Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

No wildlife species, especially a migratory one shared in common by many nations, can withstand commercial hunting without end. In the United States, we learned this lesson just in time to rescue our migratory waterfowl and other prized game species from oblivion at the beginning of the 20th century.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Sharks United States 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 16, 2011

To the Editor: Re “ Snake Owners See Furry Bias in Invasive Species Proposal ” (news article, Jan. In addition to the effects of these invasive species on ecosystems, there are also compelling humane and public safety arguments for restricting trade.

New York Times 40

New York Times Wayne Pacelle Humane Society Of The United States New York 40

Animal Ethics

OCTOBER 23, 2008

To the Editor: “ Watching the Numbers and Charting the Losses—of Species ,” by Verlyn Klinkenborg (Editorial Observer, Oct. 15), is precisely on the mark regarding the urgency and importance of today’s plant and animal extinction crisis. Once the world’s threatened species are gone, no amount of money can bring them back.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York United States Arlington 40

Animal Ethics

OCTOBER 10, 2008

7): Man’s activity, whether through global warming, overhunting or clearing of habitat, has led to the loss of species at a rate that would have been unimaginable 100 years ago. But isn’t it enough to save other species because of our respect for all other forms of life, even if in doing so we do not directly benefit?

New York Times 40

New York Times New York 2008 Mammals 40

Animal Ethics

APRIL 25, 2009

Wolves are an indicator species not just ecologically, but symbolically as well, a connection to a time when humans were one species among many, and a reminder that we are one small part of a larger world. Wolves provide us with an opportunity to discover whether we can coexist with another species, rather than destroying it.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Wolves 2009 40

Animal Ethics

JULY 15, 2008

In the most alienated form of theriophobia, the beasts themselves were seen as animated by devils, and man's extermination of the beasts and of "savages" (bestial men) was carried on as part of God's war against Satan. The well-spring of theriophobia is thus fear of self, and its central mechanism is projection.

Pigs 40

Pigs Dolphins Slaughter Slaughtered 40

Animal Ethics

JUNE 8, 2008

Equal interests must be equally respected, without regard to the species of the creatures whose interests they are. One may treat two creatures differently because one is less sensitive than the other to some kind of suffering, but two equally sensitive creatures may not be treated differently merely because they belong to different species.

Speciesism 40

Speciesism Suffering Dogs Species 40

Animal Ethics

MAY 27, 2007

To the Editor: Your overture in “ My Dear Fellow Species ” (Week in Review, May 20) to the 150th anniversary celebration of Charles Darwin’s “Origin of Species” through his letters is a fine attempt to briefly summarize his personality.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Psychology 2007 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 1, 2008

The preciousness of individual deer, as of any other specimen, is inversely proportional to the population of the species. Baird Callicott , "Animal Liberation: A Triangular Affair," Environmental Ethics 2 [winter 1980]: 311-38, at 326 [ footnote omitted])

Animal Liberation 40

Animal Liberation Morals Ethics Deer 40

Animal Ethics

MAY 30, 2008

Here is a New York Times editorial opinion about the removal of the gray wolf ( Canis lupus ) from the endangered-species list. The editorial board of the Times is intellectually dishonest, so please don't let this be your only source of information about the delisting. Here , for example, is a news release from the U.S.

Wolves 40

Wolves Idaho New York Times Endangered Species 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 27, 2011

What is the optimal temperature for the alleviation of suffering, for both humans and sentient nonhuman animals? How many different species of animal or plant would there be if the globe warmed, as opposed to how many there are today? What is the optimal temperature for food production?

