Do economically liberal people care less about animals/the environment?

One theme I have noticed in political debate is that those on the right seem to care far less about the welfare of animals and the preservation of the environment. I know I'm generalising here, but it seems to me that it is lefties who are supporting legislation protecting animals and calling for better stewardship of the environment.

One thing that does annoy me is this: many libertarians seem to think that their position demands that the needs of animals be largely disregarded and things like the foxing ban constitute an attack on an individual's liberty. However, I for one know that many libertarians were animal welfare supporters. John Stuart Mill called for such legislation and Robert Nozick was a vegetarian who considered it immoral to kill animals for food. Were these individuals less libertarian for having such views? Surely not. I am a classical liberal myself but it just disappoints me how so many other people who share many of my views have such a blatant disregard for animals.

Like I say, I know that I'm generalising, but it's a pattern I'm sure many people notice.

Reply 1

Norfolkadam

I'm pretty libertarian and I don't care a great deal about animals, I'm actually a member of the Pro-Test group which is in favour of animal testing for medical studies. For me human needs have to come above those of an animal, I mean there's no reason for them to suffer needlessly but I don't believe people's liberty should be restricted because of animal rights in most cases.

Reply 2

burningnun

I saw a debate between two libertarians and to be fair the animal rights guy was slightly more compelling than the other. However if we apply it consistently (which libertarians tend to do with things in general more so than most people, because our beliefs are based on some kind of logical flow rather than populism) then I can't eat meat. :snow: