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Thread: On a desert island with only an animal - would you eat it?

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    TheFirstBus's Avatar
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    Default On a desert island with only an animal - would you eat it?

    Meat eaters have asked the question "what is you were stuck on a deserted island with only an animal?? would you eat it". Well I ask it of you to ask the meat eaters you know "what if you were on an island with an animal and enough vegetable to feed you both (make it vegetable they don't like), heres the catch the animals companionship is the key to keeping there sanity. So do they eat the animal and sacrifice sanity or do they eat the food they don't enojy and keep there sanity??"

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    John's Avatar
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    I can't really blame anyone stranded on an island for eating meat. However, it is a fact that many Polynesian islands where made uninhabitable by deforestation, domesic animals, and hunting. The island of Tikopia is a success story where they had to abandon raising pigs and only eat vegetables and fish to stay alive. Unfortunatley, they also had to institute human sacrifice so hopefully the earth won't get to that point.

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    There have been cases where people even have been eating other humans in emergency situations, but I don't really see that this is relevant in a pro/con eating animals (or humans) discussion!

    If there's one animal on that island, there are eatable plants there too.

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    good point, why couldnt they just survive on the plant foods

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    Because they are meat heads - the meat has gone to their heads!

    Sorry couldn't resist that one. I'm sure they are brilliant people deep inside

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    Goddess foxytina_69's Avatar
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    LoL

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    It's one of those situations where you don't really know what you will do or how far you will go until you are in it. It's best to be thankful you're not in a situation where you have to choose and hope you don't land in such a situation. An old veg friend of mine had no problem admitting he'd eat other humans if he had no other choice (in reference to a flight crash where such a thing has happened)... non veg me at the time said absolutelly not... and I maintain that.... the thing is you don't really know what that kind of situation is like... how much you really value life/not being eaten when you are in that situation. I'd like to think I could survive for a week... two w/out touching a thing... but that's not really the reality... and well there are a million other things to consider ... do you want to be the next meal... etc etc... It's just a trap question that's not completelly answerable. Ethically... and ideally ... ummm no. But realistically... it's hard to say.... and while I would tend to say no I no there's a lot I'm not taking into account in the process of saying no. So, yeh.

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    NO way, even if i am to die myself. There wil definitely be fruit and vegetables and such.and since you are near the sea, there are many sea vegetables going ashore. Anyway, there is no point in eating thew animal, if yu are to be stranded there, you will eat the carcass and run out of food anyway. Might as well actually think and do your best and hardest to live otherwise.Anyway loneliness can be a much more horrible insanity.

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    gorillagorilla Gorilla's Avatar
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    yeah this is a silly question that doesn't really prove anything as Sabster says no-one can really say how they'd act in a certain situation until it happened to them. i also wonder how many meat-eaters who ask this question would actually have a clue how to catch, kill and prepare a wild animal for food anyway...

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    i also wonder how many meat-eaters who ask this question would actually have a clue how to catch, kill and prepare a wild animal for food anyway...
    *falls out of chair*

    So, ture. I didn't. And besides... as I said before even as a meat eater I was well squemish about touching anything raw ... much less a fish that needed scaling etc.... yek. And there are plenty more out there... It's the modern age of prepared.. pre packaged foods.

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    Quote Sabster
    *falls out of chair*

    So, ture. I didn't. And besides... as I said before even as a meat eater I was well squemish about touching anything raw ... much less a fish that needed scaling etc.... yek. And there are plenty more out there... It's the modern age of prepared.. pre packaged foods.
    well you knw thats why I wonder if humans were meat to eat meat. I mean we are the only anil that cooks our meat. If we don't we may get sick because the meat is not cooked.
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    We all have an instict to survive. Human beings are closest to rodents(generalists). We will do whatever it takes to stay alive. However, right now I don't have to consume animals to survive. When there are six billion humans on the planet, we have to figure out how we can all stay alive.

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    I eve's Avatar
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    You're right John, as vegans we are living proof that consuming meat is totally unnecessary.