Laws 40

Laws Suffering Humane Animal 40

Animal Ethics

APRIL 15, 2007

To the Editor: Re “ Japan’s Whaling Obsession ” (editorial, April 1): Japan strongly supports the international protection of endangered whale species and advocates for the sustainable harvest of species in abundance only.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Whales Whaling 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 31, 2011

It is only the prejudice of our species that justifies culling the deer population while protecting our own. But whether with a flintlock or a modern rifle, hunting cruelly takes the life of a living, sentient being that has as much right to live as any hunter or writer. EISENMAN Highland Park, Ill.,

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Mountain Lions Deer 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 30, 2012

These favor common law personhood, as a matter of liberty, at least for those nonhuman animals, such as chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, orangutans, dolphins, and whales, who possess such highly advanced cognitive abilities as consciousness, perhaps even self-consciousness; a sense of self; and the abilities to desire and act intentionally.

Rights 40

Rights For Animals Legislation Laws 40

Animal Ethics

JULY 7, 2009

Now, although it is plausible that adult animals of some very intelligent species, e.g., dolphins and chimpanzees, have such a concept, it is not clear that adult animals of other species do and it is very likely that young infants of any species do not.

Morals 40

Morals Vegetarian Suffering Killing 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 28, 2008

24) regarding the dangers of eating bluefin tuna because of high levels of mercury did not mention (as The Times has done on previous occasions) another, equally compelling reason to avoid consuming the meat of this fish: the bluefin tuna has been so overexploited that the species is on the brink of extinction. To the Editor: Both your Jan.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York 2008 Meat 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 27, 2008

Man, said the ancient philosophers, is a rational animal. Animal: genus; common denominator of man and beast. Rational: species; the principle distinguishing man from beast. The preference for differentiation at the species level is an unjustified presupposition of the philosophic tradition. True Irrationality.

Dolphins 40

Dolphins Non Human Humane Morals 40

Animal Ethics

JULY 28, 2008

Animals in nature don’t need to be controlled by a species that has such difficulty in controlling itself. Predator control (yet more killing by our government in the service of ranchers) is to blame for any overpopulation of herbivores. And no, the mustangs do not need birth control. Let them go, and let them be.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Horses Oregon 40

Animal Ethics

APRIL 23, 2008

The United Methodist Church supports the humane treatment of farm animals and calls for the protection of endangered species. The Episcopal Church embraces a resolution that specifically addresses puppy mills and factory farms. The Assemblies of God position on stewardship reflects that of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.

New York Times 40

New York Times Humane Society Of The United States New York Puppy Mills 40

Animal Ethics

AUGUST 19, 2007

It is an animated website aimed at educating and inspiring children about endangered species, and all of our characters actually exist in a real-life camp in Tanzania which protects black rhino and wild African hunting dogs. We’re going to go and have an in-depth look this morning, in the meantime, please take a look at our website.

Rhinos 40

Rhinos Tanzania Endangered Species Protection 40

Animal Ethics

MARCH 20, 2008

b) The belief that the human species, along with all other species, are integral elements in a system of interdependence such that the survival of each living thing, as well as its chances of faring well or poorly, is determined not only by the physical conditions of its environment but also by its relations to other living things.

Rights 40

Rights Ethics Humane Animal 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 9, 2008

Sarah Palin of Alaska—that the Fish and Wildlife Service should not list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act because science doesn’t support doing so—doesn’t persuade. Eric Chivian Boston, Jan. 7, 2008 The writer is director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment , Harvard Medical School.

New York Times 40

New York Times Polar Bears New York Bears 40

Animal Ethics

MARCH 29, 2008

Migratory birds protect forests and crops from insect pests; butterflies, bats and other migratory species are important pollinators. Indeed, migratory animals are useful indicators of the health of the global environment; their safe passage is in our best interest. The loss of migration is of more than aesthetic importance.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York United States illegal 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 2, 2011

Yet another application is that members of the human species who are not persons, even by virtue of their potentiality, still ought to be treated, in some respects at least, as if they were persons.

Morals 40

Morals Vegetarian Suffering Non Human 40

Animal Ethics

MAY 6, 2008

If we ascribe rights to babies on the basis of their potential rationality, we thereby deny rights to animals, for animals are not even potentially rational. Babies may not be rational, but they're similar in many other respects to "other members of our species." Similarity.

