jgb@linus.UUCP (Jonathan G. Bressel) (08/03/84)
Sunny Kirsten commented recently "that there are just as equal moral
questions involved in killing plants as there are in killing animals." I'd
like to present my thoughts on the subject.
I refrain from eating animals because it is patently obvious to me that
animals suffer pain as we do. Short of speaking, animals respond to pain in
exactly the same ways that humans do: they cry out, wince, and do all they
can to avoid the pain. Plants on the other hand, show now evidence of
suffering pain. They do not respond in any perceptible way, nor do they
have a central nervous system capable of transmitting and interpreting pain
signals. Moreover, regardless of whether one believes in Evolution Theory,
or in the Supreme Creator, it makes no sense for an organism to be able to
experience pain without having the concomitant ability to avoid it. Animals
feel pain so that they will avoid dangerous situations. Plants quite
obviously do not. As for the theories which suggest that plants respond to
pain (and other sensory inputs) by producing electric and other signals, no
objective, scientific body has been able to reproduce the experiments which
support this theory.
Equating the killing of plants to the killing of animals as an argument
against ethical vegetarianism is often no more than an excuse to avoid moral
responsibility for one's actions. This argument is applicable to almost any
moral question. Essentially it says that since one can never achieve moral
perfection, any small moral achievement is meaningless. I wholeheartedly
disagree. What makes man's position unique is that he is bound to try to
act morally even in the face of seemingly inherent limitations. I've never
met a vegetarian who claimed to have "solved all the moral dilemmas," only
vegetarians who are trying to improve their moral behavior.
I disagree with Sunny Kirsten's argument on two points. Firstly, I assert
that animals and plants can not be classified in the same category regarding
their ability to suffer. Secondly, I see nothing wrong with recognizing
that we may never act with perfect morality, but that at the same time we
can try to improve our moral behavior one small step at a time. I find it
quite depressing to imagine succumbing to the "law of the jungle," simply
because acting morally is difficult.
--
Jonathan G. Bressel
ARPA: linus!jgb@mitre-bedford
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