Some good points there. Wasn't sure what to expect at first, lol.
I sort of agree with your first point, labels can be divisive. But at the same time there's a few labels I'm comfortable associating with. Veganism basically just means trying to reduce harm to other animals within reason, and humans are animals as well technically according to science so it's sort of just a philosophy of peace with other beings and respect within reason.
But I understand how certain people have given the label a bad reputation, that tends to happen with words. Many people think religion is a bad word, even though it basically just means a set of beliefs about existence according to my reading of the definitions.. I think we all have some beliefs about life.. Though some people hate religion so much, they want nothing to do with it. Similar to veganism and other ideas.
So.. I think it's good to avoid the label at first because you might scare people off, though.. In the end I don't really think it's such a bad word at all, it's one of the few words I'm willing to associate with in regards to my beliefs about the world.
Your second argument was "waste" which I sort of agree with. many other "vegans" would agree as well, that it's better not to waste, though.. It's a diverse population of peoples and not easy to put into a box like most groups of people. It's easy to stereotype whole groups of people, but often it is inaccurate to do so. Not always, but.. A lot of the times a lot of innocent people get unfairly wrapped up in those broad brush absolute statements about certain groups.
Third point was plant sentience. I agree the science isn't confirmed, though for me it seems pretty overwhelming that at the very least if there is some kind of sentience that it's far lower than even the animal kingdom which is why they are rooted in place and can't move thus no need for a big brain that can make lots of decisions and look at itself and reflect.
And.. Even if plants did have sentience which I don't think they do.. Intelligence yes, sentience no. But if they did.. You still gotta fed animals plants first, so more plants die by eating animal products. Plus a lot of water waste and many other things I'm sure you're aware of, so veganism is sort of a "minimalist" approach of do the least amount of damage within reason.
Even if we can't reduce all of our impact and some amount of death of sentient life is necessary for us to live, it would be wise I think to try to reduce the impact and damage we do on other beings as much as we can without harming ourselves in the process.
Thanks for the thoughtful video, I'm going to have to listen in more often!
OH... PS it reminded me of this Tales From The Dark Side episode where the lady gets glasses that make the fruits start talking to her and she ends up sewing her mouth shut so she won't eat them, lol... Also I don't really believe in breatharian or sun gazing, but I suppose it's possible.. I think we need some food like the other animals do, though who knows.. I admit I don't know much in the grand scheme of things. Anyways.. Peace!
RE: Why I'm Not a Vegan