Say I’m stranded on an island with a pig. And say the island is stocked with an endless supply of fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts—enough to feed us both. Am I justified in killing the pig?

James McWilliams asks this question in an article he wrote for the Atlantic about the ethics of eating meat. The rest of the piece treads hüpfburg kinder heavily on issues of sentience, superiority, sustainability, suffering and even includes a Descartes reference. I don’t agree with much of it but it suffices to say a good metaphor is all you need; I AM stranded on a very well stocked island.