Obviously this question is only for people who eat beef regularly.

But I just was wondering, what IQ/ability would make you swear off beef? If they could speak like an 8 y.o, would that be enough to cut off beef? If they got an IQ of 80, would that do it?

  • YoBuckStopsHere@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’ll go with the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy answer and say the cow likely will offer me in person which cuts of meat I prefer. It’s sole purpose in life is to be part of the food cycle. It knows that and it accepts it.

    • Resistentialism@feddit.uk
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      1 year ago

      And that’s what i say, it I ever meet something higher on the food chain, I will hand myself over and give it a clap.

  • CrimeDad@lemmy.crimedad.work
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    1 year ago

    I don’t know if there’s an IQ amount, but there’s probably a dollar amount. The more expensive it gets, the less I’ll eat, and then eventually I won’t bother.

  • gloriousspearfish@feddit.dk
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    1 year ago

    At the point where it consciously knows that we breed and slaughter them for meat. That would be my red line. I don’t know what IQ that equals to.

      • gloriousspearfish@feddit.dk
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        1 year ago

        I know they don’t know this consciously because of their behaviour. If we suppose they were intelligent enough to understand their predicament, I would expect them to protest in some way. For example by breaking out of their captivitity, trying to kill their captors, or even commit suicide.

        This is not the behaviour we observe from cows. They seem perfectly happy to bond with and follow along their captors (farmers) right up to the point where they get a bolt through their head.

        This - to me - clearly indicates that they are far below an intelligence level where they can understand the living conditions we put them in.

  • Gryzor@lemmyfly.org
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    1 year ago

    I think your should stop eating any meat the moment you don’t feel like you have what it takes to look at the animal in the eye while you kill it for consumption.

    If you think you can’t do that, then you should reconsider your meat consumption.

    I’m approaching this point in my life and reducing consumption accordingly.

    Cows can be moderately smart when raised as such. It’s humans who selected the specific traits we considered more convenient for our needs, and breed them like that.

    • Jujudos@feddit.nl
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      1 year ago

      Would that philosophy extend to other parts of life? I feel like at the surface this sounds great, but when thinking why this sounds great i cant help but wonder if its even possible to look at choices with these kind of angles.

      • Gryzor@lemmyfly.org
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        1 year ago

        It’s a good question. I don’t know. There are many reasons why I like meat. And there are many reasons why it’s problematic.

        I think this is a potentially applicable philosophy. It won’t solve the “problems” but at least will make it a more consistent experience for everyone involved (except the animal perhaps)

    • ramble81@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Do you eat beef regularly? If so, then you would stop, and if you’ve already stopped you were precluded from this question so really shouldn’t have answered.

      • ℕ𝕖𝕞𝕠@midwest.social
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        1 year ago

        I do currently, but I was vegetarian for over a decade and vegan for part of that. I never buy beef and only eat it because I work in a restaurant and eat for free.

        But the intelligence isn’t really at issue, the ecological impact is why I don’t buy beef. That and the taste: it’s a C-grade meat at best, way below pork and most poultry, especially given the higher price point.

  • ATQ@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Well, some people believe that pigs are as smart as toddlers. So a cow would, at a minimum, have to be smarter than a pig.

  • j4k3@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I think it should be mandatory for everyone to spend at least one day of their young adult life hunting, killing, dressing, and cooking. The experience will likely alter the person’s entire outlook on life and meat in general.

    I never forget that meat was a life that mattered; with a personality; good and bad days; life; experience; struggle it lost to me. It doesn’t stop me from eating meat. I wish I had the ability to hunt for what I need. I know my own ethics, like when to take a clean shot, and only taking what I need. Animals in industrial livestock facilities are mostly managed by unethical criminals. None of us asked to be born in such an overpopulated world. Unfortunately, this is the impossible problem. If you are smart enough to see the issue of overpopulation, that is great, but even if you avoid having children, those that are not so bright will always enumerate.

    • NoIWontPickaName@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      That’s the paradox though isn’t it?

      If smart people were “too smart to reproduce” then we have a whole generation being raised by people who weren’t

  • olivier@lemmy.fait.ch
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    1 year ago

    Basically, I wouldn’t be able to eat anything that speaks (I haven’t and don’t intend to, but that’s not what would prevent me from eating a “talking” parrot, for instance)

  • howrar@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    Intelligence has nothing to do with it. Intelligence isn’t even well defined or measurable. Things like IQ are designed for humans, so they would not be applicable to other beings. They’re barely even useful for human applications.

    It’s an interesting question though. First, I’ll ask myself why I eat beef in the first place.

    • It’s tasty
    • It’s relatively cheap
    • Very nutrient dense, so it’s easier to consume

    Why do I not eat dogs or cats?

    • They are not socially acceptable to consume
    • They contribute positively to my life in other ways than being a food source

    I’m pretty sure that a dog/cat could be dumb as a rock and I still wouldn’t eat them because I’d still enjoy their company.

    Now I do try to reduce the amount of beef I consume, but it’s mainly for environmental reasons.

    • naeap@sopuli.xyz
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      1 year ago

      Cows and pigs are great company and can get really attached to you.

      How does that differ - but just social norms?

  • Gsus4@feddit.nl
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    1 year ago

    They’re already smart enough :) but up close they’re a burpy gassy mess, feels like a sentient bioreactor who is really fussy about what delicious grasses their friends found on the other side of the hill.

    • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      I raised some pigs a few years ago and I kept waiting for that time when I’d go out to their pen and look into their eyes and swear off meat forever.

      It never happened. They were fucking delicious and I’m glad they’re dead. Pigs are fleshy bulldozers wrapped around a garbage disposal.

  • Halafax@kbin.social
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    1 year ago

    I guess my cutoff would be actual conversation. Unless they specifically ask to be eaten, ala the bit from Hitchiker’s Guide, in which case I guess the sky is the limit.