In my observation, a big part of social progress is each generation pointing out the hypocrisy of the previous. “All men are created equal” so how can you enslave black people? If men can vote, why can’t women? How come straight people can marry but gay people can’t? How is it fair to send an 18 year old to war but not let him vote?
A lot of these hypocrisies were so internalized that a lot of people of previous generations never even thought about them. It was like a mental blind spot. It took young people with fresh thinking to point them out and fight to fix them.
So, speaking as a Millenial, I’m asking what my generation’s blind spots are. What injustices are we perpetuating without even thinking much about it?
For reference, Millenials are currently in their late 20s to early 40s. Not running the world, but also not fresh eyed college grads.
if it was viable it’s all you would hear about from militant internet vegans … and I wouldn’t even be mad.
First of all, it’s perfectly viable to just not eat meat. Tons of people don’t eat meat and are perfectly healthy.
If you need meat replacements, (which is for taste, let’s be clear) there are a TON of good substitutes, for example Beyond.
Also to your previous point, food waste is a big problem, but thermodynamically, meat IS food waste. Only a fraction of the energy of animal feed is present in the meat, which is super resource intensive and environmentally terrible (not to mention all the methane produced)
Meat substitutes are horrible replacements in terms of taste. Let’s just clarify that. Question anyone who likes them enough and you’ll eventually find out that they always disliked real meat, or they haven’t eaten real meat in decades.
But correct. Meat is not needed at all.
I’m afraid I’m gonna be the counterexample to your theory. I liked most forms of meat; my favorites were chicken, ground beef, and fish fingers. However, once I discovered plant-based (mostly soy-based) substitutes, I genuinely prefer them. I’m still not fully vegan but I’m no longer buying meat because this stuff is so much better. I also prefer oat milk over cow milk and am kind of annoyed I didn’t try it sooner because it’s so much better (esp. in hot chocolate).
In a large enough population base, there will be individuals who deviate significantly from the norm, and they are statistically not relevant.