1. THREAD: Humankind's relationship with animals (Although not absolutely linear and certainly overlapping, this list is relatively decrescendoing with respect to empathy and stewardship):
A. Loving them
B. Healing them (medically, emotionally, repopulating, etc.)
A. Loving them
B. Healing them (medically, emotionally, repopulating, etc.)
2/
C. Supporting them and repairing/healing their habitats
D. Therapy animals
E. Medical assistants (predicting seizures and diabetic emergencies, melanoma detection, etc.)
F. Learning empathy from them (up-regulation of our empathy)
G. Make them our pets
C. Supporting them and repairing/healing their habitats
D. Therapy animals
E. Medical assistants (predicting seizures and diabetic emergencies, melanoma detection, etc.)
F. Learning empathy from them (up-regulation of our empathy)
G. Make them our pets
3/
H. Creativity teachers (cross-pollination of ideas, direct copying their 'technology', etc.)
I. Tolerate them (i.e., you stay in over there/I'll stay over here)
J. Removing their habitat
H. Creativity teachers (cross-pollination of ideas, direct copying their 'technology', etc.)
I. Tolerate them (i.e., you stay in over there/I'll stay over here)
J. Removing their habitat
4/
K. Make them our servants (Transportation, plowing fields, guards, hunting assistants, etc.)
L. Domesticate them for dairy, wool, etc.
M. Kill them in defense (kill or be killed/kill or be harmed)
N. Kill them so our crops or our domesticated livestock won't be harmed/killed
K. Make them our servants (Transportation, plowing fields, guards, hunting assistants, etc.)
L. Domesticate them for dairy, wool, etc.
M. Kill them in defense (kill or be killed/kill or be harmed)
N. Kill them so our crops or our domesticated livestock won't be harmed/killed
5/
O. Kill them/domesticate them for food, leather, soap, etc.
P. Kill them for fuel (whale oil, etc.)
Q. Kill them for rituals (religious sacrifices)
R. Kill them for jewelry/adornments
O. Kill them/domesticate them for food, leather, soap, etc.
P. Kill them for fuel (whale oil, etc.)
Q. Kill them for rituals (religious sacrifices)
R. Kill them for jewelry/adornments
6/
S. Kill them for false beliefs of powers (tusks, horns, fins, feathers, etc.)
T. Kill them for sport (rationalization of bloodlust)
S. Kill them for false beliefs of powers (tusks, horns, fins, feathers, etc.)
T. Kill them for sport (rationalization of bloodlust)
7/ THOUGHT-EXPERIMENT: If, suddenly, we found ourselves to NOT be the dominant species on our planet/solar system ...
8/ — which *will absolutely happen* by our own design in the relatively near-future with super-intelligent AI robots — or perhaps one day, an extraterrestrial species, where would we want to be placed on this same hierarchy?
9/ Should we not extend that same courtesy to the animal kingdom — for which we are their stewards?
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