Wednesday, 29th July 2009
In defence of human life
I have read many letters and articles over the past few weeks in relation to the maltreatment of animals.
Let me say it clearly: I am against cruelty to animals. We all have a responsibility towards the animals that come within the power of mankind.
What I have noticed in many letters, and especially in the blogs which one can read online, is the enormous strength of feeling from animal lovers to the extent that some have openly placed animals before humans. There have been some extremely bitter, malicious and downright irresponsible comments, even some calling for human beings to be strung up and treated in much the same way as they may have mistreated these poor animals! People have even been offering rewards for the capture and imprisonment of those who have carried out these awful acts!
So, I ask: Where is the strength of feeling about how we treat the unborn, for instance? Babies are cruelly suctioned from their mothers' wombs on a daily basis and their remains destroyed. Yet, somehow, since this is done from inside the womb and within the law of the land where it occurs, there is no such uproar as I have seen in respect of cruelty to animals.
The fact that it is not a crime to abort a human being does not make it right! The unborn child is conveniently referred to as just a ball of cells, which is fair game for abortionists, and the safety of the womb is thereby compromised. The unborn have no human rights these days and life has become cheapened beyond compare. In the UK, one can get a stiffer sentence for some crimes against animals than one can for crimes against individuals! But, conveniently, the destruction of human life is not seen as a crime!
And for those who see this as solely a religious issue, please think again.
Please do not insult those of no religion who still respect life from conception to natural death.
Let us get some sense of proportion here and decide whether or not we value human life. If we cannot even respect our own kind what hope is there for animals anyway? As Ghandi so aptly put it: a society may be judged on how it treats its animals.
So, perhaps with a sense of irony, I call for humans to have at least equal rights with animals. For too long they have come a poor second! I call for a stand in favour of the voiceless, defenceless unborn!
Let us, without the actions of extremists, stand up for human life at all stages. If we can achieve that, then there will be more justification for better treatment of animals.
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Comments
Now you confuse me. First you say that you "personally think that animals are just as important as humans", but then say that you agree 100% with Gerry (who says that "Humans must come before animals"). Either they are equally important, or less. You can't have both. You can't blame me for "misunderstanding you" when you contradict yourself in the next sentence.
As for Genesis, let's not go there, shall we? It's the same book that commands you to kill homosexuals, adulterers and disrespectful children, as well as to kill people who believe in a different God. I would have hoped most Christians had gone beyond the "Old Testament", which is clearly the portrayal of "God in man's image".
So no, "God" did not delegate any authority to us, unless you believe the Old Testament contains literal truth...but then you would have to accept the nasty bits mentioned above as well.
Quoting the "Old Testament" won't help. We should simply care about other creatures because we have no right to abuse them...no more and no less.
The main point arising from this is that you are either touched, or you are not. You are either given the gift, or you are not. It is as simple as that. You are either touched by love for animals, as you are taught by animals themselves, or you are not. Only the gifted people can understand that all animals are equal, and thse include human beings. If you use a pin and make them bleed, they all bleed and shout out. That argument is enough for me to undersand and believe that all animals, indeed, are equal. And those who do not understand this, are to be pitied and ignored, because by not understanding this, they show that they have never been touched by an animal's love.
Well, God had delegated His authority to the Human race, He..expected us..to take full responsibility..for the environment and..the other creatures..such as horses, dogs, fish, cattle, etc..that share..our..planet. Show them respect.....See that no harm is offered..to..them..by taking..their..living..area!!
So..we..must..not be..careless about..how..we..take care..of..them, and..this..include the..four legged horses that..have to carry the cab, the..driver and..his co-oprator, and up to four passengers. Now at present in the area of Ta' Xbiex between the Water Polo Aquatic Sports Club and Gzira Gardens is..going to..be cemented to turn it into a yacht marina.
This particular area is very shallow (go and see) and..support. breeding..of...fish..real..breeding..area, an area of small fry fishes, including octapus, shrimps, worms, snails etc. I signed the epetition and others are doing the same by passing this message to all their friends to support this initative. Go on and sign too...... http://taxbiex.epetitons.net
So we must not be careless about how we take care of them, and this include the four legged horses that have to carry the cab, the driver and his co-oprator, and up to four passengers. Now at present in the area of Ta' Xbiex between the Water Polo Aquatic Sports Club and Gzira Gardens is going to be cemented to turn it into a yacht marina.
