Where Does Your Milk Come From? | Earthling Ed

Full episode: • Earthling Ed - The Int...
To support me on Patreon (thank you): / cosmicskeptic
To donate to my PayPal (thank you): www.paypal.me/c...
To purchase Cosmic Skeptic merchandise: cosmicskeptic....
To anybody who supports (or even considers supporting) my channel monetarily, thank you. I am naturally grateful for any engagement with my work, but it is specifically people like you that allow me to do what I do, and to do so whilst avoiding sponsorship.
-------------------------------------VIDEO NOTES-------------------------------------
Taken from the Cosmic Skeptic Podcast episode #9, available here: • Earthling Ed - The Int...
Ed Winters, known online as Earthling Ed, is a vegan educator and public speaker, co-founder and co-director of Surge, which founded the annual Official Animal Rights March, producer of the documentary Land of Hope and Glory, and my most requested podcast guest to date.
----------------------------------------CONNECT-----------------------------------------
My Website/Blog: www.cosmicskept...
SOCIAL LINKS:
Twitter: / cosmicskeptic
Facebook: / cosmicskeptic
Instagram: / cosmicskeptic
Snapchat: cosmicskeptic
The Cosmic Skeptic Podcast: podcasts.apple...
---------------------------------------CONTACT------------------------------------------
Business email: [e-mail]
Or send me something:
Alex O'Connor
Po Box 1610
OXFORD
OX4 9LL
ENGLAND
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[@shubhanshjain]

Dear Alex, thank you for expanding my horizon of understanding on this issue. I have been a vegetarian throughout my life and your podcasts have recently been helping me convince myself and transition to veganism. Thanks again for all you do to help us!

[@lucioh1575]

That's awesome man, wish you good luck.

[@donaldanderson6578]

Thumbs way up!

[@mayganphynix8267]

this makes me so Happy! have you discovered the "Happy Cow" Phone App yet? you're welcome 😎

[@shubhanshjain]

@@mayganphynix8267 yep, I did found the app

[@rishabhgupta7264]

@@shubhanshjain it's easy to be a vegan in India, I have been a vegan for more than 2 years now...

[@jhunt5578]

Man, I thought this was an Athiest channel, viewers here should be rational and care about evidence. Whenever Alex makes a Vegan video people hiss and run into the corner clutching their cheeseburgers.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

And yet you said nothing about any vitriol from your peers. Hypocrite much?

[@jhunt5578]

@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax What vitriol?

[@roygossjr]

jhunt5578 I concur....start another channel for this...

[@hexa1905]

veganism is an other religion

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@jhunt5578 Read the comments would be a good start. How else do you come to that conclusion. *eye roll*

[@funkypunkypine]

Wow, reading some of these comments just a few minutes after you published this is really disheartening. To those of you who are having such a triggered reaction to vegan topics please truly reflect within yourself why you are reacting that way. Would you react that way if he posted videos about the ethics of cruelty towards cats and dogs? Do you get enraged when someone wants you to sign a petition to try to stop the Yulin dog meat festival? If not, then please consider that your reaction to veganism might be based on the fact that if you accept the basic tenets as true then you would have to make fundamental lifestyle changes. It's much easier to just get pissed, which means your options are to either mock veganism, get angry with vegans, or both.

[@pascalbruenner]

@Meshari Do you believe that farming animals in a non cruel way is okay if the animal is a human?

[@YTWgamer]

@@pascalbruenner bad argument. Hypothetical analogy that isn't related.

[@funkypunkypine]

@Meshari How does meat get produced without cruelty?

[@pascalbruenner]

@@YTWgamer Why is it a bad argument?

[@CobRgMt]

@@YTWgamer bad argument about a non cruel way of producing meat aswell, the fact that you are ending someone else's life without their consent is cruel, unless we are talking about lab grown meat but that is hypothetical too since we are far from mass producing it

[@michalbotor]

“dark times lie ahead of us and there will be a time when we must choose between what is easy and what is right. " albus dumbledore i really like this line. and i believe, that it perfectly summarizes what the answer to the question "why aren't we all vegan?" really boils down to. it's because it's all so delicious and tasty and cheap, and the gory truth is hidden so well and deep, that no one even believes it. they but only laugh in my face for being a vegan..

[@mayganphynix8267]

michał botor yep. I can so relate. 😞

[@mariomorales9984]

I would also put in propaganda. “Eating meat is manly, natural, and you need protein” is subconsciously embedded in the minds of normies.

[@JordanDinstrumentals]

great quote from a great creation. cheers 👍🏻

[@FloydFreud]

@@mandypandy111ify, literally everything you wrote is false.

[@longstoryshortisurvived]

Living Dead Girl Funny how you think these tiny hands and little teeth are designed to hunt meat.

[@galaxygirl9630]

Thank you, Alex, for taking this clip from your talk with Ed! This way the subject gets the attention it needs.

[@TheOpportuneNoodle]

Everyone is happy to agree with Alex when he criticizes bad beliefs that we don’t hold. We love when he goes after religion, flat earth, or arguments for god, or when he promotes evolution or free speech. Yes, all great! We follow these types of channels because we like hearing smart people like Alex tell us our beliefs are right, and they load us with ammunition for debates with our friends. And then when this skepticism and philosophical inquiry takes him to the logical and ethical conclusion to stop eating animal products, there are people who say “unsubscribe” or get upset in the comments. These channels are about CHALLENGING conventional or dogmatic beliefs, staying intellectually curious and HONEST, following science and reason wherever it leads us. When smart people think about an ethical issue for months on end, talk to some of the biggest names in the skeptic, philosophy, and vegan communities about it, and conclude that veganism is the answer, we should probably listen. Do some serious research first before disagreeing with Alex and Ed here. Don’t be on the wrong side of this issue. And if you’ve never researched this topic to a respectable and thorough level, you don’t have enough information to make an educated opinion and should probably be quiet until you learn more. It’s so easy to make arguments against fundamentalist Christians and anti-vaxxers, but when the arguments start to be against something you do, don’t turn away. That’s arguably the most important time to listen to what is being said and question yourself honestly and rationally. Cheers!

[@mayganphynix8267]

TheOpportuneNoodle exactly! thank you. ❤

[@razmataz2823]

well said my dude

[@roygossjr]

TheOpportuneNoodle so, as an atheist that eats meat.....should I agree with this for no other reason than he’s an atheist? THE ONLY THING WE HAVE IN COMMON IS ATHEISM! 🙄

[@joannot6706]

@@roygossjr that's not what he said, he didn't even say that you should agree with this. He said that you should inquire the subject honestly and thoroughly before throwing the widespread, usual and very stupid: "protein though", "lions though" "cycle of life through" and other ridiculous misconceptions ...

[@jpe1]

TheOpportuneNoodle I agree with you that the true test is when we have our core beliefs challenged and then, change our thinking and behavior. I was driving home from South Carolina back in May and listening to Alex’s podcast where he and Matt Dillahunty talk about eating a vegan diet. I had always been a vocal proponent of an omnivorous diet, finding arguments for vegan diets easy to dismiss (because most people arguing for vegan diet use terrible arguments) but listening to Alex and Matt’s conversation I came to new insights about the impact of farming animals and fish and I realized that I needed to change my diet. By the time I stopped for dinner I was ready to choose a vegan option and (except for a few mistakes) I have been eating a vegan diet ever since. I never would have expected such a dramatic change just from listening to Alex speak, but he made some compelling points, and I was compelled to act 😀

[@wishiwsthr]

I used to eat grass fed beef occasionally because I figured they look like they have a comfortable life, but I don't really know the whole process of raising a grass fed cow from birth to slaughter. Are they miserable most the time? Are they better off not existing at all? I don't know the answer, but I'm erring to the side of caution and going full vegan.

[@loic.bertrand]

Would you be happy if you had a good life for a certain period of time and then be killed for an unnecessary reason? ^^

[@wishiwsthr]

@@vids595 In my opinion, higher order animals, such as cows, display pretty much every human emotion I can think of. So they can be miserable and suffer just as much as we do, and many people have a great deal of sympathy for animals. The level of sympathy obviously varies from one individual to another, but for me it's gotten to the point that I feel more comfortable not engaging with the meat/dairy industry at all.

[@wishiwsthr]

@@loic.bertrand They seem happy enough out in the pasture, but I know they don't live very long. No right answer.

[@wishiwsthr]

@@vids595 Most farmed animals don't get old, or even middle aged

[@Juhiss93]

@@wishiwsthr cows can live over 20 years. Normally they they are killed at age 1,5-2 years. It takes longer to grass fed cows grow to full size, so they live 3-4 years. Dairy cows get 5-6 years. It is pretty bad overall.

[@HYN_Media]

Thanks for making and sharing this interview. I really want to be Vegan, but when your work canteen only sells cheesy veg options and the free staff tea is with cows milk only, its a little bit like being in a religion. It's harder to leave, when noone around you is moving in the direction you are. Hopefully I'll find a vegan buddy at work soon to make it easier.

