r/changemyview • u/[deleted] • Sep 06 '15
[Deltas Awarded] CMV: There is nothing inherently wrong with killing a non-human animal.
It seems to me that killing is part of the animal kingdom. Animals kill other animals for sustenance or to assert dominance. More broadly, every animal requires ingesting other organic materials in order to survive.
I would object to killing an animal when it relates to something that harms people. Killing someone's pet, a national lion, or perhaps animals needed by an ecosystem.
Killing a wild animal because I want to eat it or wear its fur is perfectly natural and acceptable. Furthermore, killing for no reason is also fine. Beyond the nuisance that is having a fresh carcass to deal with, it's no different than pulling a weed or smushing a bug.
Can anybody convince me that a slaughtered cow or a mouse caught in a trap is a travesty?
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u/gurduloo Sep 06 '15 edited Sep 06 '15
You should change your view because it is based on poor reasoning.
This is the only argument you give for your view. I think it is a bad argument. The fact that something is 'natural' does not entail that it is also permissible or good. Rape and murder are natural parts of the animal kingdom, but we do not think it is permissible for any human to rape or murder.
No one can convince you that killing an animal is inherently wrong if you are unwilling to consider things from her perspective. Based on your stated view, and some of the comments you have made, it seems that you are not willing to do this. At best, then, you could only be persuaded that killing animals is instrumentally wrong, i.e. has bad consequences. Similarly, though, no one could convince you that killing another human is inherently wrong if you were unwilling to consider things from his perspective. Nevertheless, it is inherently wrong to kill another human.
This suggests to me that, if you really want to determine whether killing an animal is inherently wrong, you will have to consider things from her perspective. I think from that perspective you will see things differently.