KatWoods

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

Cross-posted from my Substack To start off with, I’ve been vegan/vegetarian for the majority of my life. I think that factory farming has caused more suffering than anything humans have ever done. Yet, according to my best estimates, I think most animal-lovers should eat meat. Here’s why: 1. It is probably unhealthy to be vegan. This affects your own well-being and your ability to help others. 2. You can eat meat in a way that substantially reduces the suffering you cause to non-human animals How to reduce suffering of the non-human animals you eat I’ll start with how to do this because I know for me this was the biggest blocker. A friend of mine was trying to convince me that being vegan was hurting me, but I said even if it was true, it didn’t matter. Factory farming is evil and causes far more harm than the potential harm done to me. However, you can eat meat and dramatically reduce the amount of suffering you cause. Here’s my current strategy, but I’m sure there is a lot of room for improvement (and if there is anybody who feels nerdsniped by this, then I’ll consider this post to be a success): * Mussels and oysters. They are quite unlikely to be sentient (very few neurons, mostly immobile so less evolutionary reasons to develop things like fear or pain). If they are sentient, farming practices are pretty similar to their evolutionary environment, so it’s probably not bad. * Wild caught fish. They are not factory farmed, which removes most of the suffering. Then it’s just counterfactually killing them earlier than they would have died anyways, and in ways that might actually be faster and less painful than the “natural” ways (starvation, disease, predation from other animals). Here’s a good case for sardines in particular. * Beef, especially pasture-raised (different from grass-fed). Factory farming of cows is far less bad than other animals. They often have access to the outdoors for a large percentage of their lives. They are cuter so we tr

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App and book recommendations for people who want to be happier and more productive

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The Parable of the Boy Who Cried 5% Chance of Wolf

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Meditation course claims 65% enlightenment rate: my review

113Aug 1, 2022

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The x-risk case for exercise: to have the most impact, the world needs you at your best

I often see people who stopped exercising because they felt like it didn’t matter compared to x-risks. Especially if they have short timelines. This is like saying that the best way to drive from New York to San Francisco is speeding and ignoring all the flashing warning lights in your...

Dec 29, 202516

Burnout, depression, and AI safety: some concrete mental health strategies

Cross-posted from my Substack Burnout and depression in AI safety usually don’t happen because of overwork. From what I've seen, it usually comes from a lack of hope. Working on something you don’t think will work and if it doesn’t work, you’ll die? That's a recipe for misery. How do...

Dec 26, 202544

ASI Already Knows About Torture - In Defense of Talking Openly About S-Risks

Sometimes I hear people say they’re worried about discussing s-risks from threats because it might “give an ASI ideas” or otherwise increase the chance that some future system tries to extort us by threatening astronomical suffering. While this concern is rooted in a commendable commitment to reducing s-risks, I argue...

Dec 11, 2025-9

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

Sep 25, 2025316

The most common mistakes people make starting EA orgs

Here are the most common mistakes I see when I’m providing coaching to AI safety founders: * Premature exploitation on charity ideas * Doing it yourself instead of hiring or outsourcing * Not learning enough (focus more on business skills) * Not taking into account personal fit Spend more time...

Aug 23, 20252

Should you start a for-profit AI safety org?

This is one of the most common questions I get when people use my AI safety career advice service. My short answer is: yes, you can start a for-profit AI safety org, but you should try non-profit first. It mostly comes down between a trade-off between distorted incentives and amounts...

Aug 15, 20258

How to get ChatGPT to really thoroughly research something

I've had a lot of success with getting ChatGPT [1] to do thorough research with the following prompt combined with Deep Research: > X=[claim] > > Do a deep dive into X. Tell me the steelman arguments in favor of X. > > Then tell me the steelman counter-arguments to...

Aug 15, 202518

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KatWoods

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KatWoods

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

App and book recommendations for people who want to be happier and more productive

The Parable of the Boy Who Cried 5% Chance of Wolf

Meditation course claims 65% enlightenment rate: my review

KatWoods

The x-risk case for exercise: to have the most impact, the world needs you at your best

Burnout, depression, and AI safety: some concrete mental health strategies

ASI Already Knows About Torture - In Defense of Talking Openly About S-Risks

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

The most common mistakes people make starting EA orgs

Should you start a for-profit AI safety org?

How to get ChatGPT to really thoroughly research something

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

App and book recommendations for people who want to be happier and more productive

The Parable of the Boy Who Cried 5% Chance of Wolf

Meditation course claims 65% enlightenment rate: my review

The x-risk case for exercise: to have the most impact, the world needs you at your best

Burnout, depression, and AI safety: some concrete mental health strategies

ASI Already Knows About Torture - In Defense of Talking Openly About S-Risks

Why you should eat meat - even if you hate factory farming

The most common mistakes people make starting EA orgs

Should you start a for-profit AI safety org?

How to get ChatGPT to really thoroughly research something