[@mayganphynix8267]

Hayyan Media thats such a good point! the comparison to religion is so similar, im shocked when other atheists can't see it. where are you from? ☺ have you heard of the "Happy Cow" App? that can help you find food at restaurants. ❤

[@CosmicSkeptic]

Sorry to hear that. I wish ethical dietary requirements were taken as seriously as medical ones.

[@wernerrietveld]

@@CosmicSkeptic that would mean equal, if not more space for halal meat. I am not sure that is an improvement. (Although vegan food is halal I guess)

[@dwo356]

@Jayanga S there's such thing as a "carnivore community?"

[@jenm1]

Ask yourself, would you say the same if the exploitation was with human female milk?

[@funkypunkypine]

I just watched the full interview. I wish he had touched on the part about the mothers grieving when their babies are taken from them. Great interview, by the way!

[@julianw7097]

He did, didn’t he?

[@darcisw]

I knew a small, local dairy farmer who told me that, if they don’t remove the baby right after birth, the mother becomes belligerent and very unhappy to be separated from her calf. It gets uglier than it already is if they don’t steal that baby immediately.

[@leem.7565]

punkypine if you have a kitten or puppy the same grieving occurs. I thought Atheist frowned on sentiments emotions. I guess you just poo poo on those when you want to be callous to humans you need exploited. Half assed atheist 🙄

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@leem.7565 You're an idiot. Make up more shit to make you feel good seeing that's all you've got.

[@Gumpmachine1]

James Pryhs then you’re doing it wrong

[@alejandravilla7407]

Thank you very much for these kind of videos. Please don't stop posting them cause this is an approach to vegan activism that we didn't have until you appeared on the scene. Not saying for you to become a vegan channel, but a video here and there won't kill anyone

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

Huh? Alex is the only channel EVER to post anything about veganism?

[@alejandravilla7407]

@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax No no, I mean that there's a lot of different approaches to vegan activism. And this is one that you don't often see (maybe with unnatural vegan, but she can get really negative about basically everything)

[@roushkc]

This has pretty much turned to a vegan channel. Its unfortunate. No hate towards vegans or Alex.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@roushkc Yeah it has but I'm still liking him. His an intelligent guy and I appreciate what he does. I can bare this by commenting on some of the fanciful, ridiculous, one eyed views of vegans. Mostly against the demanding tones that resonate when they "debate". Of course that's not all of them and like every other "cause" you get the fundamentalists.

[@funkypunkypine]

A lot of triggered omnivores would say otherwise :)

[@user-yn5sk5ru5g]

Strange that some Cosmic skeptic subscribers will use logical falacies to defend eating animals. Would have expected different.

[@BornGam3r]

Thanas Stefanis V People don’t want to hear bad things about their bad habits.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@BornGam3r The only bad habits are putting up with egotistical, arrogant vegans with superiority complexes trying to push their arrogance onto others. It won't work and you'll make it harder to get your point across.

[@kendallkreidell7299]

Name And Address Supplied veganism isn’t inherently arrogant. Animal consumption is however egotistical and speciesist.

[@aboutagirl5085]

@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax you look arrogant when you won't even listen to the other side of an arguement and throw a temper tantrum every time someone so much as suggests you question the morality of what you're doing

[@user-yn5sk5ru5g]

@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax did you just make an, i wont go vegan because "vegans were mean to ne tho" argument? Putting tastpleasure above someones life seems very ego to me.

[@hollybartlett7017]

These videos are so important. I'm so happy you had the chance to talk to Ed. My favourite atheist and my favourite vegan

[@macombus269]

Thank you so much for talking about this uncomfortable subject. A great philosopher is the one that brings up subjects where most don’t agree with.

[@mayganphynix8267]

wp yes! ❤

[@2crowz]

Love your videos man!

[@up2nogod771]

Filling guilty about something is slacktivism. Knowledge isn't power, knowledge plus action IS power.

[@BornGam3r]

NikoTezla Damn right.

[@zaki9804]

@@BornGam3r #Teslagang

[@mayganphynix8267]

yes! ❤

[@hitorishinda5118]

Man, didn't know. I live in a village and there people still haves cows and they milk them all the time, i tought that all cows are like this so i really bought milk but now that i heard that i think i have to stop buying it from the local hypermarket and try to stop drinking it. Thank you

[@iis.1989]

Alex, thank you for making and posting this interview. I went vegan almost 11 years ago, for ethics. And it's the best decision I've ever made.

[@loic.bertrand]

Suddenly everyone in the comments know of a small dairy farm where the animals are killed with belly rubs.

[@razmataz2823]

Loïc Bertrand i know right? im about to be an uncle, when does my farm arrive?

[@jhunt5578]

😂 Cognitive dissonance in full force.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

Unlike you knuckledraggers who like to throw your opinions around about these farms when you've never stepped on one. No wonder everyone else doesn't give a toss about you vegans.

[@jhunt5578]

@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax I've been on a dairy farm. All the calves were separated from their mothers, locked in pens living on hay which soaked up their piss and shit. They all had yellow tags in their ears, and when I went to pet one of the calves, she kept trying to lick and chew on my fingers. I later learned that it's instinctive for them, they mistake human hands for udders and try to suckle. All of the male ones are dead now.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@jhunt5578 So you have? That's one. The other's haven't said anything so I rest my case.

[@RebeccaEd]

Changing from cows milk to oat milk was very easy for me, I tried soy but liked oat more (and it's made in my own country). Soy yogurt is also good, and oat cooking cream. I try vegan products when I see new things at the stores or at restaurants, because I want to encourage the industry, not all of them are good/my cup of tea but it's nice to find new things. Not fully vegan yet though, cheese and fish + moms cooking is still on the menu. The vegan philosophy is one of 100%, but when it comes to impact on environment and decreasing suffering, we can take smaller steps, and as industry and culture change, we can change more easily. But yeah, highly recommend oat milk, try a few different brands for the sake of it - it also doesn't spoil fast so you can stock up.

[@RebeccaEd]

@@vids595 Try some oat milk and tell me you think a better name for the product is "oat juice". It tastes like milk, it is used like milk, it's sold as a product similar to milk... Don't make ridiculous arguments, I know they don't milk oat tits. They never milked coconuts either, but are you being this petty about coconut milk? Cows milk A 2018 study by researchers at Oxford University concluded that producing a glass of cow’s milk has at least three times more environmental impact than producing a glass of any non-dairy milk. This is due to a combination of: Greenhouse gas emissions: around 0.6kg per 200 ml glass. Cows are a major producer of methane (via their burps) which is thought to be around 20x more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. Land use: there are around 270 million dairy cows worldwide. That requires a hell of a lot of land space. Add on top of that the feed crops (mainly soy) needed to keep those 270 million cows alive, and the land required for that. Water use: a litre of cow’s milk uses around 1050 litres of water to produce. Oat milk Greenhouse gas emissions: a 200ml glass of oat milk is responsible for around 0.18kg of CO2e. That’s slightly more than almond milk, but less than soy or cow’s milk. Water: a litre of oat milk needs about 48 litres of water produce. In terms of water, then, oat milk is much lower impact than other milks. Land: oats use 80% less land to grow than dairy milk requires.

[@Qstandsforred]

@@vids595 That is a bizarre point. Ignoring the fact that it is false in nearly every way, let's grant it for a moment. If slavery is good for the environment, is that an argument for slavery? If something is wrong, don't do it. Conversely, if the speed limit is reduced to 5 it will save lives and reduce suffering. Is that a compelling argument? Not particularly. Driving isn't inherently wrong, it just happens to be dangerous. If something is _not_ wrong, it's up to you to indulge those risks.

[@AndersRosendalBJJ]

@@RebeccaEd It's not milk. Watch the video. Milk comes from a cow apparently.

[@distermaer]

Thank you Alex for helping us be the guardians of animals we should be, instead of oppressors. The goal is peace to all animals and your voice is much appreciated. 🌱

[@macombus269]

Paulo Figueiredo so true! Well said champ 🌱👍🏽

[@windigo000]

how high are you? 🤣🤦‍♂️

[@Gumpmachine1]

Except the field mice of course. Cropping is going to make life worse for them

[@BornGam3r]

L Groot Which is why there’s even more reason to go vegan, since meat farming requires vastly more crops for livestock.

[@distermaer]

@@Gumpmachine1 Here you go, read this to understand why you're wrong: www.simply-live-consciously.com/english/food-resources/food-consumption-of-animals/

[@sciencesaves]

spread the truth! good on ya!

[@soyslut]

To those who are triggered without having valid arguments: Suffering and death are required components of contemporary milk production. Cows are force-bred annually to produce milk, which translates to well over 200,000,000 calves per year worldwide. Female calves are raised to be milk cows, while male calves are chained in tiny pens where they cannot turn around until they are slaughtered for veal at just a few months of age. Regardless of gender, cows are not permitted to raise their calves, who are removed from their mothers by force on the day of their birth, causing tremendous emotional distress to both parent and child. Worse, a cow's natural lifespan is about twenty years, and she can easily produce milk for eight of those years, but the constant breeding, disease and stress of dairy farm life wears her out by the time she is five years old, when she is slaughtered just like every other cow. All of this takes place on large factory farms and on small, bucolic family farms. Dairy cows and their calves suffer no matter where they are born and raised. There's no argument for needlessly using/killing animals.

