erraticwisdom: Humans vs. "Animals"

Post

I was having a little discussion recently with Andrew Hamann about choosing a Charity of the Month for February. He had previously suggested The Humane Society but I had refrained from selecting it because I felt that humans are more important than animals. I absolutely love animals of all kind and understand how many of them are in danger of extinction, but I can’t help but feel that helping another human is more important (a higher good, if you will) than helping an animal. The question becomes: is a human life more important than an “animal” one?

While humans are filed in kingdom Animalia, there is obviously a large difference between us and other “animals” because we built the classification system. A human life involves a capable physical body and an even more powerful brain. A human life can think, build and grow in a much more profound way than an “animal”.

On the other hand, some animals perform some actions equally well and even better than humans. Many animals are faster and stronger than humans although I don’t believe there are any that can even come near the intellectual capacity of humans.

Returning to the question of charity, I believe that saving a human life is more important than an animal because that human life saved is capable of much more. It could, in theory, lead to a chain of charitable actions that an animal would not be capable of creating.

I have nothing against organizations that help endangered animals or animals themselves, but I feel that a human life is simply worth more.

Post Meta

At: 10:35:00 AM
On: February 6
In: Science
By: Tom Fadial

Comments

Alison Hills has some (fairly accessible) thoughts in this Guardian article.
Benedict

Feb 6, 12:16 PM #
“I hadn’t the right to exist. I appeared by chance, I exited like a stone, a plant or a microbe. My life put out feelers towards small pleasures in every direction. Sometimes it sent out vague signals; at other times, I felt nothing more than a harmless buzzing… he (Jean Pacome) had used his right to live… He has always done his duty, is duty as son, husband, father, leader…For a right is nothing more than the other aspect of duty. ” Jean Paul Sartre, Nausea [115-6]

It is typical human arrogance to think we are more important than every other organism simply because we are more evolved. I am guilty as well. If I had to decide between saving the life of a human and a dog, I would save the human.

Wordsworth might have chosen to save the deer and kill the hunter.

We created importance, and we are always looking to establish a hierarchy of things. But we must remember that importance is relative.

Polar bears are more evolved and intelligent than wheat crop. But wheat is more important because its more useful to us. So classifying the importance of a species based on its complexity doesn’t always work.
Tarun

Feb 6, 01:05 PM #
“that human life saved is capable of much more”

Good to be positive about his, but what if that human you saved, went on to kill a million other humans, or created the next weapon of mass destruction, or the next technology which would add to global warming, the list goes on—then would you wish you had saved an animal rather than have created one!
KarmaDude

Feb 6, 02:28 PM #
“It is typical human arrogance to think we are more important than every other organism simply because we are more evolved.”

It’s typical human ignorance to think that we’re “more evolved.” Bacteria have been around just as long as we have; we’ve simply evolved in a different way.
Benedict

Feb 6, 05:24 PM #
Bacteria have been around much longer than we have (Prokaryotes developed over 3 billion years before the first hominids), but I think that humans are much more advanced than any bacteria. Looking at it from a completely biological perspective, almost every aspect of cellular growth, catabolism, anabolism, replication and much more are incredibly more advanced in humans than bacteria.

Although there isn’t such a drastic gap between biological aspects of other animals and humans, there is a more defined disparity in brain power. All other animals simply do not have the same capacity for thought as humans.

To me, it seems clear that humans are, for all intents and purposes, better than other animals.
Thame

Feb 6, 06:17 PM #
Like the same point that I argued in our conversation, I think that the key idea you make, that humans can think and feel and fend for themselves is exactly the reason why animals need support. A human can use his/her evolved wit and intellect to survive; to find food, shelter, and safety.

An animal, on the other hand, is defenseless. It is something that needs to be protected and cared for, since we did domesticate it, afterall.

As for the worthiness of life, it is really not for any of us to comment on, but I can guarantee that all those times that a family adopted a dog and seeing their faces light up made me believe that that dog made more of a positive impact than a murder or a thief or just a bad person.

But different strokes for different folks you know. Maybe Benedict could take this and evolve into something for the Philosophy group… ;-)
Andrew Hamann

Feb 6, 06:58 PM #
The bottom line, can we out live every other species on the planet? Enter the world of extremeophiles (http://www.astrobiology.com/extreme.html), and our chances of survival, if anything extreme were to happen to the rock we live on, looks very bleak!

Sure, our brain could have evolved to be better than any other living thing, but from a survival point of view does that make us better than everything else out there? Or does the dependancy on our brain, actually makes us physically weaker to withstand forces that would some day eradicate the species itself?

Maybe it’s not about the survival of the best species, but surival of any, or maybe it’s the survival of the unit life that matters, from which an infinite combination of living things can be created.
KarmaDude

Feb 6, 07:20 PM #
Oh my. Thame, “better” is a such a subjective term, and I’m a little surprised that you’ve used it. It’s typical human arrogance, as Tarun said, to think that we understand everything and thus know that we’re “better” – whatever that means – than all other organisms.

Now, to be more on topic, to say that humans are more deserving of charity than animals is something I wouldn’t agree with. Animals are just another inhabitant of our planet, it just so happens that we’ve evolved into a sort of arrogant point of view that they’re inferior beings who don’t matter, just because we don’t necessarily readily understand their general importance. To punish animals for their conceived lack of intelligence, for their lack of general power over our world, and therefore their lack of “importance” just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. Humans have screwed up the world enough by being able to conciously drive towards their own desires and goals whereas animals cannot do this to nearly the same extent, so maybe humans are actually worse (I’m not saying they are, I’m just trying to throw the whole idea of an organism being “good” or “bad”).
Dylan

Feb 6, 09:35 PM #
I just want to make something clear here because I think some of you may be (rightly) misunderstanding me.

