There is violence inherent in human survival, because survival means killing and consuming another organism to absorb its energy and keep its heart beating. The necessity of this act is what makes it acceptable in the minds of human beings, since abstaining from eating would be suicide. However, questions about the necessity of consumption arise as humans approach the decision about what to eat, particularly regarding the decision whether or not to eat meat. It is evident that the practice of eating meat is unnecessary, as many people have survived for centuries on vegan or vegetarian diets. Furthermore, it has been revealed that meat consumption can have negative repercussions on human health, paradoxically impeding survival, even if its ingestion is for short-term sustenance. In recent times there has been widespread awareness of both the futility and the health risks of omnivorism, however meat remains a staple in North American diets; “on average, Americans [will] eat the equivalent of 21,000 whole animals over their lifetime” (Safran-Foer 122). Choices associated with meat consumption become increasingly complicated as people consider what psychologist Melanie Joy calls the human-animal connection. There is a form of kinship among animals that is not often found between humans and other organisms; some more developed connections lead us to prefer the consumption of some forms of animal meat over others. This connection has given rise to numerous scientific research on the cognitive and emotional abilities of non-humans, which has been used as evidence for the abandonment of factory farming. Yet there remains a gap in consciousness, where forgetting occurs, so that we can consume t... half of the paper... B. “Meat and Morality: Alternatives to Factory Farming.” Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 23.5 (2005): 455-468. ProQuest. Network. April 10, 2014.Safran-Foer, Jonathan. Eating animals. New York: Piccolo, Brown and Company (2009). Print.Sorenson, John. About Canada: Animal Rights. Halifax: Fernwood Publishing, 2010. Print. “Understanding the Psychology of Meat for Effective Vegan Advocacy.” June 1, 2012. YouTube. Network. April 12. 2014.