If it's worth saying, but not worth its own post, then it goes here.
Notes for future OT posters:
1. Please add the 'open_thread' tag.
2. Check if there is an active Open Thread before posting a new one. (Immediately before; refresh the list-of-threads page before posting.)
3. Open Threads should start on Monday, and end on Sunday.
4. Unflag the two options "Notify me of new top level comments on this article" and "
I am anthromorphizing, but I don't know what it's like to think like a cow. Actually, I'm doing more than just anthromorphizing- I'm (for the moment) assuming cows think like I do, as opposed to how some generic human might. While this is imperfect, assuming someone thinks like I do tends to be my first step in trying to empathize with them. I do try and modify how I'm thinking about this to match the cow as much as I can (for example, I would become unhappy if I never got to read books, but I don't think I need to leave a library in the pasture!) but the core of my empathy is based on how my own brain works.
Offhand, I'd guess half a percent of all cows that wind up as hamburger are on a cruelty-free farm. If when ordering a hamburger it was completely impossible to determine where the meat was coming from, then this would be an important point. Since I can find out where the meat is coming from, I can buy from the half a percent that is.