[@LadyOfTheEdits]

I have no argument. And what you say makes you look like a little goody goody. All I have now is a cheese burger 🍔 And I love how delicious it is. I eat it because I can 😄 But sad when it is done :(

[@Gumpmachine1]

Suffering and death occurs in any food production system.

[@valeriesahe598]

@@Gumpmachine1 true, so how about we try and minimize it as far as possible?

[@Gumpmachine1]

@Valerie Sahe yup I agree so we should stick to pastoral animal farming where possible. It results in less deaths of living things

[@valeriesahe598]

@@Gumpmachine1 How so? I was under the impression that no animal farming at all is the way to go.

[@ginac7235]

I had a chance to meet Ed in Portland. Amazing person

[@mayganphynix8267]

Gina C IM SO FREAKING JEALOUS.

[@arcticwolf6402]

He's overrated.

[@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094]

@@arcticwolf6402 not as overrated as cheese. Not by a long long long shot

[@arcticwolf6402]

@@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094 In that I would agree.

[@gSWG3R]

Oh man, the cognitive dissonance that you're eliciting atm in your comment section hahahaha, brilliant

[@hexa1905]

cognitive dissonance is applied to everybody (even you :O ). it's not likes words you say to discredit any opponent.

[@gSWG3R]

@@hexa1905 Cognitive dissonance is simply a mental doscomfort/tension as a result of inconsistencies between two or more cognitions, I'm aware of what it is dude. Been studying psychology for the past 3 years as well 🤣

[@hexa1905]

@@gSWG3R i already knew useless to copy pasta. and you should know your not immune from cognitive dissonance. studies are irrelevant on this public platform, i can pretend to have a PHD on any field of science too. btw the less you know, the more convinced you are.

[@gSWG3R]

@@hexa1905 What are you on hahahaha hahahahahahahaha and why are you telling me things I am already very aware of lmao, you seem a little bit insecure. I came to veganism through resolution of my own cognitive dissonance, years ago. I have no idea why you're passively aggressively waffling on about PhD's in attempts to dismiss my academic background, I simply study psychology, it's nothing crazy darling.. I'm about to finish undergrad.

[@MFink-oq5hy]

There is a subtle difference between cognitive dissonance and being in denial or dismissive of something. People tend to use cognitive dissonance because it seems to have more punch to it but the better choice of words would probably be simply denial.

[@FaunoDufaux]

Animals have acquired Cosmic Sceptic, Animals have gained a huge foothold to victory!

[@MrTUNEGUY]

I went vegan a week ago and I feel so much better about what I eat and proud that I’m not contributing to cruelty anymore. Keep going Ed and Alex

[@jonnyw82]

William Haye do you know how many ground dwelling animals are killed and displaced to grow corn and wheat? Don’t make the mistake in thinking you don’t have blood on your hands.

[@chompchompnomnom4256]

In about 5 years your body will start to fall apart 😉

[@MrTUNEGUY]

ChompChompNomNom people have been vegan for 60+ years. Thanks for your concern!

[@MrTUNEGUY]

Junto we have to weigh out the pros and cons of each diet and come to a sensible decision. A cow can’t be compared to a caterpillar and vice versa. Going vegan means that you aren’t contributing to the enslavement and murder of billions of innocent intelligent animals.

[@LeventeCzelnai]

@@MrTUNEGUY yeah, but not everyone's body react the same way

[@macombus269]

Ruffling some feathers hey Alex, haha. I should have made some popcorns to read the defensive comments haha

[@bjarnes.4423]

2:04 The average cow produces 70,000 liters of milk within its lifetime. So the "moral value" of 70 KL milk would be two cows, if we assume males get killed after birth. So the "moral value" of 35 KL milk would be one cow. If I drank one liter of milk every day, I could drink milk every day for almost 100 years before I used up the 35 KL, or one cow life. You can't say that one glass of milk made that cow suffer per se. It is just a tiny fraction of what the cow "made" while it had this horrible life. Now lets compare this to meat: If we assume generously, that a cow produces 300 kg of meat, and that I eat one steak (200 g) every day, I could eat a single cow in 4 years. A chicken lays 530 eggs, so I could eat one for 1.5 years (half that, because of male chick shredding), while its meat only lasts for a few days This is in no way a justification to exploit animals for their non-meat products, but just that it is much more complex and not really comparable to meat The "suffering per unit" is much, much higher for meat then eggs, milk, cheese, et cetera

[@andystokes8702]

Not agreeing or disagreeing with what you have said, it's not a discussion I wish to get into but are you aware of the process by which most cheese is made? I only bring it up because you equate animal suffering in relation to various dairy products, I have met a number of people who claim to be vegetarian who will eat cheese with no concept of how it is actually made.

[@CosmicSkeptic]

You're right that one glass of milk doesn't at all affect the climate of suffering. But this is in the same sense that one vote doesn't affect an election. When Ed terms vegetarianism 'hypocrisy' I think he is referring to ethical vegetarians who are working from a moral principle that we shouldn't contribute to the exploitation of animals. We should act in a way that we would wish others would act too.

[@CosmicSkeptic]

But you're definitely right to contextualise the impact of single instances of animal product consumption, which are often exaggerated.

[@jn5388]

@@CosmicSkeptic I think @Silt wasn't talking about the absolute sum of the Impacts (eg Vote in an Election), but more about how we place the value of our own discomfort in relation to the suffering of an animal. Eg the ratio of total suffering per glass milk to the endorphine it releases when drunk is less than if you ate a steak. So some might see that as acceptable. Mathmatical representation (Enjoyment Consumer/Suffering Producer). And what kind of "coefficient" one deems acceptable.

[@Matt-ww9wv]

These products can be comparable to meat, however. Once these animals are unable to produce products they will also be slaughtered regardless if they can be sold for meat or not. All of these products confine the animal to a lifetime of servitude. Even meat as it exists today requires force feeding to the point where the creatures become immobile. I don't have a valid response for myself towards the NTT argument and so I like to imagine animal agriculture as it exists today as a human equivalent for context for better understanding. For that, I think the most reasonable parallel would be imagining Hitler won WW2 and we endorsed the slavery of certain humans for scientific experimentation, reserves in the supplies for hospitals, along with other products we can create through force successfully. In such a scenario, I can understand the lack of agency these people have in their lives and how the demand of any particular product they can offer, even if it's their life in the form of organs, is a theft of their freedom to experience life and an effort to ignore their suffering.

[@thedevilhimself8521]

“Forced impregnating” is almost impossible and as a dairy farmer who uses AI (artificial insemination) I have never witnessed it done forcefully. Cows are incredibly strong and if you go up behind one and shove your hands into her she will kick the shit out of you unless she is ovulating. That’s right, the cows actually want to be impregnated just like every other ovulating female mammal on earth. If you put her in a field with a bull then you will have the same outcome: a pregnant cow. The only difference is that bulls are infinitely more dangerous. Men, women and children have been smashed and killed by bulls so don’t you dare sit there and include the AI process as part of your moral objection to farming.

[@aboutagirl5085]

I wonder why a dairy farmer is so angry by this video 🙄

[@mayganphynix8267]

so the cow wont run away? she isn't attached to a rope or anything to hold her still? wouldn't she rather have it done naturally and when SHE wants to, instead of having a HAND feel inside her? how can that ever be enjoyable??

[@thedevilhimself8521]

I’ve been doing it for 6 years and never had to tie a cow up for AI. She might prefer it done naturally, we’ll never know since the cow can’t tell us. But like I’ve already pointed out, if you made AI illegal and forced farmers to use bulls then you’ll have the deaths of a lot of people on your hands because bulls are very dangerous.

[@thedevilhimself8521]

About a Girl I haven’t noticed any angry dairy farmers commenting but this video is factually incorrect so that could explain it.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@aboutagirl5085 You're not very smart are you?

