They put such a negative spin on that, which isn't fair.
I hate the idea of eating animals. So many animals suffer so much for our benefit, an absolutely unreal amount. At the moment, I won't eat veal, and I feel some level of guilt about eating other animals, but I can't just not eat meat.
If they could mass-produce meat that looks and tastes exactly the same without the need to torture and kill animals, I'm all for it.
I disagree. Animals are not 'intelligent.'
Animals seem pretty intelligent to me. "Monkeys cry". Even if they aren't intelligent, they can feel pain and I'm reasonably sure they can have emotions (if you've ever owned a dog, you know that they can be grumpy, playful, etc)
Intelligence is a general mental capability that involves the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend ideas and language, and learn. In psychology, the study of intelligence is related to the study of personality but is not the same as creativity, personality, character, or wisdom.
The act of eating an animal does not cause them pain/suffering. Suggesting that killing an animal for food is wrong seems to violate the laws of nature IMO. I agree that just because homosapiens as a whole could be considered 'above' animals does not make it ok to inflict unnecessary pain /suffering on an animal. However, killing an animal for food and an animal suffering unnecessarily are not mutually inclusive so feeling guilt for eating an animal just because they may or may not have undergone unnecessary pain/suffering is illogical.
Although it's true that it's natural, if I can avoid making animals sad at the cost of eating fake meat, then I'm all for it. More below.
More on topic:
I don't know how I feel about growing meat. My first impression is that it doesn't sound very appetizing, but I can't think of any real reasons not to support it. Especially if it decreases polution / decreases costs / helps solve world hunger / etc. I'd like to see more independent opinions on the subject though as I may very well be missing an important downside.
Even if animals aren't tortured, they are bred and live to serve as food, and that's not a very fulfilling life. Then they die for us. Great amounts of land for cattle to graze, especially in poor countries, which involves cutting down forests, causing erosion, polluting water, etc.
But yeah, an independant study is required, for sure. The article cited here is taken from a negative perspective, but I'd like to see something positive or neutral.