I definitely understand where all of you are coming from and I believe I made this clear with Andrew but I should probably do so here as well. I am not discounting the importance of animals nor am I discouraging charitable organizations that support animals as Andrew makes a great point about our forced domestication.

However, I will continue to play the devil’s advocate here because it has obviously sparked a wonderful discussion that will hopefully help all of us.

It seems clear to me that humans are more advanced than other animals. Only humans are capable of the intense thinking and being that allows for higher functions such as charity itself. Since only humans are capable of these higher goods, it follows that humans are better than other animals.

I don’t see it as arrogance; I simply can’t see a bacterium or other animal performing advanced functions the way that humans do.

KarmaDude:
“Sure, our brain could have evolved to be better than any other living thing, but from a survival point of view does that make us better than everything else out there? Or does the dependancy on our brain, actually makes us physically weaker to withstand forces that would some day eradicate the species itself?”

I don’t think so. Throughout evolutionary history, learning and passing on the knowledge has been the key to the survival of many animals. This is evident in the growth of the advanced thinking areas of the brain through various species. Thinking and learning is a vital part of survival and humans do this best.

Dylan:
“Animals are just another inhabitant of our planet, it just so happens that we’ve evolved into a sort of arrogant point of view that they’re inferior beings who don’t matter, just because we don’t necessarily readily understand their general importance.”

* Takes of devil hat *
I definitely agree, and will be selecting The Humane Society for the month after next’s Charity of the Month (I will probably be sending this month’s money to “Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial”: http://www.mlkmemorial.org/).
Thame

Feb 6, 10:16 PM #
Benedict:
I realise that bacteria simply evolved in a different direction than we did. There is no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ in probability.

When I say ‘more evolved’, I only mean ‘more’ in a completely subjective manner. We believe that we are ‘better’ or ‘more’ evolved than bacteria because we can perform more functions that make sense to us and seem more noble/powerful to us.
Tarun

Feb 7, 12:45 AM #
It is not more important to help humans than animals for one good reason: helping our environment (considering it as our entire ecosystem) is helping us. Could we say that stopping deforestation is less important than saving a human life? No, is just that the later is a more direct way to accomplish the same goal, for the first has a positive long term effect in our preservation (and why not salvation). At the end, we are all connected and helping animals, helping keep nature’s balance, will unequivocally benefit us. We cannot entirely focus at saving or improving human life because that would be the same as only watering the garden’s most beautiful flower without fertilizing the soil beneath it.
Miguel Cruz

Feb 7, 01:33 AM #
There is perhaps the thought that helping animals can one day help humans. Basically what Miguel Cruz above me said devoting some time on charity for humans and other times on charity for the environment and animals is the best way to go.
dharh

Feb 7, 03:01 AM #
Miguel and dharh:
“It is not more important to help humans than animals for one good reason: helping our environment (considering it as our entire ecosystem) is helping us.”

Is that not as “bad” as what I was saying? Should the only reason we help animals be the eventual effect it would have on humans? Again, I don’t really have anything against charitable organizations that support animals and will be supporting one such organization in the coming months.
Thame

Feb 7, 08:59 AM #
Miguel and dharh:
Again, ‘helping’ our ecosystem is an ambiguous term.

We have accepted this idea of what is natural and what is unnatural – everything human is unnatural. We somehow think that cloning and such like are ‘unnatural’ simply because they are created by humans and intertwined with human technology.

Who is to say that the melting of the ice caps is ‘bad’. Was the Ice Age bad? Are volcanic eruptions bad or unnatural because they pollute the environment?

We are as natural and birds and grass and donkeys even considering our WMDs and non-bio-degradable plastic things. Why is technology unnatural? Is everything purely biological natural? Isn’t technology the brainchild of nature (the human constituent of nature).

By polluting oceans and the atmosphere we are only reducing the chances of humanity’s survival as a large entity. Science both increases and decreases our rate of survival.
Tarun

Feb 7, 09:51 AM #
Thame:
No I think I agree with you it shouldn’t necessarily be we should help animals only because they will help us. I am rather more about two main points, one I find life fascinating and wonderful so id like to preserve all of it as much as possible in whatever relationship to us humans as is possible, two though I do view humans as a higher step in an evolutionary chain to most if not all other animals I still view us as part of the animal kingdom so I can’t help but feel a little bit of sympathy and empathy to my fellow animals. That’s all touchy feely but there it is.

Tarun:
No I rather don’t view everything human as unnatural. Cloning per se is not ‘unnatural’, there is cloning in nature, the way we would achieve it would be different then the way it is done in nature. If you view evolution as I sorta do, which is a general path to increasing complexity, then technology is just another inevitable part of evolution.

The melting of the ice caps is rather insignificant to the earth itself, significant to many specific species who may die or have to relocate. A hot spell or an ice age in itself isn’t bad but it sure as heck would disrupt human lives and countries.
dharh

Feb 7, 11:23 AM #
If I might take a lighter side of this issue … it depends greatly on which human.
Winston

Feb 7, 04:03 PM #
The world population at 6.5 billion and projected to hit 9.1 billion by 2050, I am starting to feel, maybe we are helping the wrong animal here. At a rate of 75 – 100 million people being added each year, looks to me like the human race is doing fine in the big picture. Is it too late to help other animals, or is there still hope?

Maybe we can learn something from the Rapa Nui (Easter Island) history – http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/easter/civilization/first.html
KarmaDude

Feb 7, 07:59 PM #
A human life is of far more ‘worth’ than ANY other animal.
Omar

Feb 7, 08:02 PM #
dharh: Very true. Life itself is amazing (regardless of whether we apply a hierarchy) and should be preserved.

Winston: Haha. I can think of a few people who’s worth is probably less than an animal.

KarmaDude: That’s a good point. Maybe charity has the biggest impact and is most successfuly on whoever or whatever needs it most.

