Waxing Philosophically

(This has been up a while. I will post something new real soon)

Ah, the philosophical discussion. I love it. In this area I will present my opinion on such topics as free-will vs. determinism, religion, and theories of knowledge (or the lack thereof). I hope that you will voice your opinions by email.

I have a new topic to address, one that most everyone has probably given some thought to at some point. It is the topic of animal rights. Is there such a thing as animal rights? If so, what are the rights, and should they be applied equally to all animals?

I was having a few drinks with a couple of friends when this very topic came up. One of the friends is a judge and we began discussing a couple of recent cases involving alleged cruelty to animals (none of those cases had been brought before him). He suggested, and I agreed, that animals do have rights. We also agreed that there must be some sort of scale by which those rights are applied. A mosquito is not necessarily entitled to the same rights as a chimpanzee. The other friend said that animals have no rights, implying that they are ours to do with as we please (a bit of bravado I suspect).

After a bit of thought, I am now moving toward the position of my seemingly insensitive friend. I do not believe that animals have rights. Now, before you limber up your keyboarding muscles, please understand that while I do not believe that animals have rights, I do believe that we have a responsibility to ensure that they are not mistreated. Let me explain.

As humans, we have a responsibility to our own species to protect all aspects of our environment. That is a purely self-serving endeavor. We do not protect the animals (or the plants or the planet) because it is their right to be protected. Every living thing on this planet (and perhaps every non-living thing) has a real, or a potential biological impact on the human species. It is foolish for us to willfully destroy anything that may be of benefit to us.

Yes, yes, yes...all that environmental mumbo jumbo, but what about the dog that is being led down the street on a leash? Does that dog have any "rights" that stipulate that the owner can not haul off and kick it in the ribs? Or to go a step further, does the dog have any "rights" that protect it from having a strap around its neck and being forced to heel? We would certainly not stand for that treatment were it being applied to humans. But what about the dog, does it have the right to not be kicked and to not be teathered? The answer to both questions is no, the dog does not possess any of those rights.

We do not speak about animal rights when a conflict arises between non-human species. We do talk about the lions' rights being violated when the hyenas steal the lions' dinner (or vice versa). If a rogue elephant goes on a killing spree and kills another animal for what is seemingly sport we would not discuss the rights of the animals. Why then do animals acquire rights when humans are involved? They do not.

Our intelligence does not establish rights for other species, it defines our rights. The dog does not have the right not to be kicked, it is that we do not have the right to kick the dog. As we sit squarely atop the food chain, it is our rights that we must determine, those below us have none.

Semantics? Perhaps. Your comments?