Quiz 1 Answers

To prove: We should not eat chickens. (38-9)

1. If we eat chickens, we create a demand for chickens. (missing premise)


2. If we create a demand for chickens, then (more) chickens will be farmed. (missing premise)


3. Thus, if we eat chickens, more chickens will be farmed. (1,2 transitivity)


• Chickens live in crowded conditions.
• Chicks are debeaked at birth with a hot blade.
• Chickens are fed leftover chicken parts.
• Chickens are treated roughly by handlers.
• Stunning chickens causes distress.
4. [Thus] Chicken farming causes animals to suffer. (inductive claim)
   [Or: If (more) chickens are farmed, then (more) chickens will suffer.]


5. Therefore, if we eat chickens we (indirectly) cause animals to suffer. (3,4 MP)


6. But we should not cause animals to suffer. (missing premise)


7. Therefore, we should not eat chickens. (5,6 MT)
   

To prove: We should not eat meat. (40)

1. If we eat meat, we create a demand for cattle.. (missing premise)


2. If we we create a demand for cattle, then more cattle will be farmed. (missing premise)


3. Thus if eat we meat, more cattle will be farmed. (1,2 transitivity)


• Mountains of animal manure.
• Polluted water.
• Rain-forest destruction.
  • e.g., South america (70,000 acres of rainforest)
• Soil-loss.
• Global warming.
• Wasted resources
  • animal farming requires five times more grain/animal than human
  • animal farming requires 30x more energy than farming grain
4. [Thus] Cattle farming causes damage to the environment. (inductive claim)
   [Or: If (more) cattle are farmed, then (more) damage to enivronment will result.]


5. Therefore, if we eat meat, we (indirectly) cause damage to the environment. (3,4 MP)


6. But we should not cause damage to the environment. (missing premise)


7. Therefore, we should not eat meat. (5,6 MT)