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Animals and Humans Should Be Equal

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Aweso_ me VIC • Posts: 280

1 22 Oct 2009

FOUND THIS ON THE NET, JUST REALLY TRUE AND INTERESTING. JUST WANTED TO SHARE. SHARE SHARE

Animal rights are not accepted as widely as human rights. I believe animals should have equal rights as people. Animals should for example have the right to life, freedom and so on. Using them for medical research, food and other is completely unacceptable. I�m going to explain why.

Most of us agree that individuals have rights. Most of us agree that people shouldn�t for example be killed, assaulted and that everyone should have basic freedom (and the list could go on). Most of us also agree that all of us have these rights - not only some. For examples not only the rich or the intelligent have the right to life and not to be beaten or imprisoned for no reason.

However most people think that these rights don�t apply to animals. Why? One of the most common arguments used is that animals wouldn�t be able to think and therefore inferior. This is a very controversial issue in scientific research and many scientists believe that animals think (link).

And even if it was the case that animals didn�t think it still wouldn�t be acceptable to violate their rights. I give an example: There are some very seriously mentally retarded people that can�t actually really think very much. If it was all right to kill and eat animals because they couldn�t think, then it should be all right to kill and eat these seriously mentally retarded persons. However there is a large consensus that allowing to kill and eat the seriously mentally retarded people in question is totally unacceptable.

Another argument used to argue that animals shouldn�t have rights is that animals �are naturally inferior� because they are not civilized. Here again we have the same situation. What about the persons that don�t live in �civilized� and have no idea of the industrial world? Should it be all right to kill and eat them? No, it shouldn�t; they have rights too is what almost anyone asked will answer. So why wouldn�t animals not living in �civilization� have these rights?

As a conclusion and for all these reasons animals should have the same rights as human beings. A crime against an animal should bring the same punishment as the same crime against a person. Killing animals, using them as food or using them in medical experiments is totally unacceptable and can actually be compared to concentration camps in Nazi Germany.

MerlinLemon VIC • Posts: 291

2 22 Oct 2009

I totally understand what you are saying.
many animals don't get their rights and they should be treated as equals.
i give all my animals love and attention and they do think. every single one of my chooks has a different personality.
and animals do think idea

birds have to think where they're going to fly. lions have to think about how they're going to catch their next meal.
I disagree with the killing of "poor dumb beasts" because they are not in fact poor dumb beasts, they are much much more.
monkey

_Matt VIC • Posts: 1567

3 22 Oct 2009

Great job! Was this for school?

I think something to remember when fighting for animal rights, is that historically, people have achieved freedom through still being looked upon as "not as smart", or in many ways inferior.

Thomas Jefferson (US President) fought to abolish slavery, though still believed blacks had "less mental capacity" than whites. He just didn't believe brain power was a credible excuse to deny them liberty.

Though obviously he was wrong, I think it's a great example for us of the animal rights movement. While animals are obviously not as intelligent as we humans are, that is not an excuse to deny them freedom -- they still suffer, long to live, love, shun destruction and death etc.

We really can do this. Viva la revolution. pirate

Aweso_ me VIC • Posts: 280

4 22 Oct 2009

sorry i didnt say it properly. found it from the net

sarahwithanh27 VIC • Posts: 439

5 22 Oct 2009

I haven't read through this cause I don't have long on the net at the moment, but I thought it was relevant to the title.
Have you heard about the man who's been given 12 months jail for shooting a kangaroo with an arrow?
Bit rushed at the moment but maybe somebody else has more info on it. (:
Anyway thought some people might be interested! (:

x.Tara NSW • Posts: 357

6 22 Oct 2009

Definetly. We both share this earth so it makes sense. But one thing i'd like to know is exactly that, how i had to say 'both' as if we are two different things. What makes humans superior to animals??? GAR I did it again, we ARE animals! angry

- Kitty Freak - SA • Posts: 1071

7 22 Oct 2009

Weeell..i dont actually believe that animals an humans should have equal rights. Animals cant comprehend the ability to vote and such, so why would they need the right to vote you see? Just like women and men having equal rights..A women has the right to an abortion, a man has no need for that right. Hence why animals and humans don't really need equal rights.

lol..ok yeah. im done

_Matt VIC • Posts: 1567

8 22 Oct 2009

- Vegan Freak - said:

lol, i don't think anyone is campaigning for animals to have the right to vote..

i, as an abolitionist (no, not a francione abolitionist!), -- i'm not sure you're an abolitionist? -- fight for animals to be recognized with one basic right; the right not to be treated as the property of others. this is, in my opinion, the epitome of what animal liberation is.

RaV3N WA • Posts: 2152

9 22 Oct 2009

Maybe not exact equal rights.... as animals kill to survive... humans kill because they are assholes. But some sort of rights to cover: right of life. right of good health (being looked after correctly, ie: pets or wildlife). right of respect. etc etc.

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