> Reflect that "commonly done" != "unproblematic". I agree, but I'm sure you also agree that "commonly done" != "problematic". Morality and common practice hav

> Reflect that "commonly done" != "unproblematic". I agree, but I'm sure you also agree that "commonly done" != "problematic". Morality and common practice have nothing to do with each other, so I don't think that line of argument helps or hurts either side here. And I don't think I ever implied that eating animals is unproblematic simply because most people do it. > Think for yourself: reflect on whether causing pain to sentient creatures is something you want to be doing in your life. The morality of hurting sentient creatures depends entirely on context. If I were torturing animals for my own sick pleasure, that would certainly be immoral. If I shoot a bear that's attacking me, I think we would both agree that that's justified. That's an extreme example, but it proves the general point that there exist conditions where hurting a sentient being is morally acceptable. In my opinion, getting adequate nutrition is also an acceptable reason. I assume you either disagree that that's a good enough reason, or you simply believe that plant-based diets provide adequate nutrition. If the former, then we're back to the moral disagreement: I think the pain caused to farm animals is an acceptable trade off for my health, and you don't. If the latter, well... I really don't want to get into the health side of this argument. I doubt we'd change each others' minds and the moral issue is much more interesting. I do agree that morality dictates we cause minimal possible suffering to the animals we eat, and I agree that modern farming practices leave a lot to be desired in that regard. But I'm trying to stick to the core question of whether eating animals is morally justifiable in its own right, regardless of the messy realities of the particular world in which we live.