This particular site is very shallow (go and see) and..support..fish..breeding, an area of small fry fishes, including octapus, shrimps, worms, snails etc. I signed the epetition and others are doing the same by passing this message to all their friends to support this initative. Go on and sign too...... http://taxbiex.epetitons.net
Yet you have not supported the authorities in Malta from killing all the small fish fries that are born in the shallow waters of the Ta' Xbiex water front from near the Gzira Gardens up to the Water Polo Club. If interested go on site: http://taxbiex.epetitions.net
Yes, do read about the destruction of the local marina sea area or the front of ta' xbiex Coast Road which is filled with small marine life and vote to stop further the abuse or destruction of the area.
Visit: site: http://taxbiex.epetitions.net
I personally think that animals are just as important as humans............ I want to stress that most animals bleed as we do. They feel pain as we do! They feel happiness as we do. They give life to newborns as well, but don't kill unborn babies?? So here is something that I do personally..think..is..very..important. Recently I was told that...some..years..ago a..postman was fed up with a...dog barking at him when delivering mail, so he took it upon himself to decide of the life of this poor dog if its worthy or not to live, just for his selfish gain.
The family owners of this dog where devastated when he was caught feeding him on their CCTV filming and now their six year old child had one less friend, just because that man didn't feel like dealing with some inconvenient barking after he delivered his mail.
He..was..sentenced to 15 weekends..in..jail with.. community..working. But..I..don't..think that's quite..enough,....What....you...say!!!
So then I take it that you do agree to abortion in the cases mentioned by Mr. Flynn? All the doctors and hospitals in the world would not change the chances of the mother's survival if an abortion is warranted. Do you prefer the death of the mother or the foetus?
All I really see from your sorts is not true genuine love of human life or the unborn, since none of you are especially horrified that thousands of babies and children that die every day from hunger and preventable diseases, and thousands of mothers die in childbirth (for example, in Afghanistan, one woman dies giving birth every 29 minutes!) and that is in just one country.
What I get from all of your types is that first and foremost you are against woman.
You and your kind always want to hammer the point that somehow humans are special and beloved of God. You are also fixated on abortion, embryos and what not, as long as they are human.
Lest we forget, we all know where you are coming from and what your agenda is. However, animal lovers are no longer going to accept the dictates of despotic creeds and church organisations, in whose service you no doubt are, when religion itself been the perpetrator and still is, of so many wars and murders and suffering in this world. It seems that nothing else going on in the world bothers you and your type, be it wars, rape, murder, paedophile priests, poverty and a thousand other ways that humans inflict suffering on others, including animals, except abortion
When it comes to animals, only St. Francis of Assisi was illuminated enough to realise that animals are our fellow travelers in life and placed them by our side and not below us.
And your quoting of Gandhi is especially pathetic and hypocritical when in fact you are actually espousing just the direct opposite of what Gandhi believed about animals.
How much more rights and dominion over the earth should humans in your opinion have?
I do not see other animals abusing and subjugating humans or destroying the earth. It is the human animal, with his supposed “immortal soul”, intelligence and superiority that has run havoc..
The horrible things that you described that are being done to humans are being done by the humans themselves, proving the great propensity the human animal has for evil.
We have almost reached the point of no-return. If the earth heats up by as little as 2 more degrees, things will start in motion that we cannot stop and nature will unfurl calamites that will endanger all life on this planet? Yet we are still burning fossil fuels and many countries with burgeoning populations such as China and India are eager to come on board – burning fossil fuels by all citizens has become a measure of success.
And are you at all surprised that some people, whom you describe as ‘animal lovers’ (as if this was some kind of dirty word) prefer the company of non-human animals to their own species when they weigh-in all the evidence before them?
"Humans are not animals".
That explains a lot. Further debate with someone who doesn't know that Homo Sapiens is an animal species, would be a waste of time. But I'll answer your points anyway because they once again misrepresent (intentionally or otherwise) what I actually said.
1. True, humans are often badly treated. So are non-human animals.
2. True, many humans cannot "take life for-granted". So do much more non-human animals.
3. Humans cannot come before animals because humans are animals.
4. I am not an animal lover (whatever that means).
5. My response was not at all angry. It only exposed your lack of knowledge on the issue of animal rights and the treatment of non-human animals.