[@mayganphynix8267]

my god your vegan videos make me so happy! 😍🙌 ❤🌎🐾

[@LadyOfTheEdits]

Burgers make me happy 😄

[@mayganphynix8267]

Alecia_Always me too! Beyond Meat Burgers (etc..) & Pizza make me Happy. I'm so glad dont have to give up the tastes I love to Go Vegan&Help the Planet. its amazing honestly. 🌲🌎❤🐾🙌

[@LadyOfTheEdits]

@@mayganphynix8267 I'll never go Vegan

[@zenmint]

@@LadyOfTheEdits I use to say the same thing lol most vegans did But we learned the facts and have aligned our actions with them. www.ecowatch.com/vegan-climate-change-2558286917.html

[@EricMathiasen]

My grandparents had a small dairy. They sold their milk to the local dairy co-op in their area (rural Idaho, USA), and consumed it themselves. I'm not disputing that too many industry farms use some or all of what was described in this video, but on my grandparents' farm, literally *none* of those practices were followed except for the sale of older cows. On my grandparents' dairy, they had a bull in their herd specifically to impregnate their cows, the calves lived mixed in with the herd, the stalls for the cows were only used for milking or shelter during the coldest parts of winter. Most of the time the cows were outside grazing. For better or for worse, modern breeds of dairy cow produce FAR more milk than their young can consume, which has created a situation where dairy cow *must* be milked or their udders can become painfully overfilled with milk. Cows voluntarily return to the barn for milking right on schedule. When my mother was a girl, living on the dairy, she named the cows. They weren't pets, but she and my aunt and uncles, along with my grandparents, liked the cows, recognized them as individuals, and treated them respectfully while keeping in mind they were part of the food supply. They were religious, so they expressed gratitude for the animals via prayer every day, And exhibited that as being an earnest feeling and not some trite, hypocritical expression that atheists often ascribe to theists. My grandparents are both gone now, but my parents home in Idaho is next to another small dairy, and that dairy runs nearly identically to how my grandparents' dairy did. When I visit my parents, I get bored (I normally live in downtown Chicago these days), so the "highlight" of my day is often watching the neighbor's cows work in cycles around the pasture, rounding the land with their calves before heading back into the barn to be milked every day. And in case you think this is a random two-farm exception, when I was in primary school (in the 1980s), I lived in rural Oregon and we would visit a local dairy a few miles from the school, and it operated very similarly to my grandparents, but with about ten times as many cows. But still mostly free range (they did supplement more hay, but the cows were still outside more often than not and they had their own bulls). So not all dairies are evil. I agree that people should know the source of their food, including knowing how the animals are treated. Ethical farms are happy to show their methods to outsiders as long as they're treated honestly and respectfully. Nobody likes someone coming into their home carrying suspicions of abuse and mistreatment, much less open accusations. But most farmers I know are happy to let one, two, maybe even a small group of people tag along and see how the farm is run. The information is there for the asking, you just have to know where to ask. I advise you not to trust random generic milk in the supermarket in the same way I advise you not to trust random vegan on the internet. Go see for yourself. Find small farms or well-sourced shops in your area and engage them in a respectful conversation about their product. Good farmers are proud of what they produce and bring to market.

[@GregVidua]

@Lucifer Iblees they make a prayer, haven't you heard? That helps the cow feel better about their throat being slit.

[@lizicadumitru9683]

This is how dairy should be done. Thanks for the story Eric 😊

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

Great post, aside from the unnecessary comment about perceived Atheist attitudes at the end of the third paragraph. What bothers me about the upload is that the guy is stating that we all need to recognise the 'truth' about modern farming, while only presenting one particular aspect - kinda dishonest IMHO.

[@GregVidua]

@@lizicadumitru9683 no, this is how dairy should be made: www.perfectdayfoods.com

[@lizicadumitru9683]

@@ianmacfarlane1241 That's Earthling Ed for ya...

[@afghanatheistcommunity322]

Hey man, I love your videos. They're very informative and easy to understand. I'm an ex-muslim, who slowly turned away from Islam and religion as a whole, when I started to question it and started noticing all the flaws of religion. Channels like yours have helped me a lot through the process. I sometimes have debates with Muslims and they always say that the Quran contains actual science (which I KNOW it doesn't), just like Bible apologists claim that the Bible contains actual science. I saw your video response to guy who said that the Bible contains actual science and I was wondering, wherever you get a chance in the near future, if you can please create a video to talk a little bit about the Quran and how it does NOT contain actual science either, please. Thank you in advance. It would be much appreciated. I'm excited to see where your life goes. I see a combination of Dawkins and Hitchens and many other great thinkers of our time in you. Best of luck in all your future endeavors.

[@ylounis]

For anything Islam related, check out the Apostate Prophet here on KZbin.

[@stephenchristopheryaxley-l5903]

It's clear you don't actually understand what science is or the scientific method. If you did you would understand that natural phenomena in the Quran are observations about nature for the purpose to reflect on God's creation not for you to necessarily follow it through with every step of the scientific method that's just silly. If you became atheist for that reason you are a moron.

[@wade2bosh]

apostate prophet and others have already done that

[@eliasfeleke1]

Wow! Thanks for sharing.

[@dallastaylor5479]

I stopped drinking milk long ago.

[@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094]

And cheese and other dairy products too I hope? Btw I still drink milk-- plant based milk!😊

[@darcisw]

It’s beyond heartbreaking. Such a waste of resources. So inhumane. Abhorrent, and yet all completely legal, and believed to be healthy & ethical.

[@AndersRosendalBJJ]

"So inhumane" Yeah. They're cows.

[@darcisw]

Anders Rosendal Here’s the definition of inhumane: without compassion for misery or suffering; cruel. So what do you mean by “Yeah, they’re cows?” If you say something stupid or uneducated, I won’t reply again.

[@AndersRosendalBJJ]

@@darcisw I don't care if you reply or not. Why would I value your weak opinion? You let cows control your life. I'd rather be a lion.

[@darcisw]

Anders Rosendal I lied. I am replying in all my weakness. Being a lion doesn’t make you strong, dummy. They raise lions in Africa so rich people can come and shoot them in captivity. What else ya got, cowboy? It’s so fun arguing with a moron.

[@chompchompnomnom4256]

What's all this cow talk? Milk comes from the shop

[@phuck8627]

lol, seems like that's how they think yeah

[@LouisGedo]

*Create a Better World by......GOING VEGAN*

[@FixYourGameplay]

And staying vegan :). Cmon man, forgot your own quote already?

[@Gumpmachine1]

Unless you compare it to pastoral animal farming then it doesn’t work

[@hexa1905]

most vegan stop being vegan after some years. the time they realise this is killing them. even with b12 and the rest of it. baby vegan don't have that luck unfortunatly :/

[@LouisGedo]

@@hexa1905 Interesting how you spew fallacious claims so casually......do you always do that or only when you are attempting to rationalize your complicity in preventable, intentional, needless violence perpetrated upon innocent, sentient individuals?

[@LouisGedo]

@@FixYourGameplay I had realized a while back that "staying" would really only make sense if we were referring to a plant based diet; since "vegan" isn't a diet, it's superfluous to add "staying" in my view. It would be akin to adding "staying" when promoting the notion of going anti-rape, anti-pedophilia, or anti-mass murder.....when one sees the light on the indefensible moral wrongness of supporting the harming of innocent animals, women, toddlers, or masses of innocent people, I find it would be nearly impossible for someone to not stay vegan / anti-rape / anti-pedophilia / anti-mass murder.

[@jayjeckel]

This interview would have done well to have a skeptical interviewer instead of a member of choir. Maybe it's just me, but when an interviewer doesn't even question the claims of a guest, I get the feeling it is all propaganda. I grew up on a dairy farm and several of his claims were either exaggerated or outright false as concerns non-factory farms, which would be fine if he hadn't started the clip with the assertion that he was talking about small farms and factory farms. For example, the calves were only kept in their own individual pens until they were big enough that there wasn't concern of other calves hurting them. Then they were let out into the communal calf pen that was several acres in size. This was standard at every family dairy I've ever been to. 2:44 Eight months of the year the cows are locked in side? Maybe in Wisconsin or norther Europe, but here in the US south it's rare to see even a couple days of temperatures low enough to bother a cow. Only a few barn up their cows at all and no one does so for months, much less eight months. 2:55 Maybe things have changed drastically since I was a kid 1980s and 1990s, but pretty much everyone went on a class field trip to a dairy at one point or another. 3:12 It isn't an industry feeding consumers misinformation or too little information, it is city folk not bothering to understand how the world works. Pretty much everyone I know grew up around animals, farms, and hunting. We know how the sausage is made and have most likely field-to-tabled it ourselves. What I'm saying is, your city-folk bias is showing. 3:24 Stressed cows produce lower quality milk and less of it than unstressed cows. So, while a cow doesn't have to be "happy" to produce milk, no non-factory dairy is going to stay afloat unless they keep their cows unstressed and "happy". Again, this is worth pointing out because the argument started with the assertion that the claims apply to the industry from top to bottom, from mom and pop up to factorized. 4:10 I agree, people should be aware of how things work in the world, which is why I'm correcting the erroneous implications of these statements. Overall, very poor quality video and makes me glad I didn't try to wade through the entire interview. I don't know what it is about religious skeptic channels and veganism, but so many of them seem to get into this stuff. That's fine, but if you aren't going to apply the same skepticism to this sacred cow as you do to that of religion, then maybe just keep it to yourself or at least move your choir preaching to a channel that isn't term "Skeptic".

[@PartofHistory214]

Thank you! As a man who grew up in a family of farmers, I have a pretty low opinion of this video.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@James Pryhs He just fucking did by the time indicators. Are you blind?