Omar: Why do you think that?
Thame

Feb 8, 06:38 AM #
‘Better’, ‘More advanced’, ‘More evolved’: all these seem like completely subjective judgements to me.

As Benedict points out, our evolution has just taken a different path from that of other animals. It has left us no better adapted to cope with our environment than it has them; just look at our inability to resolve conflict amongst our own species and you see the evolutionary disadvantages of ‘higher intelligence’.

Any assessment as to whether we are ‘more advanced’ also strikes me as inescapably subjective. Perhaps we ARE more advanced than other animals with respect to the goals we set ourselves; we are able to achieve these goals better than any other animal could. But in order to conclude that we are more advanced simpliciter, we must come to value OUR goals above those of other animals. Why should we do this? If we are focussed on promoting our own survival just like any other species, why should this goal be considered better than theirs? After all, the survival of the human race has probably made this planet suffer more than the survival of any other.

Thame: thinking and learning are vital to survival, but it is neither clear that humans do this ‘best’ nor that our survival should be considered particularly valuable. Perhaps we do have the capacity for conscious thought where other animals do not. So what? What’s so good about being conscious? Other animals manage perfectly well without conscious experiences, if indeed it’s true that they have none.

Maybe we are ‘more evolved’ because we have more control of our natural environment; we are able to transcend the boundaries imposed on us by nature. But is this right? We’re surely restricted as much by ‘nature’ as is any other animal. Our ability to invent, produce and propagate culture is no less restricted by our natural attributes than is the beaver’s or the spider’s. Claiming that our ability to do these things is more advanced than that of other animals just gets us back into that old problem of subjectivity.
the apprentice

Feb 8, 09:39 PM #
the apprentice: Very good points. So, even if we are the most advanced animals, the cons of our position at the top outweigh the pros.
Thame

Feb 9, 07:25 PM #
This is a great blog. I have started a similar one of my own and earlier today I posted a quote that addresses this very issue in a simple manner.

http://uh2l.blogs.com/.../quick_quote.html

I also believe that humans should be prioritized over animals. As a vegetarian, I feel that it’s our duty to prevent needless suffering for animals. They have souls too, and I feel it’s hippocritical to eat some animals and keep others as pets just because they’re more easily domesticated and suit our needs better.

Atul
Atul Patel

Feb 12, 03:01 AM #
Thank you Atul. I definitely agree with what you’re saying.
Thame

Feb 13, 11:05 AM #
Animals are the best creatures on earth and humans have no right to exploit them. i am a great animal lover and am ready to do anything for them.
nikita

Feb 15, 02:23 AM #
nitika: I understand where you’re coming from and am not condoning their gross mistreatment. It may not sound like a different argument, but we are discussing the worth of an animal life and it’s relationship to a human life.
Thame

Feb 15, 01:31 PM #
Should we really need to exploit animals with the technologies we have at hand? Surely we should take lead to look after the environment and animals. We wouln’t “use” a person with limited abilities to our advantage would we? I think fundamentally our practices will lead to an world in which people are measured and disregarded accordingly.

Nufound
nufound

Feb 20, 09:45 AM #
nufound: That is certainly a frightening possibility and I think that it does already occur to some extent.
Thame

Feb 20, 01:20 PM #
what worth? what worth are humans??? nothing just nothing….......what do humans think of themselves? who gave them the right to rule over animals?? there is no strict law followed over cruelty to animals….why so..? humans life pays but what about animal life ?is it nothing? IT IS EVERYTHING…
nikita

Feb 22, 07:33 AM #
We are completely lost here. There is no answer to whatever. This life is a void of wonder. Nothing can be explained. All thinking leads to its own verdict. We cannot do anything. We have done too much already. Sit still, love, wonder. There is no life in that life of humans. Noone understands a thing about it.
This is really stupid. 3 million ‘people’ go to see the
Mona Lisa per year and see nothing. Stop it. Return to the Self. This is the adventure. Face this asylum and do not agree. Build your own life. Power to you.
Reginus

Feb 28, 07:26 PM #
To be more on topic: this ‘versus’ is not possible. We are animals and animals are us. Identically, but on another trip. There is no harm in eating eachother. Animals love to eat eachother… its their /our game. The industrialized way we think to go on with other lives is sick. It will prove to be so, saw the burning stacks of ‘mad cows’ ? The thread of ‘birdflue’ ? Who is mad there? Keep it to the scale, and sane…
Reginus

Feb 28, 07:47 PM #
Im only 16 but i know that anytime you can kill an animal and not go to jail that automaticaly excludes the theory that animals are of more importance than humans. I beleive they are here for our purpose only to give us food, excitement, and ect.
Josh

Mar 7, 11:05 PM #
penises are halarious
A lovley black man

Mar 23, 12:10 PM #
dear Josh,
i dont understand who on earth told u that animals r made for humans to consume n for entertainment…! that was something really surprising to hear from someone..just think about this one…. if u remove whole of the animal world n decide to live on ur own…then what? its highly impossible..! the whole ecosystem will collaspe.. but if u remove whole of the human world{ever increasing}.... then it would not affect the ecosystem at all….. rather they will dwell in a better place where theres noone to torture them…. isnt it so….....??
nikita

Jul 27, 07:20 AM #
I’ve recently read your opinion on level of importance between animal and human beings, and to be honest I do not agree, to me animals are far more valuable. I say learning is actually a terrible thing, if you believe the bible for instant in the beginning the apple Adam and Eve ate held intelligence one of Gods ability and God forbidden them to eat, so when people say, “God gave us intelligence or ability to learn why shouldn’t we use it” is a false statement, we stole it. Humans only destroy the planet, are selfish, and are the most deadly things to animals, the planet and ourselves. We are judgmental, only do things that are destructive, just read josh’s comment. Sure there are a few people of good nature but very few. Humans try to classify everything, through both people and animals.

