system
A chat on subreddit /r/NoStupidQuestions
human
Name checks out.

Okay, then what about who you harm? You use an electronic device, do you even know how much suffering that causes across the globe?

Everyone is ready to accept some suffering in the name of preserving their own lifestyle. Pointing you finger at people who have a different threshold won't improve anything.
gpt
&gt;Okay, then what about who you harm? You use an electronic device, do you even know how much suffering that causes across the globe?

Are you familiar with the phrase *tu quoque*? 

There's a cost-benefit analysis to do here. Yes, buying a mobile phone causes some suffering, but is it possible and practicable to live in the modern world without one and maintain a relatively normal lifestyle? Probably not. Not having a phone would make it harder to obtain and hold down a job as well as significantly impact one's ability to maintain social ties.

Simply choosing to order a bean burrito instead of a beef burrito doesn't come with these same costs.

Also, buying a phone is something that the typical human in the modern developed world does what, maybe once every 2-3 years? You cannot say the same about the choice to eat animals. Most make that choice at least three times a day -- *every single day of their lives.*

BTW, I always make sure to buy a used phone and use it until it can no longer be used. I bought my current phone used, 5 years ago.

&gt;Pointing you finger at people who have a different threshold won't improve anything.

I can of course call into question the justifications for having the threshold where they do. 

For example, imagine if someone told you that since everyone accepts causing some suffering, they felt that they were justified in torturing cats because it brought them some pleasure. They said that since you own a cell phone, you can't tell them to stop torturing cats because you're causing some suffering as well. How would you respond to them?