[TheSpiceIsLife]

Well, some insects represent a genuine threat to food supplies and the spread of disease.

I don't really follow where you're going with the dog example. What kind of comparison is that supposed to be?

Edit to add: Even ants produce antibiotics that they groom on to their bodies to prevent the growth of bacteria and fungus on themselves and inside their nests. So I'm going to continue to swat flies and not lose any sleep over it.

[sillysaurus3]

Probably a bad one. I agree that killing insects is fine if there's a reason. But I was reacting to "I kill things because they annoy me." Which is valid, but always frustrating.

My parents used to flip out and kill caterpillars, spiders, etc whenever they saw them. More than once I'd notice one and corral them outside while my parents weren't looking. There's just no point in killing something because it simply exists.

None of this probably matters though.

[nh2]

Killing things only when you have to is objectively the safer choice when it comes to not feeling bad about yourself in the future.

[notpresident]

At home it was my Dad who told me to be nice to spiders. :-)

[jschwartzi]

Mine too! He would tell me that the spiders are helpful because they kill other bugs, and to leave them alone or put them outside. The more I think about these things, the more connected even the small things in our world are.

[red75prime]

Sure, they are good at killing flies and you don't have to feel sorry killing flies yourself. Win-win.