Animal Rights<\/a>\t<\/p>\n We <\/font> <\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n <\/font><\/div>\n <\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n <\/font><\/div>\n <\/font><\/strong><\/div>\n <\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Antispeciesism: Beyond Animal Rights and Liberation Animal Rights AntispeciesismBeyond Animal Rights and Antispeciesism is certainly a new concept in the world in which we are living. In our society, animals are considered resources, or goods available for human use. Rarely do we give any thought to the suffering of animals, or reflect on our attitudes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-other"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17985\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendburst.com\/blog-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/font>
<\/strong><\/font>Beyond Animal Rights
and
<\/font>![](\"http:\/\/i177.photobucket.com\/albums\/w221\/jiloru\/More%20AR\/985960336_l.jpg\")
<\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n
\n certainly a new concept in the world in which we are living. In our
\nsociety, animals are considered resources, or goods available for human
\nuse.
Rarely do we give any thought to the suffering of
\nanimals, or reflect on our attitudes towards them, let alone consider
\nthe idea that they may be considered rights holders.<\/strong> <\/p>\n
\n never consider whether this is a form of speciesism, that is, arbitrary
\n discrimination against those individuals who belong to a certain
\nspecies. In fact, even if we sometimes hear the term \u2018animal rights\u2019 we
\nseldom know what is it all about.
<\/font><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n we show some concern for certain animals (such as dogs, cats, and some
\nwild creatures), most others are treated with total disregard. But an
\nanimal need not be “cute” or human-like to have the ability to feel. A
\ntrout, a pig, a chicken, a frog or a lobster all have the capacity for
\nexperiencing joy or suffering pain or distress.
Their lives matter to them as much as our lives do to us, and they will defend themselves if they can.
<\/strong>
<\/font><\/div>\n
\n someone is male or female; black, white or green; has two legs or four;
\n swims, flies or walks, is irrelevant when it comes to the consideration
\n we owe them all, and to whether they should be protected by rights
\nwhich forbid that they be treated in ways that are harmful for them.
\nAntispeciesism is based on this idea.
<\/font><\/div>\n
<\/strong>But
\n how “intelligent” someone is should not affect our moral decisions, as
\nthis is not what determines her or his ability to feel. The fact that a
\nyoung baby, a cow or a person with a severe mental disability is not
\nable to read philosophy, do mathematical calculations or make moral
\njudgements does not mean that their interests are any less relevant.
\nWhat matters is that all of them know pain and pleasure. Only our
\ninterests can determine what rights we should have. <\/p>\n
Disregarding the interests of animals
<\/font>![](\"http:\/\/i177.photobucket.com\/albums\/w221\/jiloru\/090115-chickens-vmed-12p_widec.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n is important to keep in mind that the situations in which animals’
\ninterests are frustrated don’t constitute particular cases of unrelated
\nabuse. Rather, they arise from a general attitude toward non-human
\nanimals prevalent in society today, namely, what is called speciesism.
\nThis prejudice against other animals overlooks the fact that they, like
\nhumans, are beings with the capacity to experience suffering and joy, as
\n they too have nervous systems.
<\/font><\/div>\n
\n it is claimed that other capacities are what matter, capacities such as
\n the use of language and other “intellectual” activities.<\/strong>
But
\n if this were so, it would also mean that only certain humans matter.
\nSome people, such as the mentally impaired or the newborn, would fall
\noutside the scope of moral concern, as they don’t meet those criteria.
\nHowever, this is something most of us find unacceptable, and, as we have
\n already seen, so-called intelligence in no way affects one’s sentience.
\n This is why the needs and interests of animals must be taken fully into
\n account – including their interest in living – without this
\nconsideration being reduced to worrying only about some limited aspects
\nof their welfare. <\/p>\n
<\/font>![](\"http:\/\/i177.photobucket.com\/albums\/w221\/jiloru\/more%20animal\/article-0-018CB2F800000578-471_468x.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
This
\n is said as a justification for exploiting them, provided that a minimum
\n of suffering is caused. But adopting such a position, apart from the
\npractical difficulty of exploiting and killing someone without causing
\nsuffering, neglects the fundamental importance life has for animals.<\/p>\n
\n animals who have the capacity for enjoyment have an interest in living.
\n The reason for this is simple – once we are dead, nothing good can
\nhappen to us any more, any possibility for further enjoyment disappears.
<\/strong>Death
\n is not harmful in that it is an unpleasant condition, because once dead
\n we stop having any sensations. Death is harmful because it rules out
\nany further possibility of positive experiences. This is why animals
\nhave an interest in living. In fact, animals, in normal situations,
\nendure considerable amounts of pain in order to stay alive.
<\/font><\/div>\n
\n animals causes them suffering and death, and is therefore
\nunjustifiable. Regulating this exploitation won’t make any significant
\ndifference, and will only reinforce the idea that using animals is, in
\nfact, right. The only solution is to give up treating animals as things
\nfrom which humans can benefit and to establish legal rights that will
\nsafeguard their interests.
<\/font><\/div>\n
<\/strong><\/div>\n![](\"http:\/\/i177.photobucket.com\/albums\/w221\/jiloru\/More%20AR\/ValueofLife.jpg\")
All sentient beings should have the right to live,
and to do so in liberty
and without suffering inflicted upon them.
To achieve this,
we must begin by abandoning the view
that animals are resources intended for human ends.
<\/font><\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n
Posted by: <\/font><\/strong>One Voice<\/font><\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n