Wonder what animal rights people think about mosquitoes...
this post was submitted on 03 Nov 2025
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Who wants to eat mosquitoes anyway
Dragonflies.
Why mosquitoes? Cats are right there. They're obligate carnivores.
But I don't see that as the point, the point is that we as an (supposedly) intelligent species can choose not to murder a quarter of a billion chickens every 24 hours, and that we can replace what nutrients we get from meat with mineral, plant or fungi alternatives.
There's a difference between protecting yourself from a parasite species which spreads deadly diseases and torturing an intelligent being for no reason. Happy animals taste better, you know.
You were so close, and then fumbled at the last sentence. It doesn't matter what they taste like, you're literally just describing torturing them for fun with different words.
I don't feel 100% confident in the idea that everyone can be vegan. I do encourage everyone to consume as little animal products as is realistic for them, but not everyone is interested in doing so. If the pig has to die I would rather it live a happy life than for it to sit in cramped conditions or a solitary cell with no physical or mental stimulation.
If the pig has to die
But it doesn't. Why assume killing animals for pleasure must be done?
What I mean is that I don't have any control over whether it dies. People want to eat it, and they are not amenable to the idea they shouldn't. But they are amenable to the idea that it shouldn't be tortured beforehand. Reduction of harm is always good even if it's not perfect.
I also said I'm not sure that it's possible for everyone to live healthfully without consuming some animal products. I personally haven't been able to maintain a vegan diet for longer than two months any of the many times I've tried, so I'm not in a position to lecture anyone on what they eat.
Overall, I think a baby steps approach is the most realistically achievable path to a potential future of zero harm. (I don't say vegan here because I don't object to symbiotic forms of exploitation such as pet ownership or beekeeping.)
FYI, the user you’re arguing with is a <1d account that has only posted in this thread. I appreciate the effort you’re putting in, for those of us who have a very limited palette of what their body will tolerate. But don’t wear yourself out on an ableist troll.
They don't necessarily need to be trolling. I completely understand the passion and don't exactly disagree with them. Most people aren't consuming meat as a necessary evil; they're often consuming it in excess because it's enjoyable, even when they already understand the horrors of factory farming. It's upsetting and frustrating and I just want to do what I think is most likely to improve the situation.
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Damn that's crazy, I don't see anything to indicate that anybody asked. Lemmy must be having some federating issues.
Had me until the last sentence.
No animal deserves to die when humans can get all of their nutrition from fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, nuts, seeds, legumes, and algae.
Except for B12. But then again, most omnivores are deficient in B12 too, and magnesium, zing, K2, etc.
Thankfully going vegan likely means you eat last processed food and more real food, which increases vitamin intake.
Gee gosh what a clever point that nobody has thought of before. You're the first one! Those silly animal rights people should just give up everything they believe in now that you've totally destroyed the logic of what they've thought about way to much compared to how much you've thought about it. You've exposed their hypocrisy. If they can't do everything exactly perfect, what's the point of trying to make anything better, right? Anybody that aims for anything less than extremism doesn't really exist anyway; everybody thinks in black and white. Thank you thank you thank you for your thoughtful contributions on this subject that turns out to be really simple. Everybody else that allows for any sort of nuance is dumb compared to you with your single clever point that brings the whole thing down. Why would anybody even bother going any deeper into this than you already have since you've solved the whole thing?
This isn't really the gotcha you think it is. Killing mosquitos is self defense, it isn't comparable in any way to killing innocent animals which have done nothing to you.
In many places mosquitos are not dangerous and are at most annoying. Can I kill an animal because it's buzzing by my ear? Or should I capture and let it outside?
Neighbours cat meowed at my window, just as annoying as a mosquito if not more. Clearly that's a justified kill then.
That's the point, cats and mosquitoes are both animals, but not comparable in the care we have for one of the other, both for affection and simply for how differently complex they are, not becuase we kill mosquitoes in self defense. I don't knkw much about the vegan phylosophy, but is a mosquito at the same level as a cat? If eating cow patties is offlimits, would mosquito patty also be considered meat?
Not critisizing, just curious
If eating cow patties is offlimits, would mosquito patty also be considered meat?
Yes, insects are animals and their exploitation and/or killing is therefore rejected under veganism.
Most people care more for a mammal than other animals as they are closer related to us. Same way you generally care more about a family member getting in an accident than a stranger. However the vegan philosophy doesn’t dictate anything about this hierarchy. It boils down to: if someone can suffer and feel pain (aka most animals) you should not inflict that on them.
The food industry is usually the main topic as humans can just eat plants (say all major dietician organizations) but instead we gas pigs to death and put chickens in tiny cages their entire lives out of habit, or utter disregard for how they experience that. But the vegan philosophy also rejects animal testing and using an animal purely for entertainment (think zoos).
Got it. I'll eat the next big cat that attacks me in the savannah.
But yeah, animals doing animal things I guess.
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Taking the eggs encourages egg laying which strains the chicken. It also encourages the enslavement of further generations of chickens and the suffocation or grinding up of male chicks.
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