Simply put in my eyes humans are evil, that’s why I say God cursed us. How do you explain the emotion of anger, fear, pain, depression, and a stronger birth pain. These things would not come about to human if we did not have intelligence and only have instinct to run on. Just as animals.
Derrick

Sep 26, 10:04 PM #
I agree totally. I’m writting a editorial about this subject.
Jacy

Dec 5, 06:08 PM #
I completely agree with “Derrick” on this, and “nikita” as well. I believe that the majority of humans on this planet are born evil. By this I don’t mean the whole “devil horns and brimstone” kind of evil, but look around. Have you seen how increasingly destructive (not only to the world but everyone around), uncaring, disrespectful and utterly conceited these new generations are? I can’t say this is universal, but where I live it’s out of control. People come to school (I’m 16) and show no respect for their elders what so ever – always saying they hate their parents and want them to die, yealling at the teacher because he gave out a pop quiz…
oh sorry…back on track…

I am a strong animal rights activist. With out animals, as nikita said, humans would basically be screwed.
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) once said, “The least movement is of importance to all nature. The entire ocean is affected by a pebble.”
Think about it. ONE animal species becomes endangered. That species is prey for another, which it turn declines because of lack of food. Which continues to every single species. It is a chain reaction and only humans can put an end to it. We started the off shore drilling, seal hunts, mass slaughters of species, the enormous and murderous fishing industry, deforestation, huge cities, out of control human population, mass pollution which not only causes global warming which has the capacity to end all life as we know it, but also kills coral reefs…I could go on but I think you get the idea.

The fact is:
Humans are NOT better than animals. We destroy the environment and every chance we get, we do anything possible to make our lives more “convenient” – which usually is bad news for all animals out there. Without animals, our would would be nothing…HUMANS PROBABLY WOULDN’T EXIST. If we did, I doubt we would be so disgustingly over-populated. Animals and the environment is basically what makes the world go round. Humans are nothing but a destructive force and a nuisance to this world.

BOTTOM LINE
We may be more evolved…but that doesn’t mean we have gotten any smarter.
Carolynn

Dec 10, 12:39 PM #
It seems to me humans regard themselves above all other life as part of the instinct for survival of the species.

All species have this same regard for thier own. Very seldom does any specimen of any species kill another specimen of their own species. This is a scientific fact. (although from time to time it does occur)

There is very little a human can do about the pre-programmed nature he or she has regarding concerne for their own species, however, since humans were given the ability to reason far beyond any other animal life on the planet, humans should be able to control their instinctual nature better than other animals.

Perhaps this control is why we take care of our disabled and dieing while the majority of other animals do not.

This being said, since we have the power to control our natural instincts (to an extent), we should also excercise similar power when we determine a human life is more important than an animal life.

I am finding it difficult during this writing to say animal medical testing should be done away with since I myself benifit from such testing since I have a severe illness and my quality of life would be much worse if I did not take medication that was researched on animals. I thank the animals that gave their lives (although unwillingly) to aid in this research.

However, when I reflect inside I realize it is wrong for such research to occur on unwilling animals.

Take this anology for example. Would you sacrifice a single human as a research experiment to aid in finding a cure for millions? The answer is certainly NO! Again, this unwillingness to kill a human for the good of many others goes against our own nature to propogate the species.

Based the above “No” response, I must also say it is wrong to kill animals for the same purpose. Its only logical. Anyone that diagrees with this is simply being closed minded, but everyone has that write.

In closing, I would like anyone that disagrees with my writing to consider this. Just because we as humans have the power to control all other life on the planet (and to kill all other life) does this mean we should? If your answer is no, then I ask you why is it ok to kill even a single animal? If you have an defense for animal killing, apply the same defense to why it is ok for animals to kill a human…..
D. Whit

Dec 12, 09:17 AM #
Thame;

I do see your point of view but I must disagree.

Please allow me to provoke thought.

Suppose other life was discovered on a far away planet. Life that could grasp understanding of concepts and ideas far beyone human abilities. Would it be ok for this life to use humans as a resource as humans do with animals? Based on your logic the answer would have to be YES, since this life is “better” than human life due to its ability to understand concepts and ideas far more clearly.

Now this brings me to my point in my prior writing (see post #36?? or post #37??).

The only reason humans view themselves as superior is due to the instinct of survival, period. Its the “hand of cards” we were dealt and it cant be undone. We must realize this and restrict ourselves since such insticts are wrong, in my opinion.
D. Whit

Dec 12, 09:40 AM #
It is definitely a difficult point and I understand where you’re coming from. However, to answer one of your points about not sacrificing the life of one human for the benefit of millions of others. From a utilitarian perspective, this would be the right thing to do…to maximize happiness.

From a similar point of view, there would be some conditions where the life of an animal would be considered worth more than a human. For example, I believe it was Singer who suggested that if an advanced primate and a tiny infant, perhaps mentally retarded, were stuck in a burning building that we should save not the child, but the animal because it had a greater potential for experiencing things like pleasure and pain than the baby.

If we take this more calculative approach, it is easy to assign human life greater worth than animals and therefore a more intelligent/advanced species more importance than humans (whether or not we, as humans, actually like the verdict).

Sorry if I didn’t even answer your point. I didn’t have enough time to study your comment as thoroughly as I would’ve liked.
Thame

Dec 12, 09:56 PM #
To say Humans are more important than animals because humans are more intellectual and have larger brain, does not make sense. What good has the Human done for the Earth, using his Brain? He has destroyed the earth, brought death and destruction to his own speicy. Put every second animal spicie on the brink of extinction. Then why help humans. Humans kill for fun. No other creature on the planet does that. Humans do not respect nature, all other species do. Then why boast about greatness?

