Myth # 78 : " But the plants you eat feel pain too ." ( also heard as “ But plants have feelings too .”)
Myth # 78 : " But the plants you eat feel pain too ." ( also heard as “ But plants have feelings too .”)
While there is growing evidence that plants are indeed more aware of their surroundings than once believed , they are almost certainly not sentient on the same level as animals . Yes , there is new research showing that plants can sense entrants into their immediate environment and react to the same , and yet this is not evidence for self-awareness , this is not evidence for the ability to experience pain or fear or suffering , and this is not evidence of plants being conscious in any manner similar to our cousins in the animal kingdom . Plants have no brains , no eyes , no hearts , no central nervous systems , no nerve endings , no limbic systems , no benzodiazepine ( pain ) receptors , do not possess the capability to release any endogenous opiates to alleviate pain when they are cut or trampled . As such , it is actually bordering on ludicrous to attempt to compare the " suffering " they experience when harvested to the very real ( and flagrantly obvious ) suffering animals experience when slaughtered .
Here ' s an idea – if you truly feel that the suffering vegans inflict on plants is equivalent to the obvious suffering that eating meat & dairy products inflicts on animals , how about embracing the following simple challenge : Before every meal this week , you watch a 15 minute video showing exactly what goes on in an average slaughterhouse on any given day , and for the same length of time before every meal I will watch a video of a vegetable harvest ... No ? … I thought not .
Just as important , how does you believing that it is just as immoral to eat plants * as it is to murder animals make causing animals to suffer acceptable ? Nowhere in the realms of philosophy or ethics can the case be reasonably made that another ’ s person “ doing wrong ” excuses our own equally wicked moral failures . Indeed , how can identifying a second wrong ever make the initial wrong Right ? As such , even if vegans did somehow cause plants to “ suffer ”, this would in no way excuse meat-eaters or dairy-consumers from causing animals even greater pain & trauma … As such , it just goes to show you – no matter which way you slice it , slicing only vegetables & fruits is clearly the most cruelty-free way to go – if not the only way to do so .
Current status of this Myth : aerated Justification it provides for eating animals : NONE
* If it is someday shown that plants do somehow “ suffer ” when harvested , then going vegan is again the superior alternative , as far more plants are “ murdered ” every day to feed heavily abused meat & dairy animals than are ever consumed by any plant-eating human … In addition , if you are truly worrying about the “ suffering ” causes to plants that are killed during harvest , I have personally found that it is relatively easy to live a life that is fully “ kill-free ” – sustaining myself deliciously & healthily on a diet that primarily consists of fruits & nuts & seeds & vegetables ( and even respectfully reaped legumes , tubers & grains ) that are all harvested without harming their parent plant at all .
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