[@BornGam3r]

Jay Jeckel Do you even realize that those “happy small family farms” make up 1% of dairy, while 99% is factory-farmed? It is literally impossible on a large scale to produce dairy on family farms, because the demand is just way too high for it.

[@ande5460]

Earthling Ed's channel is literally dedicated to him talking to people who aren't vegans and you are going to complain about one discussion with people who aren't in disagreement? Go to his page and you will see dozens if not hundreds of people talk to him that disagree with him.

[@jayjeckel]

@@ande5460 I don't watch Ed's channel and don't care what he does on it. I watch Cosmic's channel and shared feedback about the video on this channel.

[@JOHN-kc1pw]

GO VEGAN 🌱

[@Tb0n3]

No thanks.

[@sigfredharaldsson87]

Tb0n3 Why not?

[@Tb0n3]

@@sigfredharaldsson87 Because I like the taste and convenience of meat.

[@JohnCena8351]

@infobestkaya Plants don't feel pain, man. They can recognize stimulus in order to activate defense mechanism to protect themself from damage. But they don't feel pain. At they certainly don't feel emotions like fear or terror.

[@phsyco202]

@infobestkaya plants don't have a central nervous system ffs they don't feel pain. And let for once say that they do feel pain. It's still makes more sense to go vegan because we grow more food or "plants" for those animals than we do for ourselves smh.

[@LiveForTheRhythm]

Yassssss Edddddddd! Tell them. Tell them the truth. Skeptic community needs this!

[@roygossjr]

LiveForTheRhythm citation,please.

[@skyfry5943]

I’m a dairy-free vegetarian (still eat eggs occasionally so am not completely vegan yet). One of friends from university’s family owns an organic dairy cow farm. The calves are still with the mother for the first year. Her family say that it’s better for the cow to be with her calf then remove the calf. But my friend’s explained that what they do is not common practice. It was interesting for me as a non-dairy consumer to see how a dairy farm operated but it was also sad because there is still exploitation of animals. I never voiced my opinions on farming while I visited though because I was too scared to offend my friend’s family.

[@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094]

Yeah ... it's always hard to speak up for the animals especially with the people we know 😢

[@dancenow1337]

Not sure stealing the babies away after a year is so great either. And I'd bet all of them still get send to a slaughter house after they're not profitable anymore.

[@skyfry5943]

Allusive Ashly it was very difficult and I cried when I got home because I holding back my tears while I was visiting my friend’s family’s farm

[@AryanRaj-ce5pe]

Hey Alex. Your videos have truly evolved me as a human being. I now really try put a lot of emphasis on what others are trying to say. Why anyone takes any stance. Basically i try hard to understand things from their perspective and not dismiss their claims if they are contrary to something I have always believed.

[@patrao3094]

Man, thank you for turning your focus to veganism. Often when considering talking to people about veganism, I sadly realize that their basic lack of a rational perspective towards other things in life will also apply to this issue. But conversely, someone who wears their rational thinking as a badge, has no choice but to admit the merits of veganism, or be the victim of extreme cognitive dissonance. So seeing this makes me happy :)

[@maniac4239]

Earthling Ed makes the mistake of assuming the everyone except himself is unaware of where milk comes from. He further asserts that because people are being kept in the dark, they’d stop using milk products if only they knew the truth. Is there any evidence to substantiate this assertion?

[@user-yn5sk5ru5g]

The hundreds of street interviews he has done show a majority of people dont know where milk comes from.

[@maniac4239]

@@user-yn5sk5ru5g Are you suggesting that “hundreds” of street interviews constitutes a majority?

[@razmataz2823]

they dont show things like the separation of calfs from there mothers or the artificial insemination in any form of advertising, id say that falls under keeping people in the dark

[@maniac4239]

@@razmataz2823 So, your opinion is that if it’s not in any advertising then people can’t possibly know, so where did you hear about it? id say that falls under the argument “all people are ignorant except me”

[@razmataz2823]

MaNIaC no i said kept in the dark, not not possibly know. thats just straight up putting words in my mouth.

[@madeline7272]

Lol the meat eaters in the comments are hilarious.

[@CosmicSkeptic]

From our full, two-hour conversation, available here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qF6lhYFuds-mZpY

[@dareyt8218]

That link :(

[@OAT9]

Check that link!

[@CosmicSkeptic]

Oops hahaha, link fixed!

[@landis9767]

i'm lucky, i never liked the taste of any meat at all. but then, i used to think "no way i'm gonna give up milk!", cause i always loved it. then i tried some kinds of vegan "milk" just because and... wow. i think i actually like almond milk and rice milk MORE than cow milk. people should just TRY vegan surrogates for animal products, instead of immediately assuming it'll frickin RUIN THEIR LIVES to stop... drinking cow milk, to give the relevant example. idk, it's really not THAT hard.

[@GuitarDog_atx]

Silk brand of vanilla almond milk rocks.

[@GuitarDog_atx]

“Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.” -Albert Schweitzer

[@Gumpmachine1]

Guitar dog won’t leave much to eat

[@zenmint]

@@Gumpmachine1 the most compassionate thing to do is caused the least amount of harm was possibly can and that would be to at least go vegan. www.ecowatch.com/vegan-climate-change-2558286917.html

[@cleovargis7806]

Its hard to justify the way we treat other animals just because they cant talk and tell us how much they're hurting, but we will all do it(or at least try) everytime we go to the grocery, or step on a spider. Thanks God for creating us in a world that requires the killing and consuming of life to sustain. We couldnt all be plant people who live off sunlight and never have to hurt anything, no it just wouldnt do to be so peaceful would it?

[@razumikhim]

Shut up snowflake I wouldnt be surprised if you faint only at the sight of a drop of blood

[@cleovargis7806]

One pines for a world in which nature werent so cruel and your immediate inclination is to tell me to shut up? To hurl your ignorant and disparaging comments as though they were effective? Please remind me again who is triggered here. I assure you i have both spilled and stemmed my fair share of blood, and neither are pleasant experiences.

[@joetheeskimo8885]

God is either evil or doesn't exist.

[@joetheeskimo8885]

@@razumikhim Haha, someone has empathy, what a baby. /s

[@TimeattackGD]

I think becoming vegetarian is still something to consider for meat eaters. especially for those whose diet also largely consists out of dairy products. while it might not be *as good* as veganism its definitely better than just staying a meat eater.

[@Qstandsforred]

That doesn't mean actively advocating for vegetarianism is good. Though, if one does advocate it, they ought advocate lacto-vegetarianism specifically. Personally, I think that that entire realm of activism is a setback for humanity.

[@valeriesahe598]

Depends. If you then eat more dairy to compensate for the lack of meat, its not necessarily better. But it can be a first step.

[@TimeattackGD]

@@valeriesahe598 of course compensating for meat with dairy products isn that smart (though i doubt many people would do that anyway even if they didnt think about it). and im by no means saying that its on the same lvl as veganism. however that doesnt mean its not any better than just not doing anything at all.

[@Qstandsforred]

@@valeriesahe598 Right, but that's not what I was claiming. Even if being vegetarian is good. one ought not advocate for it. People can figure that out on their own. Simply explain veganism, and they will go vegetarian if they are not willing to make the commitment (e.g. RR). Additionally, my concern is not about the number of animals suffering at a given moment. What really matters is how quickly we can progress society. To that end, we should tend to describe the ideal actions and not say that it is OK to meet halfway. Naturally, this should apply to obligations rather than virtues.

[@valeriesahe598]

@@Qstandsforred I agree, my comment wasn't directed at you, I just failed to make clear who I was replying to.

[@sheri226]

I'm so glad I stopped drinking milk :(

[@annb1855]

Cheese too ;)

[@user-kc1sz7qg3f]

This was the moment that I went vegan. It was this exact clip

[@daniloiacovitti]

Keep doing you mate. Thanks!

[@charathcutestory]

“think about the telos of a glass of milk!”- you’re SO so so brilliant! - “It’s just a glass of milk that you consume in one minute and go, ‘that was nice’ and you don’t even remember it the next day!” nobel prize worthy 👏

[@CherCyborg]

Vegan gang

[@VeganO_MexicanO]

Vegang 🌱 😎✌️

[@lucilaria]

O shit, well thank you for explaining the point of veganism as opposed to vegetarianism which has never been explained to me, wow now I have something to think about.

[@a.l.michael6240]

It’s a fad to mock veganism so of course people are pissed when called out on it. I’m not entirely vegan yet, but I hope to be some day. And I don’t get angry like a child when people want to open the discussion about the mistreatment of animals. I see it this way, people don’t care because well . . . meat taste good and goodness gives them pleasure. And humans don’t like having their pleasure and convenience challenged because well that would require an introspective change wouldn’t it. I told my 4 year old nephew that the meat from the taco that he had last night used to be a cow (one of his favorite animals) and he didn’t believe me at first, or at least didn’t understand what I meant. Once it finally sunk in he looks at me and goes “well I don’t feel bad because it taste good.” From the mouth of babes lol. It was kinda funny because I didn’t expect that to come from a 4 year olds mouth, but at the same time it just made me realize that in order for an adult person to become vegan, they have to decide that the suffering of whatever animal that they’re no longer eating is more important than something that simply taste good. And I don’t see that happening with the majority of people. We’re stuck in our old ways. We laugh at religious fanatics and flat earthers and feminist, but won’t budge at our own faults in society. Glass houses and all that jazz. I believe that that will be our inevitable downfall.

