It astounds me that people legitimately assume that the other animals on this planet don't feel pain. It seems incredibly obvious to me that they would, or that we should at least be assuming they would.
this post was submitted on 05 Dec 2024
27 points (100.0% liked)
Science
13051 readers
68 users here now
Studies, research findings, and interesting tidbits from the ever-expanding scientific world.
Subcommunities on Beehaw:
Be sure to also check out these other Fediverse science communities:
This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
They assume, at various times, even other humans arent human enough therefore the same concepts (such as pain & suffering) don't really apply.
It's a standard coping mechanism that might be necessary but it's definitely misused by humans for no other reason than greed (especially in times when scarcity isn't really a notable concern).
Half the population lacks the brain functions necessary to feel empathy. We call them conservatives in the US.
No, I'm not kidding
Evolution wise. It makes sense for animals that cannot regrow limbs.
But for some animals it can actually limit their survival.
Unfortunatly human history. Has a habit of deciding based on our needs. Rather then actual evidence.
Its also worth remembering pain is a mental rather then real thing.
So while some creatures may have the signals to inform. Thjoer mind may not respond to it on the same way.
As a human(i assume ;). If you have ever needed to use opiates you may have some idea how that would work.
pain is a mental thing
Yeah, ok, Muad'dib Aurelius. Pain has no physical cause or impact on the body?
It is a signal warning of harm.
Your response is mental. Hence when opiates like tramadol shut of the signa. Receptors you still feel the se station of pain. But do not suffer the same way.
Some pain responses are not mental. The easiest example is withdrawal reflexes. Reflexes don't make it all the way to the brain but use reflex arcs.
You have clearly never experienced extreme pain. The last time I suffered a severe shoulder dislocation was almost like an out-of-body experience. The pain overwhelmed the ability to form coherent thoughts, it was like an electrical storm in my brain. The intuitive motor system took complete control as I writhed around, limbs flinging in random directions. I heard someone scream at the top of his lungs, and only afterwards realised that it was me.
Pain absolutely does have a physical component, and it is not something you can overcome just by practicing meditation. Though, I'm not saying that doesn't help in some scenarios.
As much as I hate to see pain and suffering in the world, animals have no qualms about eating other animals alive.
We have the knowledge and ability to be better
But we can do so much better than that don't you think?
Animals also rape each other (and sometimes other species), kill the children of other fathers, urinate and shit wherever they want... To be logically consistent, you're also arguing that all of those things are fine for us to do too.
I said no such thing. Go pick a fight somewhere else, bud.
Unless I misinterpreted your argument, it seemed like you were justifying this practice based on the fact that other animals besides us inflict pain and suffering on other animals. If that is the core argument, then to be logically consistent, you'd have to also be ok with us doing everything else I mentioned.
I hope this knowledge leads people to be more kind to animals. These discussions are pretty laughable as we enter a new period of genocide and global warfare. People are cannibalistic monsters and the idea that they would change their behavior based on human suffering (let alone animal suffering) is constantly proven wrong. So really I don't think the debate here is whether other animals feel pain, but whether people should continue existing as a species to observe them.
I once had to put down a pet goldfish that was dying, and I did it the wrong way, and it was extremely traumatizing. I still feel bad about it and it's been 8 years.
I could tell it was in pain. Or it certainly seemed like it was suffering. I think we just need to observe animals more.
The only thing I struggle with is how to handle bugs. Especially when they become pests or are a risk of carrying disease. I'm curious if we can figure out a way to navigate that one day.