Are humans "higher" than the animal kingdom? Furthermore, can animals choose ev

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   savvydatingposted 9 years ago

   Are humans "higher" than the animal kingdom?  Furthermore, can animals choose evil over love?
   
   This is a two-part question. I've come across a few who believe that evil does NOT exist, that we are the same as animals---the logic being that evil is a choice. But, do animals choose evil?  Is there not something in humans that causes us to make "higher" choices (sometimes) as opposed to the insinctive "choices" that animals make to remain extant? And does that not make us different and "higher" than the animal kingdom?

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   chuckandus6posted 9 years ago

   I think we are more intelligent than animals but not more important or higher than them. there are certain instincts but like humans they are more than just that.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you, Nichol marie.It sounds like you're an animal lover.

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      chuckandus6posted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I do like animals, but we actually don't have any pets.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I hear you, Nichol. Either do I, but it's not because I don't like them.

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   M. T. Dremerposted 9 years ago

   There is a quote by Mark Twain that goes "The fact that man knows right from wrong proves his intellectual superiority to the other creatures; but the fact that he can do wrong proves his moral inferiority to any creatures that cannot."
   
   What I get from this is that homo sapiens have evolved a higher knowledge over other animals. But, just because we have more intelligence, it doesn't make us morally or ethically superior. The best we can claim is that we're at the top of the food chain.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, Mark Twain was quite the philosopher. A good point you've made here, M.T. Dremer. I am not making a judgement about the morality of animals. Just questioning our being "the same."

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   Amanda6868posted 9 years ago

   The Bible says that humans are higher than the animals and are more intelligent.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I'll have to look up the verse. I know the Bible says higher, but I don't remember the part about intelligence. Thanks, Amanda.

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   feenixposted 9 years ago

   All I know is, I do not approve of any animal being confined in a zoo. On the other hand, however, there are a whole lot of human beings that I would like to see locked up in zoos.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Well, there are a number of people "locked up." They would probably like it better at the zoo. Thanks for chiming in, feenix.

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   Michele Rubatinoposted 8 years ago

   I am a horse whisperer, that means I learned Equus language and am able to communicate with horses. In my education we were taught through experience with the animals they have no ego, that sense of right or wrong. They live in the now, and simply live on survival instinct. Those that believe we are the same as animals are simply illiterate, and have no real education or knowledge of communicating with animals. In my work as a horse whisperer, my issues were never with the animal, it was always in training the human that had no ability to communicate correctly with the animal, causing the animal to act out in many odd ways. Cesar Milan a dog whisperer also states the same thing in his line of work. He does not train dogs, he trains humans how to communicate with dogs.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      What a fascinating occupation, Michele! Thank you for sharing your personal knowledge about animals vs. humans. I couldn't agree with you more. Your thoughtful and succinct answer also tells me you understood my question. True...Cesar is a wise man.

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   moonfrothposted 8 years ago

   1]  I do not see how an animal could commit an 'evil' act.  Evil is an abstract concept, an intellectual construct in LANGUAGE which enables human beings to discuss, think about, worry over...whatever...in the absence of the kinds of acts that, cumulatively, led to the 'definition' in the first place.  "In the absence of. . ."--there's the key.  Human language is a coding system which enables us to deal with concepts in our heads, store them and transmit them in media to each other across vast distances and over measureless amounts of time.  Can't remember who said it, but "thinking is sub-vocal TALKING" sums up this extraordinary invention of the human race.  To my knowledge, no animal, from slugs to whales to wolves to vultures to muskrats
   2]  "Evil is a choice."--what utter nonsense.  The reason you even asked the question is tha Evil is NOT a choice--it is a force in the world.  If Evil did not exist we would have no reason for a God, there never would have been a need for a Jesus, and Christianity would not exist.  I wrote a Hub on all this a couple of years ago called, God Created Evil--the Irreparable Flaw in Christian Thought.  Hubpages rules prohibit me from giving you the URL, but you can find it if you want.

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      savvydatingposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I agree that animals are not evil and do not choose evil. They are instinctual. A human who cares about having a higher consciousness can strive to be other than merely instinctual. Your hub does give more space to discuss your premise... Thanks, CC.

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