[@pawitsixteen]

I'm no vegan and no vegetarian, I own a milk cow and I also own a bull that she has been bred to. A cow will produce milk regardless of her happiness but if she likes the person milking her she will let that milk down easier and faster. A dairy cow will, because of hundreds of years of genetic engineering, produce 5 to 7 times more milk than its offspring can consume. If the calf is left to take all it wants, the end result is that it will get the scours, diarrhea, which is often fatal. I realize that the interviewee is speaking mainly about large dairy outfits, but he did invoke the small family farm in his condemnation. I do take the calf away after the first day and freeze the colostrum which is produced over the first 5 days to continue giving the calf the best advantage. I put the calf in an adjacent pen that the cow can reach across and lick he calf. This in turn makes her more giving with her product. My cows have traditionally stayed on the farm till their final breath and can produce for us 10 to 15 years, although rarely. I will make hamburger out of the bull, as I said I am no vegan. His comments about bull calves is true, I often purchase them at auctions and a very low price and raise them to eat. The cow produces far more than I can consume and the industry farms have pushed legislation that restricts me from selling milk to others. Feeding calves and pigs is a way to use the excess. And yes I do eat the pigs. The interview is interesting and for the most part spot on, but he does encompass all farms to push a vegan agenda.

[@LouisGedo]

............Sharing............

[@donaldanderson6578]

Same

[@aprioriontoast704]

A vegan world for the future (=

[@LouisGedo]

@@aprioriontoast704 It's already begun...... *A VEGAN WORLD......it's happening!*

[@KateeAngel]

I feel bad for the animals, but I cannot stop consuming dairy, some of those products are the only things which help with my digestion. But I can try to buy them more rarely. And I prefer to buy products from local smaller farms anyway, where conditions are not as bad as in big ones

[@AndersRosendalBJJ]

Don't feel bad. You're doing the right thing

[@jimdelsol1941]

I can't understand how dairy could help you with digestion, as most humans aren't able to digest it properly... ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/lactose-intolerance#statistics "Approximately 65 percent of the human population has a reduced ability to digest lactose after infancy. " It is more likely that you have an underlying issue that is masked by dairy but not cured by it, and sometimes in the future it'll backfire badly if not treated. Check Gojiman channel, he is a qualifed nutritionist and make a lot of content about gut health and how to fix issues : kzbin.info/door/8zKmTVcs5s3IIR2DVlxfzA

[@pleaseforgivemyinsanity2801]

Milk isn't even healthy anyways I don't think.

[@EricMathiasen]

Milk, like many things humans eat, can't really best be considered in absolute terms like "healthy" or "unhealthy." In a historical sense, milk is responsible for successful populations of humans in some areas which would not otherwise be able to sustain a human population, or at least would otherwise support a smaller, less robust population. Being able to drink lactose into adulthood is a relatively new generic variant that only seemed to become hereditarily important as agrarian societies came into being. Drinking milk as adults improves calcium availability for populations with less vitamin D due to their Northern (less light in the winter) locations, it also provides better nutrition that meat because the animal gives milk repeatedly, while you can only kill it for meat once, and milk provided a safe(r) form of liquid when water was contaminated by, for example, cholera.

[@vegantina6565]

Please ForgiveMyInsanity you’re right. Milk is extremely unhealthy

[@Gumpmachine1]

@Vegan Tina I ran a marathon on milk so can’t be that bad.

[@vegantina6565]

L Groot your anecdotal evidence means nothing. I prefer to believe in science

[@pleaseforgivemyinsanity2801]

@@Gumpmachine1 Lol did you know that there are DRILL INSTRUCTORS that are in the U.S. MARINE CORPS - WHO SMOKE CIGARS WHILE THEY RUN??? Yes there are... That means that those guys are bad ass MOFOs' That don't mean cigars are healthy lol

[@flortesta]

Thank you Alex!

[@TMscorpion1000]

Much respect Alex

[@lapse4368]

I've asked my mom about veganism, she says without conviction that she doesn't care. That is the problem, nobody cares enough and probably hasn't seen or thought of how a piece of meat gets onto store shelves or any meat products. I think the attitude towards these products is also due to culture. As i live in an asian country, there is almost no reason to be vegetarian other than your religion or your own free choice. Nobody in my school is vegetarian and I am pretty sure all my friends know about the horrors of animal abuse. My mom scoffed at me for considering to go vegan because she lived during a time where food was a luxury, and told me to be grateful I even had food on my plate at all. In fact good meat like cows are prized, farmers rare special breeds of carp to be gifted, everybody knows about wagyu, pork is really abundant here. Also, I would definitely convert to veganism in a flash because I know eating meat causes more harm than eating vegetables. But, I have to honestly say one hilariously stupid excuse that is stopping me. I hate vegetables. Wow, such a kid thing to say right? Well i have started to eat more veges, and if someone were able to construct a meal plan for me to follow which isn't extremely expensive and is palatable for a life-long meat eater, well sign me up. I hope i will not be blasted for my honesty, these are just my thoughts. Sometimes with things like this, arguments like 'What else can i eat?' or 'we've been eating meat since forever' cannot be dismissed as fallacies because i truly think they are points to consider. Yes we have been eating meat for a long long time, yes it would be considerably harder to find food for some cultures if meat were out of the equation like eskimos who actually must eat blubber to actually survive in that climate. Again it is clearly a fallacy but nonetheless found in real life. My mom would run at me with a stick for saying all this...

[@happygimp0]

"follow which isn't extremely expensive and is palatable" Rice, beans, lentils, potatoes, oats, egg-free pasta, bread, ... is very cheap, cheaper than animal products. Taste buts will adapt to your diet when eat enough calories and get enough nutrients.

[@happygimp0]

You could also try a challenge 22: challenge22.com/ There you get advice from vegans, including RDs, for a 22 vegan challenge, for free. Maybe they can help you?

[@Pawn87]

Concluding that the meat industry is morally abhorrent is not a difficult position to arrive at. However, what I do find difficult to do is make the step from thinking that way to behaving as such. Even though ethically i'm on board with the case for veganism, I find myself consuming meat or dairy most days, with a surprising lack of guilt which I find hard to reconcile. Could anyone recommend any media or reading material that they found helpful in making the transition to a vegan diet/lifestyle?

[@humaneskits9318]

I recommend thinking about if you would be okay with using animals for other means than food (such as dogs for dog fights). Are you okay with backyard dog fights (dog's are private property and the owner can do with that property as he pleases, whether it be a dog for a dog fight or a cow for milk and meat). Both use animals for pleasure. If you are against dog fighting you should probably be vegan. If you are okay with eating animals then you should be okay with dog fighting.

[@Talismantra]

@@humaneskits9318 hardly.

[@AtheistEve]

MKN III You could try watching one of the many documentaries on the animal agriculture industry. Cowspiracy, Dominion, Land of Hope and Glory, Forks Over Knives. For Health info, you could try Dr Greger’s channel nutritionfacts.org, or Mic the Vegan. For recipes, try AvantGardeVegan, BoshTV, Vegan Zombie, Easy Vegan. There are loads. Many of them do unboxing, product and supermarket reviews. Watch any of Earthling Ed’s videos where he uses street epistemology to untangle people’s strongly held beliefs.

[@Pawn87]

JE Hoyes I’ll look those up. Cheers fella.

[@AtheistEve]

MKN III You’re welcome. I can’t watch the documentaries; too upsetting.

[@mayganphynix8267]

I care more now, about how my buying choices effect other Humans&our Home Planet, since I went Vegan. Humans are Animals too. Being Vegan Opened my eyes❤👪🌲🌎🐾

[@mayganphynix8267]

Aaron i avoid Palm Oil 80% of the time. other oils are just as bad or worse, and I'm trying to work more on being Oil Free. i buy Fair Trade Products when I'm able to find them, I buy local when I can, i avoid all products from China, I challenge some companies about sourcing their products sustainably and ethically that don't mistreat their workers, I dont drive, I use canvas bags and a reusable cup, I bring my own container/bags to the bulk section when I can. all our buying choices have an impact. Being Vegan is easier then all the things I mentioned above. you can save money if you eat whole foods and are willing to make your own food. many places now have vegan alternatives, so we can still enjoy the tastes we love. youtube videos for recipes, advice on grocery shopping and phone apps. some people are in food desserts and its harder, but everyone should do the best they can and everyone who can go vegan should do so. I am thankful that Going Vegan inspired me to care about all these things listed. being Vegan is the most important thing to do for our environment and for many places the easiest thing to do, once you overcome food habits, but these other things are important too. ❤

[@mayganphynix8267]

Aaron also, it can't be helped that some animals will be harmed for plants. but the Vegan Lifestyle Harms less Animals. Being Vegan isnt about being perfect, perfection is impossible.

