If it’s acceptable for humans to exploit other animals for food, clothing, labor, entertainment or experiments because we’re more intelligent than them, would it be equally acceptable for a superintelligent alien race with 10x the mental capacity as humans to do the same to us?

  • Selkie210@lemmygrad.ml
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    1 year ago

    Well, depends on the farm. Farms I grew up on and around were and are kind to their animals, even if they are going to get slaughtered close to the end of their life.

    Big corporate factory farms (IE Perdue) keep their animals in conditions bad enough they’d be better in the wild

    • NotAPenguin@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      I really doubt they were slaughtered near the end of their lives, that wouldn’t be profitable for the farm, cows live 20+ years for example.

      And even if there were, it’s still killing someone for profit, that’s cruel.

    • JasSmith@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      That’s a good point. We should absolutely take any cruelty out of factory farming. I just take umbrage with the activists who claim all farming is cruel.

      • NotAPenguin@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        How is needless killing not cruel?

        No matter how nicely you treat someone it’s cruel to kill them for profit/taste.

        • JasSmith@kbin.social
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          1 year ago

          The definition of cruelty is, “wilfully causing pain or suffering to others, or feeling no concern about it.” Slaughter in most Western nations is done without pain or suffering. Even if it were, it would be incidental. Animals are unable to feel existential dread.