On EATING LIVING BEINGS.
Let me start by putting down some data for GLOBAL ANIMALS KILLED FOR FOOD EACH YEAR (approximate)
LAND ANIMALS
Chickens: 78.5 billion
Ducks: 4.2 billion
Pigs: 1.5 billion
Geese: 803 million
Sheep: 704 million
Rabbits & Hares: 604 million
Goats: 564 million
Turkeys: 504 million
Cattle: 305 million
Rodents (other): 69 million
Other Birds: 49 million
Buffaloes: 29 million
Camels: \~5 million
Horses: \~4 million
Donkeys & Mules: <2 million
Deer: Several million
Dogs: No reliable global dataset (bc our so-called values create conflicts) lollll
Cats: No reliable global dataset (bc we find them cute, what a joke)
TOTAL LAND ANIMALS: ≈84–88 billion/year
AQUATIC ANIMALS
Wild Fish: ≈1.1–2.2 trillion/year
Farmed Finfish: ≈80–170 billion/year
Shrimp & Prawns: Hundreds of billions
Crabs: Tens of billions
Cephalopods (Octopus, Squid, Cuttlefish): Billions
TOTAL AQUATIC ANIMALS:
At least 1 trillion/year; likely well above 2 trillion/year when shellfish are included.
SOURCES
[https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL\](https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL)
[https://www.fao.org/fishery/en\](https://www.fao.org/fishery/en)
[https://fishcount.org.uk/\](https://fishcount.org.uk/)
[https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29853680/\](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29853680/)
[https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1711842115\](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1711842115)
[https://www.fao.org/aquastat/\](https://www.fao.org/aquastat/)
[https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/\](https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/)
NOW, WHAT TO DO? 5 trillion? 10? 100? Well, we can't really process these numbers, can we? We truly can't even process a normal number like 5000. It feels so big to our brains. Hence, there is no point in talking about the data because that won't change anything for us (the worst animals out there on this planet Earth). Is there any argument which you can give against NOT KILLING INNOCENT LIVING BEINGS? NONE. Our morality survives only until it collides with things such as pleasure, comfort, profit, convenience, habit, identity, tradition, culture, religion, etc. The moment our desires feel threatened, our principles begin collapsing. We call this "normal." We call it "necessary." We inherit horrible customs from our so-called very highly (THE BEST) and respected ancestors and mistake them for truth.
Sometimes I feel like we can't do anything; there's no end to human consumption and greed. But deep down, every one of us knows there is a solution. It's simple. Very simple. I guess the deepest root of violence is neither hunger nor necessity.
IT IS THE EGO.
The ego divides everything into "me" and "not me." It keeps saying that my life matters more than yours (hence I'll kill whomever I wanna kill, and you can't do shit to stop me). My pleasure outweighs your suffering (hence, I'll consume endlessly, and if there's any life coming my way, I'll just chew it alive). My tradition justifies your death (hence kill billions on my HOLY AND MOST SACRED FESTIVALS). The moment the ego creates separation, compassion becomes highly conditional. This is the reason why we still think about races, countries, and their people being superior. The similar reason why we do not keep UGLY LOOKING ANIMALS AS OUR PETS. The dissolution of the ego is not self-destruction. It is the dissolution of the illusion of separateness, aka YOU BEING "THE BEST" AND "ONLY". When the boundary between "self" and "other" begins to fade, compassion is no longer coming from what society has fed you about morality. It becomes the most natural expression of seeing clearly & being aware about YOUR WORLD.
Things are so simple. We are the ones who make up stories for our selfish reasons and keep feeding our egos till they become endless consumption machines which have no switch to turn off until they stop one day suddenly.