[@TheMightyDozen]

IMO right now the hardest part about veganism is the inconvenience of giving up food that some people (including me, frankly) can be pretty passionate about, without being aware of the quality of the alternatives. I have heard that when processed correctly, tofu can be a worthy substitute for some meat, for instance, but I have yet to see a similar thing happen with dairy products. In general, I find it much less fruitful to argue ethics on such a subject; frankly, commercial meat and dairy are, hands down, cruel. Instead, I find that practical applications and suggestions can be much better: I have made a deal with myself that as soon as I move out, I will try my best to find good vegan/vegetarian recipes for some of my favorite day-to-day foods. This is also why I personally haven't watched the full thing, and neither am I going to - I already hold a philosophically-incompatible stand regarding meat and dairy consumption with my daily life, and I am well aware of it, yet I am not yet in a position where I can remedy that. What do you think?

[@tictacmaniac7415]

I think this is a very healthy opinion to have

[@julianw7097]

@TheMightyDozen Give it a google or KZbin search and you should be able to find some alternatives that you can eventually implement. Depends on how much free time you got. If I remember correctly, Cheap Lazy Vegan has some good options.

[@TheMightyDozen]

@@julianw7097 I took a quick look through her videos. Seems promising enough, I'll definitely keep her channel handy for when I properly start my research.

[@loic.bertrand]

The question we have to ask ourselves is : what is more important? Our taste buds or the life of an animal?

[@TheMightyDozen]

​@@loic.bertrand Perhaps I haven't made myself clear enough: I'm not arguing ethics. I'd probably agree with your answer. I'm not asking "Why?" anymore. I'm asking "How?". I want to figure out, in practice, how to do what the answer entails. Perhaps you can help, too? Do you have any resources that can help?

[@walle1134]

I can see a REALLY strong moral argument for veganism but I just don't think I could ever make the switch. I pretty much hate eating vegetables. Fruit is better but it's not perfect (except bananas, they're perfect). I don't know, I might look into it more, see what options there are and run an experiment for like a week to see if I can deal with it.

[@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094]

There are a lot of transitional vegan versions of carnist foods these days and veganized recipes of familiar foods. One year vegan and I thought I would be deprived too but I absolutely LOVE the kinds of foods I discovered and I've also become a great cook making foods that even non vegans love :) food is seriously the best part of going vegan. Also after a couple of months your taste habits change - they become more refined without being blocked by animal grease. Seriously I never enjoyed eating more and feel better though my favorite foods b4 going vegan was bleeding rare steak. Now just the thought of it makes me sick.

[@hailgiratinathetruegod7564]

This is why eat my cerials only with organic cat milk, from the free roaming cats of my backstreet

[@darcisw]

Just a suggestion: try a fortified nut milk. And no, I don’t mean from your own or another being’s nutsack. I’m talking nuts from plants. I’m explaining that because you seem like someone who struggles with life and its complexities. No need for thanks.

[@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax]

@@darcisw And you sound butthurt over a joke.....no surprise there.

[@12bestskater12]

trully amazing alex. veganism for me is a replacement for religion. i found meaning and purpose with fighting against the unnecessary suffer experienced by animals. ed does an extraordinary job with concisely explaining the abuse a cow goes through. and i love your point about how its all just for some milk. so glad you're on board with this

[@roygossjr]

Milk...the ultimate gateway drug 🤣

[@mayganphynix8267]

IfixPCs for real though! especially cheese. I'm SO thankful theres a vegan version!

[@helleena19]

I remember watching a children's movie when I was about ten or so and there was this scene where a wild horses foal was killed and the children in the movie were taking care of the mother horse because she was injured and the kids were drinking her milk and a line in they said that they hope that next year she would be giving her milk to her next baby, complete shook me. I always imagined that cows just produced milk regardless off having calves and realising that cows are not that different from horses. That movie really made me question why were we taking the food that was specifically produced for calves, but somehow my mom convinced me that it was alright when I asked her about it.

[@SPGreenLifestyle]

Thank you

[@donaldanderson6578]

Keep up with the great content, loving it!!

[@JohnCena8351]

I always thought it just magically appeared perfectly pasteurised in a bottle in my local super Market.

[@vibemunster]

This is a tricky subject for vegetarians. Hindus and Buddhist revere the cow and will drink their milk, use their dung for fire and fertilizer but won't eat beef. I think the underlying problem here is the amount of consumption which has led the way to more 'efficient' yet barbaric extraction processes, as with all factory farming, the same could be said for soy manufacture being over 90% GMO. I for one won't become a soy boy anytime soon for fear of the chemical composition of cows milk substitutes, they also taste like shit and prefer to choose organic milk from small production farms.

[@DougieJR]

Something I’ve always struggled with is; what exactly is the vegan ideal? Let all the cows go? Will that be better for them? And that’s not even mentioning the human cost of jobs and just, cutting off a food source in a world where people are starving. I genuinely want to know the answer but I’m yet to hear anything that doesn’t absolutely reek of bias one way or the other.

[@ande5460]

animal products are supply and demand. Slowly the demand will go down and farmers will breed fewer. It isn't like everyone will go vegan over night and we have all of these cows we don't know what to do with. People will still need to eat food so there will be jobs created while other jobs are lost. When cars were invented did people complain about the loss of carriage building? Probably, but jobs are constantly changing as the world changes. I also don't know about your point with cutting off food sources. If people are starving how is that getting worse from more people becoming vegan? Do meat companies currently ship free food to starving people or what? If you mean that you are concerned about places that need meat to survive right now, that is different. You can't really be morally obligated to do something that you can't do.

[@Juhiss93]

@@ande5460 In fact poor countries dont really use animal products that much. They eat mainly plant based because it is more affordable to them. Yes there is some exceptions, but for the most part eating animals isn't really problem there.

[@ande5460]

@@Juhiss93 I agree, I am more pointing out that if there was a society that actually needed to eat meat for whatever reason to survive then I would see that differently morally than someone who has access to other options. That is rarely the case but I would still see it as a different situation.

[@AtheistEve]

DougieJR When I think of the human cost of the animal agriculture industry, I think of the PTSD suffered by people who work in that industry - particularly/specifically in the slaughterhouses. And the knock-on effect that will have on their families and communities.

[@simpdestroyer5137]

I want to become vegan but I still live with my parents and they hardly buy enough food to feed us all as it is. There is no way I'd get enough food if I avoided the animal products they buy.

[@2ndchannel42]

apply for ebt, and dont be scared or ashamed of the process ^-^. you deserve the right to good healthy food acustomed for your diet and the government has allocated the money for people in your predicament. you got this.

[@zenmint]

This site offers free help if you want: challenge22.com/

[@RogueRM]

This is an appeal to Western middle classes, in the same way the climate change 'emergency' is. I've looked (briefly) at Earthling Ed's channel. He has made many videos of him 'confronting' a wide selection of people, but none (and I could be wrong) of him protesting islam regarding halal procedures. There are many cultures around the world that rely entirely on animal products to survive, and trying to 'educate' them to think differently will take more than sitting down and having a civilised chat over a mug of sweet chai latte. Furthermore, as with climate change, he is trying to change the minds of a relatively small percentage of the world's population. The vast majority of the world don't care because they can't afford to care. They simply want to get through the day and put food on the table for their families. Until 'we' solve world poverty, billions of people will continue to eat meat and pollute.

[@mayganphynix8267]

RogueRM well yeah. like you said, he's not going up to people who rely on Farmed Animals in poor countries to make money. everyone who can go vegan should go vegan, though. and its not just about the people he talks to. what about his video views and all the people he's reached? and the people hes reached on Alex's channel? even on Alex's channel ive read comments of people saying either they will consider going vegan or have gone vegan because of Alex's videos. which means Earthling Ed has probably reached many more people with his videos. but, as for us, just because we can't do much by being vegan, does that mean we shouldnt do anything at all?

[@RogueRM]

@@mayganphynix8267 I'm a believer in 'every little helps', but that wasn't my point.

[@LiberacionIgualdad]

Most farm animals are raised, tortured and killed to be eaten by humans who have enough resources to eat animals on a daily basis (although they clearly can "afford to care"). Most of these animals are raised in factory farms, in relatively wealthy countries, not in the poorest countries. When you take that into account, it obviously makes sense to focus on these humans and not on those who "can't afford to care". It's the same with pollution. The biggest polluters are *not* the poorest humans. Also, it's a well stablished fact that the tendency is to consume more animal products as people come out of poverty (and to pollute more, which go hand in hand since animal agriculture is one of the biggest polluters). So all the more reason to solve this issue and make non-animal diets more easily available and convenient for everyone. It's not reasonable to claim that there are people who "cannot change" due to their circumstances, in order to avoid changing ourselves.

[@MK-dx8mt]

that was beautiful and thought provoking. i am considering quitting dairy products.