6. Every individual (and species) values its life above others (except for extreme altruists).
7. You have ignored and failed to address the proof I gave that we treat non-human animals much worse than we do humans.
8. Your "argument", put simply, was that we treat "animals" better than humans. I gave you enough evidence that the opposite is the case. The onus is on you to prove me wrong. You haven't even tried yet.
You obviously know nothing about animals or humans for that matter.
Humans are ANIMALS and in the science of Biology are classified as:
Kingdom: Animalia
Pylum : Cordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Family: Hominidae
Genus: Homo
Species: Homo Sapiens
I am very sorry, but there is no basis, scientific or otherwise that places humans above other animals. It is just an arbitrary assumption made by Homo Rapiens - this new nomenclature being suggested to describe our species since no other animal has raped and destroyed this planet as much as we have.
You do not seem to want to accept the point I am trying to make here. Human beings are often badly treated!
Sadly many humans cannot "take life for granted" since it is so easily (and "legally") taken from them.
Humans must come before animals. Those who believe otherwise truly are quite simply deluded. Sadly society often places animals before people!
So, back to my original point, which you do not appear prepared to accept:- It is high time we gave humankind the importance that some extreme animal lovers are prepared to give to animals!
I think your angry response serves only to add weight to my argument.
I think you too would do well to read Mr Meli's other remarks since he clearly puts human beings first.
If you value human life above animal life then please say so! Perhaps you should make your point more clearly in future if you don't want what you say to be misinterpreted, if that is your issue here.
"Don't meddle in topics you don't understand!"
Animals and humans - two different things. Your own parallel is sadly out of kilter with mine!
"My rather tongue-in-cheek comment about equal rights is merely an extension of my parallel between how we treat humans as opposed to animals".
The above quote from your comment shows very clearly that you did not even try to understand mine before "shooting it down".
Your tongue-in-cheek comment about equal rights is completely off the mark precisely because it "is merely an extension of (your) parallel between how we treat humans as opposed to animals".
Just in case you have not got it yet, here is how we treat non-human animals: We abort their foetuses legally if we wish to do so; we kill them legally whenever we wish to (at the vet's); we force many of them to work for us, and kill them when they cannot work any more; we conduct painful terminal experiments on millions of them; we lock millions of them in cages for life; and these are just some of the legal things we do to them.
Do you still believe that your "parallel" helps in any way? I don't think so. Only a tiny minority of lucky non-humans live a life close enough to what most of us would take for-granted.
It would also help if you indicate to whom you were referring when you mentioned "sarcasm from those who oppose human life".
I see neither sarcasm nor "opposition" to human life here.
As JJ Meli has said (but of course, with different people in mind), "many of us start to comment against a person without actually reading properly what would have been said in his letter. At least we must admit that some of us are always ready to blog our idea's which could be bad. My advice is read it again and then comment".
You would do well to heed JJ Meli's remark.
How have I missed your point? And how have I twisted anything? All I mentioned was facts which you conveniently evaded.
Your "tongue-in-cheek" remark is completely off the mark, as I have demonstrated.
Of course, you can always say that human life is more important (though one should ask...more important to whom? Certainly not to the non-human animals themselves).
Perhaps you should also note that the abortion of non-human foetuses is legal in Malta. So is the killing of any pet for whatever reason, provided it is done by a vet.
So how exactly do non-humans have it better?
People are expected to do a little research before making wild and unsubstantiated claims. Tongue-in-cheek comments where the killing of innocent sentient beings is concerned, are certainly not appreciated, even when done to serve another agenda. I am sure you would not appreciate a tongue-in-cheek comment where it concerns the killing of innocent sentient human lives.
You may once again say that I'm missing and twisting the point about rights if you wish. You clearly have no idea about moral and legal rights, as well as the difference between the two. Don't meddle in topics you don't understand.
The amount of sarcasm from those who oppose human life never ceases to amaze me!
Mr Kenneth Cassar has totally missed my point about rights and twisted it rather badly! My rather tongue-in-cheek comment about equal rights is merely an extension of my parallel between how we treat humans as opposed to animals.
Human life is more important, but that is not to say that animals should not be cared for properly.
