Sorry to necro, but there's so much to discuss here.
Has quarantine made anyone else more or less vegetarian? I fell back on my staples of beans and rice and greens, but I feel like every time I have to go out I pick up a burger & nuggets as comfort food. And yet, stopping by taco bell for my preferred order of Black Bean Quesarito and spicey potato burrito satisfies that craving just as well. It might just be cheese that I miss... I was pescovegetarian for years with no real trouble, after all. Yet abuse of cows bothers me more than abuse of chickens, and I can't unknow it.
Someone might know better than me on this - but I think factory farming is ecologically more responsible than free-range farming. To do with land usage, etc. The issue with modern factory farming is that most of it goes to waste, making it worse on the environment by sheer quantity.
I could be talking out my ass there, but I feel like I've read that. Could be bullshit.
Seems right to me, but that's why I'm so excited for vat-grown meat.
But really what I want is vat-grown protein - and I feel like vegans have probably worked that out already.
Third issue: I've noticed some people mention dietary constraints that keep them from being vegetarian. I'm respectful of that, but someone mentioned diabetes. As someone whose family is plagued with diabetes, I don't actually understand the logic, and didn't ask. In general though I understand people eating meat because they need to. Heck, I understand people eating meat because it's convenient, as long as it's moral - aw hell I approach veganism ever more
(fourth issue: some vegans kinda worry me because they have the exact same conviction as anti-abortionists. Except, if you think about it, it's even worse than just killing...)
Edit: I could understand a vegan who eats free-range kills. For me, veganism is about not causing harm on a factory scale.
Like when my cousin shares a load of venison around Thanksgiving - there's so little harm in eating that. Encouraging his hunting is tiny compared to what happens in the factory farms every day.