JK writes:
>
>
yes, tying one's shoelaces does have ethical implications - insofar as an
insect
could be on them or the like. one learns to keep an 'instinctive' eye
out. there has to be a certain amount of pragmatic flexibility, but it's
on a pretty 'removed' level. for example, insects hitting the
windscreens of cars etc.
>
>
I was not criticizing your decisions to be an anarchist and vegan, or your
intention of leading a generally ethical life. I just couldn't believe you
really meant what the quoted sentence seemed to mean. Now I see that you
did, I am stunned. It reminds me of certain eastern religious practices. In
Zen, as I understand it (which is not very far) one of the goals is to
perform every action, great and small, with exactly the same degree of
attention (though I'm not sure that the abstraction 'ethical' quite fits in
this case). And some Hindus do their best to avoid killing insects even
accidentally. I couldn't possibly live like that, and still believe most
people couldn't. I kill mosquitoes, for example, to prevent them from biting
me, though in general I am fascinated by insects - love would seem a
presumptuous word for how I feel about them, but I feel a pleasure in their
otherness and don't like to harm them. To see the minutiae of life in
ethical terms is hardly imaginable to me, but now I realize you're serious
about it I have nothing but respect.
Best wishes
Matthew
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