>CP: As discussed above - I think that any environmentalism that places
>animals as having primacy over the ecosystem as a whole is an
>environmentalism without foundation in reality.
Chris, you get no argument from me. I consider myself a staunch animal rights
activist, yet also as deep of an ecologist as anyone I have met. I would NOT
set any one animal, (including human beings), as having priority over the
ecosystem. I think the animal rights community as a whole is evenly divided
over this issue, partly because many are coming from animal welfare, (dog and
cat lovers), rather than from the environmental movement as I did. I would
sacrifice one whale, one gorilla, one dog and even one human being to save an
ecosystem. The reason is partly a utiliatarian one, in that the lives of a
few individuals are far outweighed by the thriving healthy interaction of life
of a whole community of plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, and inorganic
nutrients. Also, there is inherent value in the ecosystem itself and the
biosphere itself. That said, we cannot ignore the fact that every time one of
us kills another human or non-human being, that it causes fear, pain, horror
and loss of the only life that being will ever have. If we would not want
these things done to us, then we should know that it is wrong to commit them
against others.
Veggie
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