[@skyek.1787]

Two of the coolest people out there in one video! Love it!

[@jonnyw82]

This is a good example of why secular ethics fail. When you care more about cattle than you do the murder of babies via abortion your moral compass is broken. For the record, I want cattle and babies to be treated with respect and care.

[@Tormentadeplomo]

Male cows? Female cows? Really?

[@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094]

What is your problem? You think there are more than two sexes for cows?

[@joetheeskimo8885]

@@animalsarebeautifulpeople3094 They're pointing out that cow is an inherently gendered term. Female cattle are called cows, male cattle are called bulls.

[@vegantina6565]

Thank you so much Alex for speaking the truth regardless of who it might “upset” or “offended”, The victims and planet need us all to never back down and always speak up ❤️

[@marksTips466]

Alex, GOD bless you for becoming vegan! oh, maybe that was not the correct choice of words, but you know what I mean :). I've been vegan for about 5 years now and it feels so good not to cause the suffering and death of innocent beings! PS if I were God, I would give much more reward to people that did not harm my creatures (animals) even if they were non-believers, compared to very observant followers that ate meat!

[@user-xw9lt1em3m]

Wtf

[@darcisw]

Mark Levenson Do you ever wonder why god doesn’t step in to end all of the suffering? It’s almost as if he doesn’t exist or something. Oh, wait, free will. Yeah that’s it. He’s proving that we can’t run things without him (and yet, supposedly he loves us). That makes sense. Sure. I know, I know, I’m just too dumb to understand his plan.

[@BornGam3r]

Aaron How about being a vegan who eats from local farms?

[@marksTips466]

@@darcisw What's your point? Not sure what you are saying?

[@marksTips466]

@@vids595 , from all the walking you have done in your life, you no doubt have killed thousands of ants, bugs, etc. Does this mean you should stop walking? No - you do your best in life. If you don't agree that killing insects and plants and some small rodents from harvesting crops is less cruel than killing sentient animals like cows, pigs, chickens etc then I don't think you have thought this through enough. Being vegan isn't perfect, but it's much more humane than torturing and killing animals unnecessarily.

[@okestperson6016]

I really wish I had the ability to go vegan but it’s not feasible for me at the moment. I do what I can

[@loic.bertrand]

What is holding you back?

[@okestperson6016]

Loïc Bertrand I just started college and I don’t have access to a kitchen to make my own food so I have to eat at the restaurants on campus. I don’t eat meat but cutting out cheese would really restrict the options I have. I do my best, I don’t add cheese to things that don’t already have it and I don’t eat egg, but I don’t restrict things that have egg in them. I think I’m going to get an apartment next year and I’ll be able to make my own food

[@justinesalimonova8482]

You don't need a kitchen, you can buy precooked ingredients

[@okestperson6016]

Loïc Bertrand not only that but my mental health is a little tedious since I moved to college. I’m just trying to keep up with school and maybe make some friends. As much as the cause matters to me, veganism comes second when compared to getting my degree and being happy overall

[@okestperson6016]

12 years old no of course not, but I would rather keep eating animal products if it meant that my mental health and focus on school wouldn’t change. Part of the reason I’m hesitant to go vegan rn is that I worry that stressing about what I’m going to eat, or what I can’t eat, will make my mental health take a dive.

[@guystryche]

Imagine still breastfeeding as an adult in 2019... super cringe

[@SA-rb5xq]

You wouldn't say that someone who's drinking human milk in a bottle is breastfeeding.

[@BornGam3r]

Books Lift My Screen I would tho...

[@SA-rb5xq]

@@BornGam3r It's really not the same thing.

[@AndersRosendalBJJ]

@@BornGam3r That's cause you are dumb

[@zenmint]

@@SA-rb5xq If one is consuming milk from a breast, then by definition, that is breastfeeding....

[@ryangiggs1188]

I'm not a vegan ... but i see the point ...and I'll probably start trying veganism and probably stop consuming meat other byproducts in a few yrs.ive been planning to... but parents kind of prevent that

[@Ssssyyyyyyyyyy]

I have better question: Where do donations for Ed's "charity" end up?!

[@bluelightmoon777]

im his pocket hes probably eating caviar and beef tartar like all rich people do 🤣

[@vegannonextreme5318]

Perhaps he should be more open by that but either way charities still have to pay their workers etc The closet communists always rear their heads when it comes to charity

[@Ssssyyyyyyyyyy]

@@vegannonextreme5318 He's most probably commiting a charity fraud. Do the research.

[@vegannonextreme5318]

Sy_ any evidence to back up those claims?

[@Ssssyyyyyyyyyy]

@@vegannonextreme5318 What claims? I'm asking a question based on Bobby Risto's investigations. To be honest, there's no proof, but it SMELLS really really hard.

[@ft4349]

Will it be immoral to eat an animal that was killed by another animal? Like a dead bull killed by a fight with another bull. Or stealing a kill from lions or other predators and eat it?

[@anthonia7930]

It would be disrespectful

[@AtamMardes]

The next step in being a fully moral human is to stop slaughtering animals for meat.

[@Visenyaaa]

You should make a video on your thoughts on abortion.

[@mitchellbarros4130]

This is not entirely true I am in agriculture production as well as the FFA, farms try to keep the animals happy. If they are not they will not produce the same amount, this goes for beef cattle as well they will not put on the of body and fat. But you will always have out some people who do abuse the animals, but this is looked down open by the majority of farmers. In the Oklahoma (USA) wild fire there were many people who died trying to save there cattle. I would like to know where you got your information please and thank you.

[@mitchellbarros4130]

Also a lot of farmers give their animals better lives than the farms themselves and will spend thousands on medication for these livestock.

[@laligneverte8124]

Exploiting and killing a sentient being who wants to live, can feel pleasure, pain and a wide range of emotions for culinary delight IS abuse.

[@CloseUpGamer]

alternative milk products taste absolutely awful, and nothing beats a chicken cheese and mushroom toasted wrap. have cut down on meat significantly, nothing to do with ethics, well maybe a little, as I agree that we need to cut down on meat consumption for the environment, but I don't think it's at all necessary to be vegan. I knew how farmers made milk when I was around 9, I watched a programme about it. To do this day, it does nothing to make me want to turn to vile alternatives like soya or almond milk. The only way I drink almond milk is blended with coconut oil, peanut butter, and banana otherwise is undrinkable

[@lewisbensted7161]

Nobody asked for your life story.

[@dominikatkaczyk2334]

Amazing video

[@howmuchbeforechamp]

I think it is very nice and eye opening to see different arguments being made to educate those who dont know how things are done on farms . I esspecially appreciate the clear and respectable manner in which it was presented , not like sjws attacking you , which forces most to close up and become defensive . I was able to think of the results of the milk industry becuase of how the argument was presented , That being said i prefer my milk readily available , and also am thinking of going to that country to get me some of that veal I would also ask anyone to tell me wehter or not you would even remotely consider not partaking of animal products like these becuase of harm to the animals ? Or if you would just prefer to stay on your devices and type comments on youtube

[@Lifya]

Thank you both

[@ericklopes4046]

I milk cows but we don't sell the milk, we distribute it among relatives. We never forcibly impregnate our cows, that's disgusting, and despite all the shit they make, they're lovely animals, if you treat them nicely they treat you nicely. Also when the cow gives birth, the milk is undrinkable, we don't consume its milk for weeks. We milk it on a daily basis but we throw away the milk, because it's too much milk and if the baby calf has too much of it, it can get diarrhoea.

[@lewisbensted7161]

Do you think that is a practical way to feed 8 billion people?

[@ericklopes4046]

wot m8? I'm not planning to feed 8 billion people.

[@joshuak4553]

My milk comes from my nipples. I think. I mean I've heard stories of biological men lactating under certain circumstances but that's not a situation I would ever want to be in.

[@lucioh1575]

Okay, what makes nipples start lactating?

[@lightdark00]

Lucioh in the case of men? It most often could happen after the loss of the wife where the man must care for the baby. The key thing is he lets the baby latch on to his nipples even though nothing happens to begin with.

[@ats-3693]

I know a couple of guys who have started lactating due to elevated estrogen levels after doing a course of steroids for body building.

[@joshuak4553]

@@ats-3693 Yeah. That. That's weird. I would freak out.

[@jacovichstabs841]

I don't understand why he thinks it's abhorrent to impregnate cows in the animal industry. The fact that he uses the word "force" is interesting. It suggests that animals have the same kind of rational decision-making faculty that humans have and violating that is wrong. But animals do not have such a faculty. What is the difference between the bull or the human impregnating the cow? They are both forceful acts (in physical terms) and the cow has no volitional, rational faculty to be violated.

[@jacovichstabs841]

@Abel Abel So you think it's wrong because it causes suffering from the cow's perspective? What about the pleasure people get from drinking the milk, why doesn't that outweigh the suffering and make it ok to do?

[@jacovichstabs841]

@Abel Abel You didn't answer my question. If suffering is bad but pleasure is good then how do you weigh one against the other?