I don't think you're wrong. Ignorance is bliss, sometimes.

If everyone had to meet the meat before their meals, we'd be able to bring consumption right down.

(And by that I'd include the whole impact of cow breeding on the environment etc, right down to the execution.)

So you think hunters and people tend livestock eat less meat?

I will say this, having known both and helped/been both. They do tend to use more of the livestock/game when eating meat than those who are separated from the process of harvesting the animal, itself. This is, of course, purely anecdotal.

EDIT: My grammar game is horrible today. Sorry

I hunt and raise livestock and I eat more meat than most, but I try to be very conscious of where my meat comes from and how it was produced. People that hunt/produce have much different relationships with meat. I think the comment above meant if more of the masses knew how terrible mass produced farms and slaughterhouses were, they would be more conscious of the chain too, hopefully making their buying decisions more sustainable and ecological.

Kudos. Exactly. They'd be looking for eg free range whenever possible, and also possibly aim for a more balanced diet.

I think there would be some initial shock if we had to pull the trigger on the food we eat but eventually it would just be normal and those who enjoy meat would and those who don’t won’t. I would bet no one was squeamish at a food market several hundred years ago.

No, that’s not what sundvor says. They explicitly talk about the whole population (“everyone “), and I am pretty sure if everyone had to pull the trigger on their dinner, total meat consumption would absolutely go down, regardless of what a few hunters or farmers do.

Yep. I've only done so once, well my brother did the shooting whilst I held the rabbit down then helped prep to skin them.

Meeting the meat was also a reference to the Restaurant at the End of the Galaxy; there, the meat would kill itself. It forced the attendants higher up in the food chain to be confronted by the reality of the situation, rather than having the slice of meat simply something you get at the supermarkets in a packet.

In all seriousness, by reducing the amount of meat eaten you can avoid the worst meat factories with their horrible conditions for the animals.

I believe organic farming is far more ethical, and better for the planet as well (methane emissions) as for the consumers who are likely to be overweight.

I'll truly never understand how the automatic reply to every comment about population statistics always attacks the idea of an outlier that prevents the 100%, as if it's an all or nothing situation.

And it’s extra wrong here, as the sum of all consumption would absolutely go down, regardless of whether the outliers contribute or not.

Interesting suspicion. What atypical mind states are associated with meat eating?

It would have to be a very large effect given 95‰ of the US eats meat. I think the opposite is more likely. Atypical mind states are associated with veganism and the mood disorders.

To clarify, when I said "neurotically conscientious" I was referring to two of the traits in the Big 5 personality assessment scheme--neoroticism and conscientiousness. So not an "atypical mind state" so much as an ingrained way of viewing the world.

So in response to "what personality traits would you associate with meat eaters?" I would say, closer to average levels of neuroticism and conscientiousness, and hence also closer to average levels of anxiety and depression.

Sorry, I misread that as "neuotypically conscientious". What you wrote makes a lot more sense now

A significant portion appear to be feel threatened by (or at least, intensely concerned by) others' personal dietary habits. Paranoia? Megalomania?

Well, if you consider animal life to be valuable, it makes sense you that consider raising cattle for food similarly to how one would consider slavery today, and be disgusted by the results of that process.

> 95‰

Never seen that one before - assuming it's a typo here, but this is per-mil. Neat!

It is a typo formed by long press on the % key with a Motorola keyboard.

That, and the study is straight up funded by the beef industry which makes me pretty suspect.

"This study was funded in part via an unrestricted research grant from the Beef Checkoff, through the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association."

The complaint I’d register with this explanation is that neurotic and conscientious are psychological buzzwords. There is certainly some truer way to describe vegans just as briefly.