The humans are the worst species ever to have walked on this lovely planet and honestly we do not deserve to be a part of this planet. The humans will vanish soon. I just hope we do not destroy everything on earth before that.
Sandeep DESAI

Dec 15, 12:53 AM #
Wow, Sandeep DESAI…

I say the same exact thing everyday.
Basically the same wording too….strange…

Go us.
Carolynn

Dec 24, 07:00 PM #
I agree with Carolynn

It is ridiculous to say that we are better. We are on the same plane, if not lower than animals.

They were many more millenia before us, and the world was still in great shape. We have only been here a few millenia and look at the state of things. We had no foresight, understanding or compassion of a truely intelligent species. And now that we have, we are increadibly slow to change our ways, and it is ultimately causing not hjust our own, but the entire planets demise.

We know this, but we still wont act

How can you say we are better than animals?
Ali

Feb 19, 02:34 AM #
“In ALL arguments to prove human superiority cannot shatter this hard fact; in suffering the animals are our equals.” Peter Singer author of Animal Liberation
Kurt

Mar 7, 11:35 PM #
It is utter arrogance and stupidity to believe that humans are the superior race. Without animals, many people wouldn’t survive, because they have become dependent on their meat for food…yet very few animals eat humans for survival purposes…
An animal has just as much capacity to love and think and act as any human, and better, because animals don’t hold grudges, they treat the members of their species with respect, and work together to survive, something most humans know nothing about.
If we died out, animals would still roam the Earth, and the Earth would start to heal itself from all the damage we’ve done to it…if animals died out…we would for sure, maybe even gradually, die out ourselves.
If I was in a burning building, and I could save a human or any animal…every single time I would save that animal.
Corrie

Mar 16, 12:29 PM #
We have the biggest, most evolved brain, which enables us to perceive our own mortality, and freak out about it so badly that we invent the afterlife and religion. Magical thinking.

We are intelligent enough to plan our own weapons of mass destruction, throw around a lot of hyperbole and empty threats about using them, then nearly destroy ourselves anyway with creature comforts, overeating, and a sedentary lifestyle. There is no global warming that need inconvenience us of our cars and so forth because we don’t like Al Gore or his allegedly hypocritical lifestyle, and we can always get a gastric bypass to solve the other little problem rather than work to transform our lives. More magical thinking.

Nature is neither cruel nor kind. It just is, and we are just this unusually gifted. complex, and dangerous animal. An evolved human is an environmentally sensitive and life-respectful human, and cringes from any senseless waste of life or torture. However, it is no more immoral to eat a cow than it is for a pack of coyotes to eat a cow, and neither our teeth nor our digestive systems have evolved sufficiently to eat only vegan. More magical thinking.
Raejean

Mar 19, 01:03 PM #
This is probably my first blog entry ever…and an apt topic too as it is always a point of discussion as i myself am an “animal-lover” and swear i can communicate with my pet :P

anyway, i guess at the end of the day, each of us has a specific cause close to our hearts, and we have been provided with many opportunities to serve and help these many needs in our world. Could a resolution to this discussion lie in the possibility that the life within everything from ‘bacterium’ right through to animals and humans, may in fact be common, one life force, and thus all may be equal, to some degree, albeit at a much deeper level?

And from here we can only then begin to fine tune not the particular charity or cause we choose to help, but in the way we choose to help. The frame of mind we offer to the cause, the degree of self-LESS-ness. and of course the efficiency of our help, ensuring more is done with less resources. Even starting from our homes, we can reach the further corners of the globe by way of economising waste and so on.

Maybe its all here to shape us and not the other way around.
Mahesh Jadu

Mar 22, 12:38 PM #
Humans don’t need strong physical bodies, although I would advise in favor of one. A strong mind, for humans, has planted us firmly on the top of the food chain. There are a million bigger, stronger, faster animals that are on the endangered species list. Are humans on that list? Last I checked a few places are thinking population control is needed. We’re better.

A great reason to save a human life instead of an animal one. We are conscious of ourselves. We know we exist. Dolphins, widely considered to be the next smartest animal, have a total of 60 some concepts in their entire language. None of these concepts are for themselves. There is no “I” or “me”. Humans know they exist.
BrutalCapitalist

Apr 2, 04:16 AM #
all life is but one life…it took a year of suffering to see a wonderful Sister pass from colon cancer to realize this – i asked Krishna for forgiveness for carrying a colored rabbit’s foot on my belt as a child – that very evening, on the way home, i spotted a bunny rabbit in the road that had been run over by a vehicle in front of me – i pulled my car over and lifted the bunny to the side of the road – he looked up at me and then passed to The Other Side – i buried him in my woods… i asked Krishna for forgiveness…Mother Earth will forgive if in your heart you truly mean it…luv to all! – paul
paul

Apr 13, 12:05 PM #
“The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them. That’s the essence of inhumanity.”
—- George Bernard Shaw
Mia

Apr 18, 10:32 PM #
why not yes?

