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Soleron on 23 August 2008
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Million said:
Soleron said:
Milton:
but people that argue self-awareness or thinking ability makes an organism any less of a life are being extremley ignorant.

 

 

So, all organisms are equal ("no less of a life")? Bacteria have just as much a right to life as a human being? You kill thousands of bacteria every day because they aren't self-aware. By your own definition, that makes you just as bad as a mass human murderer.

How is a single-cell-stage human embryo different from a single bacterium cell? You're being speciesist and biased towards humanity if you think there's a difference.

There has to be a distinction, and the point where it is unacceptable to abort should be decided on a case-by-case basis considering the opinion of scientists, medical experts and the parents.

 

 

I never said all organmisms are equal I believe that human beings are in a sense superior beings but we should have a respect for other living creatures.

Because of their thinking ability and self-awareness, perhaps?

I said that a lack of thinking ability doesn't make you less of a living being but I wasn't making a generalisation I was refering directly to single stage cell humans , a singe-cell-stage human being and a single bacterium can't be judged on the same basis as they are far from the same thing

Biologically and chemically, no. Individual bacteria can be more distinct from on another than bacteria from humans. The difference is "potential", which I will address below.

, a single cell stage human being has the potential to become a fully developed human being , why would killing a single cell stage human being not be the same as killing a fully developed one , given the time and care it's innevitable that the prior will become the latter.

Yes, and my cheese mould, given time and care, would evolve into sentient beings too. If I turn left at a given junction rather than right, I will fail to meet potential partners and possible babies won't be conceieved. Also, most foetuses spontaneously abort and most sperm die before reaching an egg. If everything was argued from "potential", everyone would commit crimes every time they made another step. Unless you believe some higher-order being (God) predestined the universe and you are going against that by ending potential, then potential is not a sound position to argue from because given enough time, everything could become everything else. If you do believe in God, you have no right to impose that belief on the actions of others who do not share it.