vidirg said:
Technically were animals, but most animals have there own ability, the human is just smarter than other animals.
Technically
we're animals, but most animals have
their own ability.
The human is just smarter than other animals.
It's funny. You can teach a gorilla how to communicate with humans using sign language and they can be shown to form coherent thought. Yet your average "smart" human cannot even use the correct form between "were" and "we're" or "there", "their", and "they're".
GrungyMunchy said:
People saying nothing separates us from animals must either be completely delusional or just aiming to be extremely political correct (yes, saying that people are the same as animals on the internet environment is PC). For starters, very few animals have shown the ability to recognize themselves on a fucking mirror, which is the most basic form of self-awareness. Second, while being able to show bits of empathy in some cases, their priorities are very definable in (and this is very important) every animal of each species: eat, fuck and survive. They don't have any more goals in life. They don't care about anything else. Every behavior you could confuse with a sense of morality in domestic animals can be easily explained by a combination of conditioning from their owners and instinct of protection. The idea that animals can actually invent something as trivial as a basic tool is laughable (yes animals can use sticks and such as tools but that's hardly relevant or comparable to an ability of inventing them, which is an extremely important distinction because inventing requires CREATIVITY and ABDUCTIVE REASONING, i.e. the ability to conclude something that hasn't been observed such as "if I carve this stone object to have a concave shape I will be able to scoop things"). Furthermore, they can't purposely make changes in their behavior without some kind of conditioning, they can't communicate in an abstract manner, and they can't change or decide consciously a hierarchy between them (which is easily proved by the way that every group of a species behaves in the same way between them in any given point of the world).
Saying people are the same as animals isn't being humble, is just being in denial. Watching what people have achieved on their own, let alone the simple fact that they can ask themselves "WHY" makes every argument against this irrelevant.
You too. There is no such thing as "ABDUCTIVE REASONING", mostly because "abductive" is not a word. Perhaps you meant "deductive" reasoning?
Using a stick you pick up off the ground to complete a task is called an implement. Many animals have demonstrated the ability to use implements, and is in fact the first step into creating tools. It took humans tens of thousands of years of playing with rocks to doing anything else. So why don't you stop acting like you're brilliant when I'm willing to bet you wouldn't even be able to make your own stone tools, should all contemporary technology be rendered inoperable.
Also, animals do in fact have hierarchy. Same as humans. A leader is always elected for the group. In other animals it tends to be an Alpha Male, one that has in someway shown itself as the most able to lead others. You still see this in humans. Bullies in schoolyards, leaders of gangs, kings, and even politics. Why do you think its referred to as a "political race". Each candidate is competing for the leadership of the group.
Ask for "asking themselves why". Why not share with us some of your philosophical thoughts on the workings of the universe? And explain just how you're so sure that other animals have in deed not been able to think. Have you personally watched every second of animal behavior on Earth? How do you know other animals haven't thought "why" and then answered to themselves "ignorance is bliss. perhaps I will live harmoniously with nature in health instead of poisoning my environment with waste and by-products."
A bit exaggerated, yes. But still, you have no proof that indicates one way or another that some other species of animal have not had moments of self-awareness. Do you label non-sociable children as not showing signs of self-awareness? No, you label them self-aware simply because they're human. Just as you label other animals not self-aware because they are NOT human.