They die how many we will not see no more ,to late to change or save so many of them, I dont cry for them is not my hands the ones is not my eyes watching them die still i know the time is end for them animals that will never enjoy life in earth, i dont cry my tears are gone they never been in there in the first place to far away of my expirience their lifes.
i will like to walk my path in the way to understood more to gain tears in my soul so i can move muy hands to do, to do to do.
seeking solutions inside so i can find them outside looking for a guide so i could learn to understood their language.
they are not like us we are not like them they know things we dont even imagine, what we know is killing their bodies , my dream to speak with them in order to share what wisdom they have , they for sure know they exist how pretencious we are that we said they know this or that.we speak with them?do we ask? I believe some one can do it and prroblaby is not here .
I still look idealism so i dream so will become one day .
we are all the same one day alive and the next dead,
rodri

Apr 22, 02:55 PM #
All life isn’t one life. That’s why I won’t die when you do or vice versa.
Brutal Capitalist

Apr 27, 11:41 PM #
i am so sorry if i will in some ways offend most of y’all but i will say loud that human are way superior than animals! we happen to have this discussion at work and i was surprise to see how many gave for granted the power we have in all of us Human;we have a brain that is the center of every function of our body,unlike animals ,we can THINK,and make choices,we are without a doubt destroying the earth,but that’s because of the bad choices we make(cause we can also make good ones)animals at the other hand don’t Think,they act by instinct,some may seem smart(if you want to say it that way) but that’s cause of the way they were made not because they’ve learned from past experiences,i will always be proud and say loud that i am way superior than an animal….
rain

Apr 30, 01:06 PM #
You’re an idiot.You self-absorbed prick.
For the underdog

May 7, 07:52 PM #
Yes, he’s an idiot, that’s why you’re the one that can’t structure a sentence properly and use verbs (unless “self-absorbed” is an action).

It’s the truth that human’s are way better than animals. Another thing that humans have that animals don’t is that we are self-aware. We realize our own existence and can therefore be so self-critical as you are now. A dog can’t take into account his environmental impact.

Because humans are able to think we are able to experience love, hate, value, and know why all of it is there. The reason you can criticize humanity is that you are a part of it.
BrutalCapitalist

May 10, 09:26 PM #
BrutalCapitalist:
Well I think you are very closed minded to think that animals do not know how to experience love, hate, value etc! So then what is it when certain animals mate for life and stay with one parner? Why do mother animals cry at the loss of a young one? Is that not expressing their emotion? Oh maybe it’s not an emotion because it is not speaking your language! Is a cry in distaught saying nothing? If an animal did not know how to ‘value’ things in life why is it that they can respect their environment. If humans knew ‘value’ then why is it that the environment is suffering due to humans influence? What makes you think that a dog is not aware of the environmental impact? It is in an artificial environment created by man forced to think how the human has taught it to!
Animals are more in tune with their surroundings than you think. They have feelings!
Human population is expanding and the animal population is decreasing. Think about it!
shallie

May 14, 11:43 AM #
sorry guys!!
i understand that some people have animals as they mate(we even read or see stories about animals saving someone’s life and im sorry if i offended some animals lovers didn’t mean to..) i am not doubting about that but then again i will say we(human) have something that makes us way superior than animals….CHOICE,that makes us very different from our four legged friends.
rain

May 19, 04:22 PM #
i understand where you are comin from. but it has come to show that the human popultaion is infact increasin by quite a large number. as for the animal population, that is decreasin and already close to extinction. thats what my understanding is. i honestly think that you should rethink your idea because if there are no animals in the world then alot of people will be alone because lonely people like to have pets. havent you ever noticed we cut down trees for people to live in. we kill animals so we can have food, that is understanding though. but if you havent noticed we do quite alot for ourselves already, why not do something for animals too.
tia

May 27, 10:24 PM #
tia and everyone else reading

i have never said that animals are not important in fact i beleive that life without animals is nonexistent ,what iam saying is that human have a more evoluated brain than every animals on this earth,its not that i will neglect someone (like a baby)cause they are inferior than i am ,i will probably take better care of them.
rain

May 30, 11:58 PM #
A human can use his/her evolved wit and intellect to survive; to find food, shelter, and safety.

An animal, on the other hand, is defenseless. It is something that needs to be protected and cared for, since we did domesticate it, afterall.

—- this is perhaps incorrect. Although i do believe in the theory that perhaps humans are more important than animals. It in no way shows arrogance towards the other species of living organisms. We need to help them! There are many reasons as to why humans need animals. All perfectly argueable. Animals evolve and change. There is nothing to defend the saying that ( as absurd as it sounds) ANIMALS may one day take over the world. Although at the moment, we have more interlectual wit, there is no underestimating the capabilities of a animal. Animals cam survive, find shelter, care for their young as much as we can. Don’t u watch the nature programs!
Calry

Jun 11, 03:33 PM #
After reading many of the posts here and visiting sites suchas AAPN, I agree with those who feel that animals need our protection and guidance. Humans have created too much destruction on this planet and almost on a daily basis, I am left heartbroken when I read the newspaper or turn on the television. I find the cruelty and damage that human beings are capable of completely unacceptable. God intended for us to be stewards of the animal kingdom and since humans are simply not capable, then I choose to dedicate my life to the pursuit of animal rights.
jacqueline herman

Oct 7, 01:30 PM #
Humans are animals- there is no human vs. animal argument because anything that you say about ‘animals’ applies to us humans as well. So what? We have more capacity to reason. But that doesn’t mean we have a monopoly on the ability to reason. We routinely discount the intelligence of non-humans and assert that they are ‘dumb beasts’ when I’ve certainly seen some humans that I would classify as less intelligent or less meaningful than those same ‘dumb beasts’. When it comes to applying value to human versus non-human lives, I believe that value can only be assigned individually based off of experiences that we have had with those individuals. I can honestly say that I value the life of my cat, Scotty, more so than the life of a certain person that has put me through much grief and suffering. So therefore, value has a very subjective meaning which has its place in the scheme of living beings.

p.s.- I’m sure that non-humans believe that they can think, build and grow in a much more profound way than a human can- at least from their perspective.
Crystal

Oct 7, 11:02 PM #
I much rather save an animal than a human. There are too many humans, and way too many of them are not more than just a waste of space, many politicians, “leaders”, religious people, etc
John Markenson

Oct 15, 01:25 AM #
For me it is not a problem. The One who created animals, and the One who created me told me I have priority over animals.
How much more simple can it be?
Gabriel

