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by datalist 2862 days ago
Extending to other animals the same rights humans enjoy is not silly but logical and long overdue.

And your example of prosecuting a lion is unfortunately already reality https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_(elephant)

Saying a being is a "natural resource" is just despicable. Someone else could say that with equal ease about your family. Would you like that?

1 comments

Have you spent any time watching nature? Predation? Animals fundamentally consider each other such. Cougars consider horses food and horses "prosecute" cougars if they come close enough by kicking them to death. Killing threats is what any animal capable of doing does.

Animals are fundamentally incapable of grasping the concepts of rights and would not respect them. Applying human standards to them is fundamentally anthropomorphic chauvinism and absurd hubris.

Under human standards we should start hunting or capturing more male lions because they would happily commit infanticide to make lionesses reproductively available. Naked mole rats are incestuous pedophiles. It is important to remember that nature does not care about you and cannot care about you.

First, there are plenty of example where other animals do grasp these concepts very well.

Second, as I have shown earlier humans already do "prosecute" animals for such behaviour. So why would argue that "absurd hubris" should be applied in these cases?

Third, my point was not to start "prosecuting" other animals, but that humans do not follow their own standards.

Said humans were giving the elephant more than the standard technically given that death to an animal that kills a human was a longstanding standard and would be mocked as absurd hicks even in their day. A monkey was hanged as a possible French spy and again regarded with mockery for being so stupid to think it was possible or mistake the poor creature for a cabin boy. The precedent of animal trials indicates it doesn't help the animals or justice and usually indicates a profound detachment from objective reality. Judging ideas on human precedent alone isn't a good idea. Even precedent by all judges in the 20th century.
You addressed my second point but not the first nor the third.

Mockery or not, it happened and still happens. Only two years ago in Cincinnati. That was technically not "punishment" but the result was the same.

My main point is not whether or to prosecute other animals, but that humans live double standards.