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    They always say how much animals consume just to fatten them up. why no stop eating the animals and feed them what they need and with the rest start to feed people. I mean its a start right??
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

  15. #15
    drussell4801
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    in a flight crash situation, I would offer myself as food to the others. I would like to be killed before being cooked though. I am not a lobster. :|

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    Moonflower tsunami's Avatar
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    Exactly. But first of all try to figure out if there is another way through it all, as there pretty much definitely will be one. Like fruit/vegetables form the sea and on the island, and building a vessel from fallen logs and such, or someone with a cellphone to contact the outside world. plus bunch of plains fly by almost everywhere every day.

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    Quote drussell4801
    in a flight crash situation, I would offer myself as food to the others. I would like to be killed before being cooked though. I am not a lobster. :|
    You're funny But I don't think that's how it works. When people have reverted to canibalism to live I presume they lived off those already dead....

    So, yeh that's why it's not really a question that's answerable. I've already said that back when I was an omni I swore I wouldn't... and I'm just so grossed out how could you live with yourself... The thing is it's one of those things most can't trully answer w/out going through it.

    I think that plain crash was in a high altitude area of the mountains... freezing temp.... Not sure though. The incident that actually happened that is.

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    Exclamation

    The point of such questions is to show either that:
    a) the vegan is inconsistent for he would go against his beliefs in certain circumstances, or
    b) the vegan is a blind fanatic for he would rather starve to death than give up his veganism.
    It's quite pointless to argue that there would be plenty of plants to eat on the island. To do so would mean to play a game in which you can never win. (Plus, the question can always be rephrased so that plant food truly becomes unavailable. For example: what would you do if you were in a dungeon and the only available food were chicken feet?). The point is that we are highly unlikely ever to face such a situation. We live on a planet with 6 billion other people and the number is getting bigger. The planet's resources are running out fast, and in an effort to sustain meat-eating, we are treating domestic animals with more cruelty than ever, by doing so, we are taking the land from the fewer and fewer wild animals, we are polluting our land and water, we are harming our own health while millions of people are starving, etc. Those are the very real problems that we face today. And as responsible people, we have tried to come up with a solution to those very real problems, and our solution is to be vegans. If we ever end up on an island (or in a dungeon) with a chicken, then we'll decide what to do. For the time being, the possibility is so unlikely that to seriously ponder on what we would do in such a situation would be nothing short of irresponsible, for we would be avoiding the real issues and wasting our time.

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    Quote TheFirstBus
    Meat eaters have asked the question "what if you were stuck on a deserted island with only an animal?? would you eat it".
    We're running out of islands to strand vegans on aren't we.

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    If you were stuck on a desert island you might have to run around naked, never take a shower and wipe your bottom with leaves. That doesn’t mean that you should do those things the rest of the time.

  21. #21
    PinkFluffyCloud
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    Good point, Gert!
    Anyway, the answer, for me, is, NO!
    Animals are not food, it really is that simple.

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    Quote gertvegan
    If you were stuck on a desert island you might have to run around naked, never take a shower and wipe your bottom with leaves.
    What's so bad about that?

  23. #23
    tails4wagging
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    It would have to be a completely desserted island for me to run round naked!!!

    Surely that one animal would be your only companion, who would you talk to if it was'nt?. Anyway when hunger gets unbearable it is more likely the animal would attack first!

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    I would run around naked until the trees started to tell me otherwise.
    CRAZY
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    On a deserted island with only one animal? How does the animal live. What is it eating? I'd maybe eat if if it died of natural causes, but I wouldn't kill it.

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    Quote tails4wagging
    Surely that one animal would be your only companion, who would you talk to if it was'nt?. Anyway when hunger gets unbearable it is more likely the animal would attack first!
    Not if the animal were a herbivore, such as a cow - they are sweet natured, loving and kind, and maintain a vegan diet, but that doesn't mean they would eat a vegan!
    Eve

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    Default The snappy reply to the question from vegan street is

    How did a lone animal get on the island? Perhaps he’s a mirage, brought on by my diet-induced protein deficiency. Or perhaps this scenario was faced by the second cousin of a neighbor of a friend of yours in college after she went on the run from the coppers after throwing red paint on little old ladies in faux fur?

