Is it just as wrong to kill insects as it is animals

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{insects}

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{animals}, in case you didn't know(implied by your OP and thread title).

I'm not limiting my answer to animals because the same argument can be used to determine whether for example it is wrong to eradicate some pathogenic prokaryote.
There's nothing intrinsically wrong with killing organisms(unless you're religious), but you can choose a set of values in which it is right or wrong to kill some/all organisms. The decision of which organisms are deemed right or wrong to kill is arbitrary, but can be aided by consideration of complexity, intelligence, capacity for empathy and any other factors you deem useful to consider.

Why do you think morals are arbitrary in this context?

Reply 21

acupofgreentea

One thing I've always found interesting is that some vegans argue eating insects is okay, even though majority of vegans abstain from eating honey, the byproduct of a bee, suggesting that veganism would see insects to be on the same level as animals.

I'm not against veganism by any means, it's just something I've always found quite interesting.

Reply 22

Pro Crastination

Original post by zedeneye1

There is nothing wrong in killing any animals in any way...

So you're against the concept of laws existing to prevent murder? :s-smilie:

Reply 23

Pro Crastination

Original post by acupofgreentea

I honestly haven't heard any vegans arguing for eating insects and I frequent various vegan social media pages. That being said, there is no consensus on whether insects have sentience and so it's sort of a grey area, but I'd say the vast majority of vegans who I've seen comment on this matter er on the side of caution (and assume some level of sentience) anyway.

Reply 24

acupofgreentea

Original post by Pro Crastination

You'll know better than me! :biggrin:

I just remember there was a debate a while ago about it as there seemed to be a minor trend in vegans beginning to eat insects for nutrients - I am definitely not anti-vegan (in fact, quite the opposite :biggrin:

), I was merely confused as to how a vegan could abstain from eating honey, yet argue insects were not seen on the same level as animals.

It does sound like it was a very small minority, regardless. :biggrin:

Reply 25

Daniellaaa

I don't like insects at all,so I wouldn't hesitate to kill one

Reply 26

Implication

Original post by Daniellaaa

I don't like insects at all,so I wouldn't hesitate to kill one

i feel the same about the bloke who lives around the corner, i'd still hesitate to kill him though

Reply 27

Fenneko

Right, okay, so let's just make it clear that animals obviously feel pain. Insects, not really.

Wrongness and rightness are both subjective rules we apply to morals. Morality, after all, is pretty much subjective, though I will say that Schopenhauer once said that he believed compassion was the basis of morality, and I think I agree with him. For instance, there's that quote, "You put a baby in a crib with an apple and a rabbit. If it eats the rabbit and plays with the apple, I'll buy you a new car.", which basically means that from birth we love animals. We instinctively grow protective over them. After all, most animals have the intelligence of 2-4 year olds; they're effectively children.

To me, yes, it's wrong. I see animals no different from how I see people. Most of the time I actually prefer animals, however, I would never eat a person.

Would I kill an insect? Only if it's attacking me. I believe in self-defence, but I'd never go out of my way to end an insect's life. They don't think or feel anything, yet there's something truly remarkable about them that we take for granted.

Reply 28

Pro Crastination

Original post by acupofgreentea

You'll know better than me! :biggrin:

Ah, fair enough :smile:

Reply 29

Macy1998

Nope. Animals kill animals and insects kill other insects. Animals and insects have the choice not to kill each other but when "we" humans do it we're the bad guys and need to change our "morals". That was a mini rant.

Not really... it depends on the culture and your value system. We have our house pets then we have our food supply. If you value animals, you'll probably value insects. I guess you could it isn't wrong because insects are not similar to "us" and can't be kept as pets? By the way, some people do eat insects just as animal meat.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 30

markovchain17

Original post by Macy1998

I guess you could it isn't wrong because insects are not similar to "us" and can't be kept as pets? By the way, some people do eat insects just as animal meat.

And by the way, some people do keep insects as pets :biggrin:

look at Japan and how common it is for a kids first pet to be a Japanese rhinoceros beetle (they also have beetle fighting tournaments) or look at how many people have pet spiders. The giant African snail is quite a common pet as well. Also ant farms as well are good first pets for a lot of kids but they're not really 'house pets'

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