Animal 40

Animal Animal Rights For Animals Rights 40

Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 12, 2008

Concern for animal (and plant) rights and well-being is as fundamental to the land ethic as to the humane ethic, but the difference between naturally evolved and humanly bred species is an essential consideration for the one, though not for the other. (

Ethics 40

Ethics Animal Liberation Whales Whaling 40

Animal Ethics

FEBRUARY 5, 2010

Is it to extend, in some degree, to the interests of individuals belonging to other species than [our] own? One cannot reasonably be called upon to love even one's neighbor quite as oneself. Is love to diminish inversely as the square of the distance? One thinks also of unborn generations.

2000 40

2000 Morals Vivisection Science 40

Animal Ethics

DECEMBER 12, 2006

To the Editor: Re “ Ebola Imperils Gorilla Species in Congo Republic ” (news article, Dec. Historically, these diseases have been studied only when they affect human populations or domestic animals.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Gorillas Congo 40

Animal Ethics

JANUARY 17, 2008

Why does the Bush administration think that it is wrong for the Japanese to kill whales but permissible for the U.S.

Whales 40

Whales Whaling Los Angeles Mammals 40

Animal Ethics

MARCH 8, 2009

Or suppose that by genetic engineering we could develop a milk-producing animal that became sick when it had the milk removed by members of other species, e.g., human beings. On the above definitions the wool and the milk of such animals would not be animal products.

Vegetarian 40

Vegetarian Morals Suffering Vegan 40

Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 24, 2009

Such an obligation would make us the protectors of all species, and the destroyers of every ecosystem on earth. If we are not justified in eating mackerel ourselves, are we not also morally obligated to stop the slaughter brought on by the tuna? David Peters New York, Nov.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York Vegan Vegetarian 40

Animal Ethics

MAY 6, 2009

Animal species per se is not a morally relevant distinction. Consequently, nonvegetarians are not on firm ground if they justify killing and eating animals simply on the ground that the animals are not humans. But is species suicide really necessary? This argument of the vegetarian has a point.

Morals 40

Morals Vegetarian Speciesism Killing 40

Animal Ethics

JULY 17, 2008

Note that this distinction does not make Singer a speciesist, since it is not species that makes the difference. While self-consciousness may be correlated with species, it is not identical to it. Self-consciousness is morally significant; species, like race or sex, is not. It is self-consciousness.

Morals 40

Morals Pigs Killing Humane 40

Animal Ethics

FEBRUARY 15, 2009

One might first ask, “Why does higher intelligence mean that one species is more valuable than other species?” Second, there are other species besides human beings that have high intelligence, e.g., chimpanzees and dolphins. What should our moral attitude be toward eating members of these species?

Morals 40

Morals Vegetarian Meat Killing 40

Animal Ethics

FEBRUARY 25, 2008

And it is not just at the slaughterhouses but at the factory farms where these animals are tortured from the very beginning of their lives to the horrible end. What we do to animals shows how we feel about other species. Indeed, we have not come far from Upton Sinclair’s “ Jungle.” Bertha Rogers Delhi, N.Y.,

New York Times 40

New York Times New York 2008 Factory Farm 40

Animal Ethics

NOVEMBER 29, 2006

Never mind that the bulk of the fat in Starbucks's beverages comes from the milk -- yes, milk ! -- of another species. Never mind that restrooms aren't the most sanitary of places to feed one's baby. Apparently, at these Starbucks stores, while hormone-laced bovine mammary fluid is good to go, human mammary fluid has got to go.

Animal 40

Animal Meat Cows District of Columbia 40

Animal Ethics

SEPTEMBER 8, 2012

Unless we start taking wildlife crime seriously and allocate the resources necessary to tackle a sophisticated and well-financed global criminal network, elephants and other charismatic species will continue their tragic slide into oblivion. 4, 2012 The writer is vice president for species conservation at the Wildlife Conservation Society.

New York Times 40

New York Times New York South Korea New York City 40