruminate on whether veganism may be the choice for me regardless of my position, since animals not being moral agents doesn’t really affect my position on their care and well-being. Perhaps when I know I’m secure, I will make the swap to veganism. Assuming I find that I really can reach all my nutrient goals and requirements with the same consistency.