    Is this one of those funky islands with the plants that experience recognizable emotions? That’s fascinating! What else can one find on this island? Vegans who wear leather shoes? The diary you kept when you were vegan for a week and you could not eat one single thing and your skin turned bright yellow like that of a lemon? Are Skipper, the Professor and the rest of the S.S. Minnow crew on the island, still trying to construct elaborate machines out of coconuts only to be foiled at the last moment by the highjinks of a certain accident prone but lovable sailor?

    Maybe you should go visit this island. I hear the weather’s fabulous.

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    Default And the thoughtful reply is ...

    Personally, I don’t answer this kind of question because it is purely speculative and diverts attention from the real ethical questions and decisions most of us face each and every day. It has much less significance if I would kill an animal in a very unlikely and imagined scenario than if I would eat a meat sandwich from a fast-food restaurant. No one could tell you with absolute certainty what they would do in a dire situation they’ve never experienced. My personal convictions and ethical choices are shaped by circumstances faced daily, not hazy speculations.

  29. #29
    PinkFluffyCloud
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    Actually, I CAN think of a shorter, SNAPPIER answer, but it may get removed if I posted it!

  30. #30
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    Quote paledim
    On a deserted island with only one animal? How does the animal live. What is it eating? I'd maybe eat if if it died of natural causes, but I wouldn't kill it.
    Eww, would you??
    The thought of eating decaying flesh sickens me!
    I would no more consider an animal food (after 17 years without meat) than I would consider eating my own leg, in this, or any other scenario!

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    Quote gertvegan
    How did a lone animal get on the island? Perhaps he’s a mirage, brought on by my diet-induced protein deficiency. Or perhaps this scenario was faced by the second cousin of a neighbor of a friend of yours in college after she went on the run from the coppers after throwing red paint on little old ladies in faux fur?
    If the animal is a mirage perhaps the protien deficiency is an illusion as well.
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    Quote TheFirstBus
    If the animal is a mirage perhaps the protien deficiency is an illusion as well.
    Maybe it's all a bad dream (probably caused by this strange Vegan lifestyle!! ).

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    Quote PinkFluffyCloud
    Maybe it's all a bad dream (probably caused by this strange Vegan lifestyle!! ).
    I should imagine so. I know not killing things could only end in disaster
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    We have to find out if it's safe to bring pets along on the big Veganforum cruise.

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    you know that would actually be really cool. A vegan forum cruise. What kind of food do you think they'd serve??
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    There are restaurants around here that serve delicious vegan seafood. Vegan crabcakes, vegan shrimp, vegan scallops, vegan squid. It would be cool to have that stuff on board. I love the taste of the ocean and I snack on sea vegetables daily.

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    wow. Live music to??
    "Its bad karma to fuck with the stoned"- Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Comentary (found on criterion collection)

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    Lol. We just have to make sure that the lifeboats have vegan rations.

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    I don't like being stuck on a boat, can't we have a Great Veganforum Camping Marathon??

  40. #40
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    It'd be much safer, too, if we stay away from Desert Islands!

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    Quote PinkFluffyCloud
    It'd be much safer, too, if we stay away from Desert Islands!

    hmmmm, with us lot you might actually want a desert island. Imagine all of us being on a campsite and the neighbours decide to have a barbie with flesh on them....WAR!!!! Not a good plan (for starters because it would be highly embarrassing to see my ''vegan'' dogs going to side with said neighbour and beg for sausages!)

    See ya,
    Billy
    please grant me the senility to forget about people I never liked anyway

  42. #42
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    Ok, we'll camp on a deserted Island, but just make sure we don't get stranded - otherwise we might have to decide *who* to eat first!

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    Quote John
    There are restaurants around here that serve delicious vegan seafood. Vegan crabcakes, vegan shrimp, vegan scallops, vegan squid. It would be cool to have that stuff on board. I love the taste of the ocean and I snack on sea vegetables daily.
    Last week while farewelling a vegan going to Spain (to teach English) we ate at a Buddist restaurant that serves v-prawns - orange tinted tofu made in prawn molds. I *know* it's okay but there is something distinctly odd about eating them - may I suggest it was a bit *fishy*?