Oct 18, 04:24 AM #
I am fascinated each time I watch a wildlife documentary, visit a zoo / nature preserve, or even observe my own animals on a daily basis. The intelligence that these creatures possess is quite extraordinary. It may not be what many ignorant humans consider to be “evolved thought”, but I feel that simply because it is different does not make it any less impressive. As someone mentioned before, WE established our so-called “superiority” over all other living beings, but just because we said so does not make it fact. How do humans learn? By routine and repetition. Is this not similar to many animals? And in all actuality, a majority of their knowledge is instinctive, meaning they already KNOW, from as early as birth. So in this respect, I feel they are even more advanced than us. Oh, but because we can drive a car or use a computer, we are better. Let’s see a human successfully travel thousands of miles on foot (or hoof/wing/fin) to a new environment and back, with not so much as a compass or map to assist. They do what they must to survive, sometimes in the harshest of conditions, conditions that us “greater” humans could not last one day. Yet, there is no complaining. They do not worry about irrelevant, superficial matters. They do not betray or hurt others for enjoyment. It is apparent that we could in fact stand to learn a thing or two from these “lesser’‘ developed individuals. I highly doubt in the wild our self-proclaimed “predominance” means anything to them.
Nicole

Nov 24, 08:01 PM #
The problem with the world: People are so concerned with themselves and HUMAN kind that they have become completely complacent of everything else that is just as important to life as the human race.

Thinking about you and your race alone is just a tad selfish wouldn’t you say?

I think that when humans learn to think further than their own shorts arms – they will see that there is far more to this planet than just people and peoples own needs. There is a world of beauty that was created in harmony so that everything could live TOGETHER peacefully – not to be imbalanced by one race of selfish beings. The world comes as a package.

Eating animals to survive is fine – this keeps life in balance… there’s no doubt about that. However, farming billions of animals so that people in western lifestyles can be spoiled for choice of chicken burgers, lamb kebabs, steak tartar, lobster bisque, veal or jelly is WRONG and GREEDY. Do humans NEED any of those things?

If you were a chicken in this current mass meat farming industry, how would you feel? Would you be happy? Would you wake up in the morning, look around at the thousands of sad chickens around you, look up at the roof above you, breathe in to smell rotting corpse, know that your time is coming soon, feel your crippled legs and think aahhh… I’m so glad to be alive?

I think not.

Well I suppose most people just prefer not to think about it…

You know… sometimes it takes a small, brave group of the population to stand up for something – even though it may seem an impossible feat.

I urge you minority to keep at it. Don’t live your life being miserable about everyone else’s bad choices, but be proud of the fact that you are doing something amazing for your planet and keep at it – no matter what anyone else says!

People are NOT superior to animals and we never will be!

“Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” – Albert Einstein

Loving this blog!

Dave
David

Dec 1, 08:16 PM #
Thame: You cannot make the statement that animals don’t have the mental and emotional capacity as humans. Even the most basic observations of animals prove otherwise. They love, they hate, they feel happy, they feel sad. And there is no reason for these feelings not to be just as complex as humans. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/09/0917_030917_monkeyfairness_2.html – just to give you an idea.

Andrew Hamann: Have you been living under a rock? The claim that animals need humans in order to survive is just as ridiculous. A five year old knows that. Animals existed a long time before humans, they evolved to find food, shelter and saftey long before we did. Aminals continue to survive. Simply look at any wild animal to see they that not only do they not need us to survive, they would do one hell of a lot better without us.
Ali

Dec 5, 10:34 PM #
Thame: Although there isn’t such a drastic gap between biological aspects of other animals and humans, there is a more defined disparity in brain power. All other animals simply do not have the same capacity for thought as humans.

To me, it seems clear that humans are, for all intents and purposes, better than other animals.

Thats stupid. If we’re so much “better” then WHY do we have war, weapons of mass destrucion, global warming, etc???
Animals win

Jan 28, 03:43 PM #
Humans are so extremely smart that they forgot one simple fact:
We are in fact a specie of Homo Sapiens .
Congratulations everyone who said animals aren’t as smart as humans, you have said a BUNCH OF NONSENSE!
If humans weren’t so “smart” there wouldn’t be beggars! Humans have had there chance and they SCREWED IT UP!
My Advice:
At 6.5 billion humans DO NOT NEED HELP!
Mistress Cheetah

Aug 12, 08:33 PM #
Hi, I came on to this site looking for a religous viewpoint on animals being equal or inferior to humans – Any Ideas?

And I believe animals arent equal, not by intelligence or skill. But their life is worth just as much, but if you were to choose from a dog or a human, youd choose them based on their skill or potential.

A Hobo or a anti-drug dog? Anti Drug dog.

My dad or a cat? Dad

Prime minister or hobo? No comment :D

But you get my point, we base it on potential ability. Its our instinct.
kikmenow

Oct 13, 01:10 PM #
You God peole are the most ignorant of them all. You are the main cause of war and destruction. the human trait “self entitlement” and “selfishness,” is simply an animal trait that makes us want to have territory, just like animals. We are so much like animals its hilarious, but we are too ignorant to admit it. Are we any better than an animal that is reproducing so much that it destroys its surrounding habitat? No! We are more like a damn virus, destroying everything around ourselves with little concern for our neighboring species. We kill our own kind because we can’t even communicate effectively (real intelligent), we destroy other species and their habitats for our own selfish reasons. We believe we have more right to the planet than any other species. Its disgusting. The planet will eventually cleanse itself, and we will be the first to go, understandably. We are the bullies of this planet, and we will pay. The way the other species are treated is so disgusting. If you don’t see that, you are part of the problem and a complete IDIOT
B

