Well said! Your statement

“I am also compelled to weigh my inessential desires against others’ most profound interests, such as fear of suffering and the will to live”

has become the reason Jane and I expect to remain vegan for the rest of our lives.

Thanks for weighing in.

I am obligated to consider other sentient beings’ free will as well as my own.

I am also compelled to weigh my inessential desires against others’ most profound interests, such as fear of suffering and the will to live. In nearly all commercial animal agriculture operations in the Western world, we violate those interests to satisfy human greed or habits. I cannot, in good conscience, trample others’ free will in the most violent ways because I like the taste of their flesh or secretions.

Whereas plants are alive, a lamb’s or chicken’s suffering is beyond question. Furthermore, in the vast majority of cases, at least in the “developed” world, a vegan diet kills far fewer plants (and has a lower impact on the environment) than a meat- and dairy-centered diet.

Interestingly I read an article a long time ago, about how the earth is moving towards sentience. So eventually, in theory anyway, anything we consume will be sentient. A scary thought to me.

For the time being though, I don’t have to consume any sentient beings, therefore I won’t.

Where you place your line is up to you, and I respect your right to that choice, whatever it may be.