Thankyou Mr Pulis for correcting your comments.
Some doctors do know, but cannot say anything due to his profession who is going to have a child, but due to this protection Government still he is liable to have a register of unborn babies so that women who abort could be traced or know, since this is against the Maltese laws!
Unfortunate, many of us start to comment against a person without actually reading properly what would have been said in his letter. At least we must admit that some of us are always ready to blog our idea's which could be bad. My advice is read it again and then comment. But I say to Gerry, well done keep it up.
P.S. if blogers have environmental at heart should go on http://taxbiex.epetitions.net and read about the destruction of the local marina sea front of ta' xbiex which is filled with small marine life and vote to stop further abuse or destruction.
You misunderstood my comment. I meant to say that you are incapable of defending human life as well as animal welfare. You are unable to do both at the same time as if your love has to be rationed out. Love is unlimited and defending animal rights should not impede anyone from protecting humans at the same time.
If Gerry Cowie were to reverse that statement, this would necessitate compulsory veganism. No, Mr Cowie, non-human animals do not have it that good. "Animals" are not just cats and dogs. Millions of non-human animals are killed every year for food, and not only do few people complain, people actually pay others to kill these millions of animals.
And to put things in their proper perspective, while abortion is illegal in Malta (so what's the point of the letter?), the killing of millions of sentient animals for food or clothing is not.
Humans clearly do not come out as a "clear second". Humans are not considered legal property. Dismiss this as extremist if you wish, but I am only stating facts without even making any moral judgement on the issue.
People who think non-humans have it better than humans in Malta are simply deluded.
I found some comments sadly amusing and perhaps just plain sarcastic. Nobody has read that I do not support animal cruelty. But they want to put their own spin on things! I clearly stated this is not a purely religious issue, but people chose to ignore that!
V Pulis even says that I do not defend human life! Where did that come from? So desperate is he to attack that he does not think what he is saying!
Adrian Aqulina's "contribution" makes no sense at all! I simply drew a parallel between how we treat humans and how we treat animals! He is not the only one who chooses to gnore this.
William Flynn, , uses his usual secularist, anti-religious sarcasm. He never agrees with me, so I am not surprised! As per usual he comes up with the most extreme examples in his attack.
Franco Farrugia - Nobody said he didn't value human life himself. I do not knock his commitment to animals, however, and thank him for his encouragement to me to continue defending human life .
Mark Grima - What is his point?
at least I agree with this sentence "Please do not insult those of no religion who still respect life from conception to natural death" religion has nothing to do with it. Man is just another animal with the only added dubious 'advantage' being that he is the only creature capable of destroying the world. Finally, the first blasphemy uttered by man was when he said that he is made in the image of God. What cheek.
Is there ANYTHING positive you ever write about?
It is true that there are MANY difficult situations, and you have pointed some of the worst cases! BUT...aren't you forgetting the sacred right of the BABY to be born? If, as you have stated, ALL difficulties should be eliminated, instead of finding a solution for them, why do we have certain wards in our hospitals. According to you, wards for those grievously ill should be converted to death chambers. But oh, I forgot......adult patients have a voice and can fight back......unborn babies do not!!!!
There are many other cases and situations. But Mr Cowie would hear of none of these; unless of course he wants to go to hell.
I fully support people like Mr Farrugia when it comes to defending animal life. May ALL people defend animals, and take PROPER care of them.
On the other hand I agree with Mr Cowie that often you find those who would do anything to protect an animal life, while disregarding human (unborn) life! How many of those who are pro 'choice' , go berserk if their pet is taken ill????
There is no question of 'a sense of proportion' with regard to what the human being feels for animals.
I, who know that I am in the forefront of Cowie's attack as published in The Times today, stand up to be counted. Yes, even animals are voiceless as much as any other species, including human beings, can be.
I stand up to be counted. Cowie and his ilk can call me whatever he likes: one cannot be extremist enough when it comes to serious matters such as the right to life of both human beings as well as animals, but I particularly struggle against the plight of animals because they, too, have no voice.
Only senseless people will in this way understand, however stupidly, that I am in any way putting the ugliness of abortion as a secondary 'battle'. But I let others, particularly himself, to continue that fight, while I, on my part, will continue to fight against cruelty to animals.