I’ve been discussing with my sister (a big fan of her cats) about what lives we would save in an emergency. I think a human live is worth more than an animal’s no question asked but she thinks otherwhise. So to end this discussion I’m writing here.
- Who would you save between your cat and your worst enemy?
- What if it was between your cat and a stranger?
- Why?
I would save my cat over pretty much anyone because taking him in meant being there for him and protecting him. I would move mountains for that guy
I’d save a stranger, but between a cat and my enemies I can’t say I’d be inclined to go out of my way for either.
What is the definition of my worst enemy? Can I just declare e.g. Putin to be my mortal foe?
If it has to be somebody I have met so far, I will rather save a human than a cat
Why, because a human has more potential to effect the world, has an understanding of death and therefore the worse time dying and in the interest of a species your should allways priotize members of your own species
I don’t think there’s an objective way to measure the worth of a life, but for me, length plays a factor. It would feel shitty to save my cat over a small child, because that child has over ten times the amount of time left as my cat and I’d feel like I was robbing them of more experiences than I would be robbing my cat of.
Fortunately, both the men I consider my enemies are older and not in great health 👍
- Cat
- Cat
- Cat
EDIT: If you need a serious #3 answer, one aspect is that my cat is dependent on me. That’s the relationship I accepted when I chose to take care of a domestic animal. My enemies, or strangers, are not my dependents. They are not vulnerable in that sense.
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I’m with you there. A couple winters ago I was a delivery person, I dropped a package on someone’s porch and I heard a little meow. Couple seconds later this little furball was climbing up my pant leg.
I knocked on the door to talk to the homeowner who said his mother had been hit by a car, and she had a cantankerous dog so she couldn’t take care of him. So I took him
I feel extremely responsible for my cat. He’s not like an “accessory” he’s something I made a commitment to saving and is dependent on me
I’m going out on a limb and say the person, but only because my present cat is young and healthy and a cat, so there’s a 99% chance she’ll save herself if I just get out of her way, and if I try she’ll just have to hurt me first before taking care of herself.
The stupid human I would probably prevent from dying, although I wouldn’t work too hard at minimizing their pain.
I would save my cat every time. I don’t value human life above her life. She’s been there for me for the past 15 years and helped me through the darkest times.
That’s so cute, I can’t. Thanks for paying your taxes on time.
I don’t blame you.
Yeah, my kitties got me through the pan. I lived alone and wasn’t in a relationship and had no car at the time. The isolation was extreme.
Took me a moment to realize the dark mark on her face wasn’t her hind paw.
She’s a Siamese chocolate point. In Siamese cats, there is a mutation for the genes of an enzyme (Tyrosinase) that inhibits the production of melanin above a certain temperature. Where the body temperature is lower (extremities, airways), that enzyme is deactivated and melanin is produced, allowing the fur to darken.
Siamese kitten are born completely white, as their temperature is kept high everywhere in the womb, and rapidly start to color after birth.
I have two
SiameseBalinese cats and I never actually knew the practicalities of their coloring… I knew it was something about temperature but I wasn’t sure if that was a metaphorical “temperature” or actually talking about millimeters of mercuryTheir dark spots also expand when they get old and their circulation worsens as well. Older point color cats will tend to darken on their bellies.
It’s a moral dilemma between a life and a life, one is not lesser than the other regardless of whether one is human or not, so the issue then becomes which one is more valuable.
But valuable to whom?
Society? I may think my worst enemy is a bastard but they’re likely to be a productive member of society.
But valuable to me personally? I’m picking my cat every single time, it’s like asking to pick between your worst enemy and your child, it doesn’t even require weighing the options.Just out of curiosity, are you vegetarian/vegan?
Not sure why you’re being downvoted. It’s legitimate to wonder in what ways “all life” matters. It wasn’t an accusatory question.
Yeah, I didn’t mean it as a jab. I just thought it was an interesting assertion that “a life is a life” in this context. Seemed a strong stance, and I wondered how far they carried it.
Honestly, I don’t think eating meat is wrong, as long as you actually use it for food. But Killing for fun or for trophies is wrong because it’s wasting a life. It’s kind of a “use the whole buffalo” philosophy I Guess. I think factory farming is wrong,
I’m a big fan of lab grown meat,
I learn heavily towards seafood but I don’t abstain from red meat.Haha, we responded at like the same time lol. Wild.
And fair on all counts, but it does seem at odds to an “a life is a life” position, no?
Like, I’d assume you would be more upset if they were farming humans for meat than you are that they raise chickens and cows for meat, no?
And are you against all farming, or just factory farming? If an old school farmer raises a cow in a field, and then kills and eats it, is that acceptable?
And are fish’s lives not valuable? Less valuable than a chicken’s or a cow’s? It’s still a life, no?
I’m truly not trying to be combative. I’m actively trying to understand how to jive these two positions.
Nope
Fair. I’d be curious how you square that with the idea that “a life is a life”?
I don’t mean that in an accusatory way. It just seems like an inherent contradictions to me.
And to be clear, not that you’d save your cat over a stranger or enemy. Like, I know people who would save inanimate objects before either because the emotional connection is that strong
I mean more in the abstract that human and animal life are of equal value.
Like, would you support the farming of people to sell their meat at the grocery store? I’d assume not, but then it feels like a contradiction to me, and I’d be genuinely interested to hear how you square that circle.
I actually responded to your other comment here https://lemmy.world/comment/9530006
My cat and it’s not a hard decision
People have gotten weird about animals over the years. I adore my cat, don’t get me wrong, and would do everything in my power to save them, but like, it is still an animal at the end of the day.
In scenario one I can see saying cat if you actually wanted your worst enemy to die. Like, if you were fine with killing them without the cat in the balance, then yeah, of course.
But otherwise it’s the person, right? Animals have lower moral value than people, right? I mean, I’d be curious what percentage of people saying that they’d save their cat are vegetarian/vegan?
Yeah, you’re right. I find it strange that people here literally would prefer to save a cat over a human. Would they really let their friend burn over a cat? A stranger who likely has done nothing except work and be generally kind to others? I think that they who let the stranger burn, then have worse morality.
The question is bad because it features an animal the person is assumed to have a band with, and a stranger. I think a better example would be:
Who would you save in these scenarios:
- a bad (eg aggressive) cat, or your worst enemy,
- a cat, or a stranger,
- your cat, or your best friend
The closest thing I have to a worst enemy is the mother of my children, but my kids also really love my cat so I don’t know how I’d answer.
I would save YOUR cat before my worst enemy, and I don’t even like cats. Is that bad?
Theres a pretty short list of people I would like to see dead… trump, putin,un,mcconnell for examples… my dog definitely deserves life over those pathetic excuses for human beings
Oh yeah, if we’re doing politicians this becomes easier. For some reason I was thinking of personal, mutual enemy relationships.