Nov 16, 09:19 PM #
Let’s get back to the core of the original argument. The only thing that is being argued is that a human is a higher being then the rest of the animals because they are capable of abstract thought? To be clear, it’s not that animals are incapable of emotion, reasoning, communication, or complex feelings, because they have been proven to be capable of all of those things. If we’re just placing the fact that they “think differently” as the base of the argument that donations to them are not supporting the higher good, then I think a follow up question must be asked. Are humans that do display this “higher thinking” more deserving than humans that don’t? I’ve traveled the world and seen tribes of what would be considered very simple people, who just hunt, sleep, and reproduce. Should they be treated as less important? Should the needy and largely uneducated masses not be helped because they don’t display higher thought processes? Is thinking the only thing that we should be fighting to preserve? Is there not sufficient value (or a greater good) in being the care-giver to the wold? In protecting the things that we have brutalized, and that are largely incapable of protecting themselves against the negative impacts of our “higher thinking”?
The Question

Nov 22, 10:41 AM #
i agree with tarun to a certain extent.

animals have no pretence at all…………if they like something, they just like it, if they dislike something , again there are no 2 ways………if they feel like doing something, they just do it………they listen to their instinct.

humans, under the pretext of the super human brain, have killed that natural instinct we’re born with………we think a thousand times before saying anything, weighing all pros and cons, we can’t even appreciate something beautiful without the slightest hesitation……all innocence lost in the pursuit of things that are more destructive and not peace-loving at all.
aditi

Dec 31, 06:12 AM #
People have built skyscrapers and planes and trains and huge metropolises along with money systems to fuel huge civilizations. Have you ever watched bacteria grow? It just multiplies. That is what the human population does. That is what dogs and cats and bunnies do too. Everything that is living just multiplies. Even trees and plants have a reproductive system.

So what is the difference between people and humans? How are they different? They are not different. So we can build stuff like houses and weapons. So what. Birds build nests. Bees build hives. Beavers can build dams. Nobody complains about those tools. Why not?

But animals don’t hurt anyone by building those tools? These animals are using the environment to survive. They eat other creatures to survive. Cougars eat the deer. The deer eat from plants. The plants live off the manure of animal poo. Humans do the same. We are just part of that cycle.

People get eaten by sharks, bears, alligators, bee stings attacks. We are still part of the cycle. Mother nature finds a way to keep us in the circle of life. Global warming supposedly is threatening our humanity. Maybe it will and maybe it won’t. In the end we all die. We die and somebody else will walk to earth after us. Whether it is a more evolved human or some squirrel. So what difference does it make to try and be an animal rights activist. You can’t save animals. They are going to die and so are you. That’s because you are an animal. To say that you are better than the rest of the humans and claim to know what animals need is a self centered way of life.

If your an animal lover and own pets, do you think your helping them by putting them in your backyard and feeding them every now and then? Your just holding them hostage. Dog and cats run away because they know better. If you really love animals you would let all your pets go into the wild and instead help a fellow human, Why not take a human into your home and nurse them to health? Feed them and give them clothing.

If you hate the fact that humans “destroy” earth then you should hate yourself. But what do I know?
Fred

Jan 2, 04:53 PM #
I think Mistress Cheetah has dealt such a great blow that all of u animal haters should be at home screaming
Animals Rule

Jan 3, 03:33 PM #
KarmaDude: Good to be positive about his, but what if that human you saved, went on to kill a million other humans, or created the next weapon of mass destruction, or the next technology which would add to global warming, the list goes on—then would you wish you had saved an animal rather than have created one!

I do not agree with this statement because saving the life of a human is way better than an animal. You do realize that animals kill as well?
Marti

Feb 19, 04:41 PM #
animals are better as they endure harsher conditions and evolve to new habitats more efficiently
sam

Feb 25, 08:46 PM #
Yes, animals kill too. But get this; they only kill to survive.
Humans CAN be vegetarians. Animals don’t have access
to all five parts of a healthy diet. If you haven’t noticed, all of the world’s terrorist are HUMAN. Animals don’t get into fights over who is more intellectual. They’re smart enough to be peaceful!! That’s more than we can say for humans. Like I said, when people are stabbing SYRINGES full of SHAMPOO or SKIN CREAM into animals’ eyes, what’s the point of saving them? I don’t believe in the death penalty, but i won’t choose a murderer over a innocent animal either
Misstress Cheetah

Apr 10, 04:23 PM #
First of all, any human if they wanted too can rationalize their worth over animals. Second, you will not see any animals writing on this response blog to give their two cents worth of why they look at themselves as more important than humans.
I look at it this way….

Animals and human babies are more pure in their hearts than most adult humans. They “can” be more loving, they are more innocent. They are living in a grown up human world where we dominate and now we can actually control all life on this planet if we choose too. Shouldnt you help with love and compassion those who would need it. Shouldnt a grown human offer the gift of caring for the ones who would benefit the most.

Just because our brain has developed at a greater stage doesnt diminish the beauty of an animal that loves their children and will try to take care of them in a very basic way, “most” animals act accordingly.
scott

May 18, 01:24 PM #
We are all shepherds of this planet…it is our responsibility to take care of all of its’ creatures.

Of course human life is more important than animal life…because humans can take care of animals. The reverse is impossible. When my dog brings me dinner, i will re-think this. (although she has offered dead moles a time or two…)

HOWEVER, i contribute to animal-related charities before human ones, simply because humans should be able to take care of themselves. Also, that’s why Churches are tax-exempt…to help those who cannot help themselves.
concened citizen

Jul 2, 10:28 AM #
If it were me that had to make the decision of who to ‘give’ to, I wouldn’t be thinking about who I felt deserved to live more, since that is not our choice, but rather, who needed help the most. Man, who for most intents and purposes is capable of helping himself, or animals that are completely dependent on the humans around them and can not control the circumstance that irresponsible people have left them in? I don’t think I am wrong to say, “This is a NO BRAINER!”
Dee

Dec 13, 06:57 AM #