    Vegan cruise - if the weather got unpleasant or it was a little boring we could have big beautiful kitchens stocked with international ingredients and show each other our favorite dish preparation, spice mix, how to make your own soymilk and tofu. So long as no one felt sea sick of course...
    "if compassion is extreme, then call me an extremist"

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    I hear ya Veganblue. The shrimps would be pretty pissed if they knew I was eating food created in their likeness.

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    Hmm...I would not eat the animal on the premise that I probably couldn't bring myself to kill it, gut it and all that. It makes me queasy just imagining it. Besides, an animal would only last so long- if I was truly desperate I'd maybe try to get fish. The lack of blood wouldn't be as bad. But honestly...the plants would do just fine. The first concern should be water, ne?

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    Quote John
    I hear ya Veganblue. The shrimps would be pretty pissed if they knew I was eating food created in their likeness.
    Next time you are chatting to a shrimp, John, I am trusting you not to tell them - that goes for everyone, ya hear! *looks around warily for the shrimp police*....

    I wonder if anyone would eat at a restaurant that produced vegan food that was made in the shape of people? Eating meat disgusts us right? but omnis don't blink twice at eating a prawn or chicken leg... I am having amusing ideas of a media stunt - free BBQ with a huge tofu person on a wonderful platter surrounded by salad - offered to passers by with some sort of banner - the exact wording will require work. "Meat isn't food" comes to mind.

    Doesn't Ingrid Newkirk want her post-humous body chopped up and BBQ'd in New York with the same idea. She is such a brave chook.
    "if compassion is extreme, then call me an extremist"

  47. #47
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    I remember sitting in a waiting room with a fishtank in it. In the fishtank was this beautiful, brightly colored, little critter. I assume he was a shrimp or something. As I was looking at him he came up to me and seemed to be looking back. He would follow my finger as I moved it along the glass. Call me crazy, but I felt like there was a connection. It must be lonley for a shrimp all alone in a tank but at least he wasn't getting eaten.

    That reminds me of a time I was watching the lobsters at the supermarket. They were really packed in there. Two jumped on the backs of the others and started fighting. A third lobster jumped up and got between them, pushing them away from each other with his claws, breaking up the tussle. It was as if he was saying, "Peace brothers, we're all in this together."

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    The best way is to point out to meat heads that 99% of desert islands that are on shipping routes and flight paths do contain more than just animals.

    Also if an animal is alive and well on that islands he or she must be eating something to stay so well, the chances are you could share the plant with the animal.

    If the animal is in good shape the island must have a fair stock of plant based food on the island. Also if the animal is on the island it must have got to the island some how, so in reality you are not far from a main island unless it's was a fish.

    At the end of the day if you are presented with an anti-vegan question which the probability of it ever happening are a billion to one treat it with the content it desrves and give them facts back.

    From a personal note if the desert island was that small the probabilty of a plan or a boat crashing on it will be very small....so it means the mode of transport you travelled in must have crashed in the ocean....that's me f***d already, I swim like a house brick at the best of times.
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  49. #49
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    John, that it so sad, I hate to think of Lobsters like that.

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    yeah John i don't think i've ever been in a supermarket where you could buy live lobsters out of a tank! i've heard of it in restaurants though.....

    this question reminds me of the Simpsons episode Das Bus - i'm surprised nobody's mentioned it yet. the kids are on a school trip and the school bus crashes into the sea. they're all stranded on a desert island and their food supplies are gone. while looking for more food they find a wild boar, apparently the only animal on the island. Lisa sees the boar licking slime off a rock and suggests the kids eat the slime too, but the others kill and roast the boar.

    how many 8-10 year-old kids would be able to catch and kill a wild boar, and roast it on a spit without giving themselves food poisoning?!! maybe in America, where hunting is more common? but surely Lisa wouldn't be the only one who couldn't kill and eat a creature they'd seen alive in the wild?
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