So if you eat meat thats factory farmed, like me, you support animal torture and starvation of children... Objective fact.
So... How could one who eats meat, call something else unethical?
You are more or less on point here - but strangely enough for many it just stops there. But does it really?
Ethics can't only be about your choices towards one narrow segment of human economy (factory farming, meat & dairy industry). If your worldview stops there - you're inconsistent in a very same way some psychedelically-enlightened person is, if he has a burger after some dmt-led alternative-universe observation.
One moment you're a being of light and love - and next you're a driver of pain and suffering just like yours to another live being? Yes, it is a hypocrisy.
But how about "fast fashion" (google it)? It's a lot of suffering for people and animals all over the world for no real reason but financial gain. How about what goes on on Wall street or how large global companies behave killing local micro-businesses? How about cosmetics and pharma, doing animal testing? Oil pumping that fuels our planes and cars? Dumping your garbage? The list is much longer than just animal farming, there are lots of things that are blindly harmful that we do or contribute to by consumption.
Building a consistently ethical harm reduction worldview is
hard and it can be a socially isolating experience. It's like you're suddenly able to walk but see everyone else in the world is in wheelchairs and you can't just go out and demand them to do squat jumps.
I don't eat meat or consume any animal-based products, I often look up companies that produce products that I buy to minimally check if they are involved in unethical practices - but I still have to drive a car around, use a computer and a dishwasher etc. and when I go for a walk I might step on an ant or kill a mosquito on my neck, you know.
We are
social animals, we rely on other people and their work, rely on how this world is built. If you try to be radically consistent in your ethics - you have to move back to the caves and never use any of stuff we had through the last couple of thousand years, because all of it is built on blood and pain. When you actually try doing it (not just in theory as I would assume you are) - you quickly understand that there is a perspective that would apply to your own lifestyle too, you're not a saint, you can't avoid being hypocritic at some level yourself. There is no real way to achieve a position that is morally superior, for the moment we all are only human beings.
So I think that harm reduction ethics is not about making everyone do everything in some strictly prescribed "right" way. That would be how religion works. If you're dogmatic about it - well, it's just silly.
Harm reduction is about
least harmful choices that you make at everything in life, not only animal cruelty. Each time you choose - you don't just do a blind go, don't follow habits or patterns - but instead mindfully consider each your choice and do the least possible harm you think you can do in this situation. It's effectively an expectation of deeply present consciousness and mindfulness from people. I really do hope people will use their soul and consciousness and build up their wisdom and become better in every step they make - but everyone is at a different stage of that journey, five years ago I was enjoying burgers myself.
And btw to close a gestalt - my expectation of wisdom and consciousness is not a randomly developed belief that I just have and impose on others for no reason whatsoever. It is quite a materialistic and rational, selfish thing to have. If more people will live a harm reduction lifestyle - my children and their children and all the further DNA descendants of mine will have more chances for survival, chances for life at a better place. Our genes are selfish, right? So I only
really care about how beautiful and clean and peaceful the planet will be for
many generations down from me - not just the one or two generations (children/grandchildren). I want peace and clean nature for myself and my descendants, because it makes sense, that's what any life does - survival.
Thought you might use a reply from a vegan here (also - my first reply here, sorry for length).
