Are humans and animals equal?

NO. We are specil because of the opposable thumb.

Actually, I have the view that I do because I was raised Christian, and was taught that humans hae dominion over the animals of the earth. But, being that I am no longer Christian, it is a view I may need to re-consider at some point. I have not done so yet because it has not occured to me, and because I am trying to see so many things in a new light, and deal with so many similar ideas that fill my head. Figured I"d do good to start treating gays and lesbians like humans, before I worked on animals. But, now that I fully support gay rights, and am tolerant of people with other beliefs, perhaps it is time...

Blessings!

Being equal is defined in many different ways and most Americans would define this term as one's intellectual capability. What is rarely taken into account however is the fact that animals have many senses and abilities that humans lack. Examples include night vision, amazing sense of smell and ability to run super fast. When one answers this question with a clear, straight "no" they are deciding that humans are actually better than animals simply because they are able to speak and reason. However, if this were applied to all questions of equality, a severely mentally retarded human or a human baby would be less equal to a fully capable adult. That is not fair and does not make sense. As a 17 year old vegan, I feel that it is important for humans to remember the special abilities that animals have and keep in mind that animals feel pain and joy just as humans do. If possessing special abilities and feeling were to define equality then yes, animals and humans would be equal. However, this is not the common definition and obviously a human would be quick to save the dying baby before the dying puppy. All I really mean is that "equality" can be defined in many ways and your definition of this term will find the answer for you.

I don't think anyone can answer this without knowing what animals think. Maybe animals are more highly evolved than humans. Think about it, we have to move our mouth and tongue and make sound to communicate, a waste of time. Animals; dolphins for example, can communicate with very little effort. Maybe talking is not an important evolution.

Maybe being heard and understood without speech is the real evolution. No, humans and animals are not equal. Humans will say they are better than a population they practically know nothing of. Who wants to be part of that? And don't you scientists start jumping on me. We don't know what a dog thinks. We don't know. If anything animals are better than humans. Or to play is safe, we are both equal. Think what you will, but remeber the biggest wrong ever is to be human. Yes, I know I'm a hypocrite lol.

Thank you for your time. Please consider this.

Yes, we are equal in value though we all have different abilities and functions on earth. Those who say we are not, I will give a true example of what happened in my family to prove my point. My parents gave birth to one intelligent, successful child who is now a medical doctor and another child who was born so severely brain deficient that he had no voluntary control over his muscles -he couldn't even swallow on his own. He was deaf, blind and had daily convulsions. My mother had to spoon feed him baby food and wait for an involuntary movement in his throat that would allow the food to go down his throat. My dog, that is a very loved and valued family member, has more intelligence and ability to function than my almost brain-dead brother did. Until the day he died, my brother had no cognitive ability.

So I ask you, how can you possibly say humans are superior to animals? And please don't make the lame excuse "Because God/the Bible says so."Anyone who has studied history knows that religion is created by those who have the most power over others.

The word equal has many facets much like a diamond. Both Animals and Humans have many, many intrensic abilities and gifts that are not shared by both species.

For example, trained search dogs have an extremely powerful and advanced sense of smell and they could pick up a scent with only a few microns of scent particulate in the air and on the ground and trees.

Cats have a highly developed vision system that allows them to see in practically total darkness. Their hearing is highly advanced and the ancient eqyptians used cats as watch cats in that they can hear things not possible for a human being to hear.

Many of the Chinese Martial Arts fighting styles are built around animal forms as well as insects in the Praying Mantis forms of Kung Fu Fighting. These forms are studied in the manner animals fight and are highly effective in winning with their movements and advanced fighting abilities. There are very colorful descriptive names such as, " White Crane Spreads its wings", and " Eagle Claw Strike", as well as "Cobra Strike" to mention a few.

And as well, we humans can do some things animals cannot or perhaps are wise enough to not want to do.

I will just leave it at that.

In summary, again, the word equal does not exactly qualify as there are way to many variables involved.

I have the view that I do, by studing the oriental Animal forms and fight systems that speak very highly of our friends in the Animal Kingdom and comprise many of the Kung Fu movements in the various fight systems and styles.

Again I commend you on showing your intelect not by the answers you give, but rather, by the advanced questions you ask.

Darryl S.

I adore animals, i really do. i think we are equal. we all have our own cultures, in various degrees and complexities but we all do. we all do the same basic things, eat, have offspring, care for offspring, try to live the best we can... humans and animals are equal. a person who has pets and loves can easily see this, i have 4 doggies (it saddens me so much cause i had 5 one got hit by a car, i miss that girl so much, i will always love her) and in my doggies i see how wonderful and diverse their personalities are. i see their love for me, i see their happiness, i see their routines... i adore animals.. btw i am an atheist.

edit: i think its ridiculous what some say that we are on the top of the food chain. no we aren't i bet if that person was in desert of africa or the jungles of india he/she would NOT be on top of the food chain... probably become last. also the theist thats ridiculous yes in the bible it says that animals were made for humans but in another part it says that humans and animals are equal. i dont remember the verse exact location but its there. besides the bible is full of contradictions. and to the people that say animals are dumb they obviously dont know much about animals. look at chimps they teach other to hunt, to use tools like using sticks to get bugs out of tiny holes.. the only person that would say animals are dumb is an ignorant person that obviously never took the time to read or observe animal behavior.

I tend to believe that both are equal, except in physical ability. Many religious people claim that animals live only by instinct, but that simply cannot be the case when you actually observe animal behavior. They have and express emotions just as we do, such as being happy while playing with siblings or mourning the loss of a loved one. Neither of those can be categorized as simply "instinct" as each requires recognition of a bond that unites either being shared or lost. They learn as they go along, just as we do. The main difference is how we communicate and pass knowledge. With opposable thumbs and the ability to write, we are able to pass knowledge from generation to generation with the only losses of information being due to the ability of the writer to clearly articulate and express what it is that they are trying to pass on. We are able to build upon our ideas, and look up the ideas of others to better make our environments suitable for ourselves and ensure the survival of our species. Animals, without the ability to write and record ideas and knowledge, must strictly continue along the evolutionary path in order to adapt to their environment and ensure the survival of their species.

Edit: One more thing to consider, the fact that although we eat other animals, we need to develop and enact ways of protecting ourselves from being eaten, just as every other animal. Those who say we are at the top of the food chain are fooling themselves, and would have a very hard time arguing that point to a pack of hungry mountain lions (which are known to eat a few humans every year. All things being equal (i.e. having nothing to protect yourself with except the body you are born in), a human is a meal for a lion, just as a pig or chicken is a meal for a human.

I'm a Christian.

I believe animal and humans come closest to being equals only when humans are at the height of their depravity.

And even then, humans are still a most distinctive brand of animal as they have an insatiable appetite for destruction for which there is no equal in the whole of creation.

Yes I think animals and humans are equal because we both have a life to enjoy! Also we help each other! Were both living! This world would not survive without animals and humans! Animals and humans has special things!

no living creature is less important than another. what we sometimes fail to understand is the balance of all living things on the planet and what we are currently doing to the planet/environment is disturbing that balance.

like a lot of people have already said though, is correct, in that human beings have the ability to Learn and develop. We have shown this by our society and civilisation over the last 5000 years.

Our ability to be able to think before we act, makes us special and more importantly, our ability to care for the wellbeing of other human beings and living creatures puts us above all creatures on the planet in that respect.

However, because we are special, means we have a greater burden in that we must ensure protection against all harm for all living things.