I've always been intrigued by the level of intelligence displayed by other animals, especially when it's in a manner which is different than ours. I was watching a program last night on 48 Hours (I think) that proved, unequivocally, that animals (at least african elephants in this test) do in fact communicate, and not simply primal needs. It's been shown that collaborative hunting amongst predatory animals is a manifestation of some form of communication, yet, we are not perceptible to it. Why is it we feel that every indication of intelligence in ourselves is so superior to that of every other living thing? Some arguments I've heard...
- Adam and Eve were given a name by God, thus, we're superior, as animals were given general names like "cats", "dogs", ad nauseum. -- WTF?? This was actually an argument put forth by a rabbi, and was read to me by a friend of mine. I don't need to point out how absurd this statement is.
- Animals only act on primal instincts, they don't "reflect" on those instincts. When we're hungry, we "reflect" on our hunger, whereas an animal is simply hungry.
- Animals are unable to develop language. -- Again, wtf? Many studies have shown that animals communicate on frequencies that are not perceptible by the human ear, yet, it's not "language", therefore inferior to our own forms of communication.
Is the ability to oppress another what defines one to be superior? Why is it that these blind arguments are so largely put forward by religous zealots. It's been thought that we're the only animals who are able to acknowledge our own demise, so we have an overly active temporal lobe to facilitate a degree of "fantasy" that allows us to be more at peace with this fact. We conjure up thoughts of superiority, life after death, gold brick roads, and eternity in an our own Elysium, simply because the thought of living a life with absolutely no greater purpose terrifies us. Why? If anything, we're an abstraction of the primordial animal, and we've become nothing but lost in our own fantasy.
Done, for now. I'm sure this reads like an amalgamated set of arguments, but I had to get it all out. I'd like to hear some comments.
- Adam and Eve were given a name by God, thus, we're superior, as animals were given general names like "cats", "dogs", ad nauseum. -- WTF?? This was actually an argument put forth by a rabbi, and was read to me by a friend of mine. I don't need to point out how absurd this statement is.
- Animals only act on primal instincts, they don't "reflect" on those instincts. When we're hungry, we "reflect" on our hunger, whereas an animal is simply hungry.
- Animals are unable to develop language. -- Again, wtf? Many studies have shown that animals communicate on frequencies that are not perceptible by the human ear, yet, it's not "language", therefore inferior to our own forms of communication.
Is the ability to oppress another what defines one to be superior? Why is it that these blind arguments are so largely put forward by religous zealots. It's been thought that we're the only animals who are able to acknowledge our own demise, so we have an overly active temporal lobe to facilitate a degree of "fantasy" that allows us to be more at peace with this fact. We conjure up thoughts of superiority, life after death, gold brick roads, and eternity in an our own Elysium, simply because the thought of living a life with absolutely no greater purpose terrifies us. Why? If anything, we're an abstraction of the primordial animal, and we've become nothing but lost in our own fantasy.
Done, for now. I'm sure this reads like an amalgamated set of arguments, but I had to get it all out. I'd like to hear some comments.
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