tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post8114180995561978492..comments2017-09-19T09:14:37.492-04:00Comments on Intelligent Life is All Around Us: Are Insects Conscious?Craig A.http://www.blogger.com/profile/14830290282849594120noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-9838091168538425112011-07-13T23:09:28.738-04:002011-07-13T23:09:28.738-04:00As I have a real phobia of bees and wasps I find i...As I have a real phobia of bees and wasps I find it frightening that there is a possibility that they are consciously aware of my existence!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-311095161977541532010-10-04T15:57:16.779-04:002010-10-04T15:57:16.779-04:00I am a firm believer that all creatures great and ...I am a firm believer that all creatures great and small have as much right to live on this planet as you and I and are on this planet for a purpose, and to knowingly kill life for anything else other than consumption is very wrong, I'm sure this point could also be argued as wrong be pure vegetarians. Pests in the home are a common problem, people are quick to kill them with off the shelf products. I'm sure that if natural alternatives which are just as effective were made common knowledge, more people would use them. These age old repellents can be found in the kitchen pantry in most cases, and the best part of this is that there is no killing involved! just for the record I used talcum powder to cover the ant track leading to my dustbin, with a little help by physically capturing any scouting ants out on their mission to find food and chucking them out into the garden. Within 1 week they were gone for good. There are lots of ways to get rid of unwanted insects in the home which don't involve killing. All life have value! I wish more people would think twice before squishing a bug. Kam.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18233450739151505303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-43482771344259820032010-04-23T17:43:07.035-04:002010-04-23T17:43:07.035-04:00I think what you said is similar to what I often s...I think what you said is similar to what I often say, that family members will sometimes do things to each other that strangers would not even consider. Obviously all family members are not evil, but when one does cause suffering, I think it's a result of opportunity as well as not seeing the other person as an equal.<br /><br />Most people are at least somewhat receptive to the idea that animals think and have feelings. But perception is definitely colored by what we are taught, and (for one example) Descartes' "biological machine" concept is still being taught, and it even influences the way human infants are treated. It definitely strikes me as institutionalized egocentricity.<br /><br />I am so glad you said my blog is opening your eyes to the richness of animal sentience. That's what I'm all about. :)Craig A.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14830290282849594120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-21880624245763109502010-04-21T15:07:46.430-04:002010-04-21T15:07:46.430-04:00Your blog is opening my eyes to the richness of an...Your blog is opening my eyes to the richness of animal sentience. Thank you a lot. As to creating suffering, the causes are multiple and still mainly unknown, because suffering as such is still an utterly neglected topic in science... It seems to me that it is usually within a human (or gorilla, or rat, etc.) family that most socially produced suffering occurs, and therefore I would hesitate to attribute human callousness toward animals to a lack of recognition that they are 'like us'. But perhaps our innate egocentricity makes us, too often, unaware of others’ sentience...Robert Daousthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03716720876537360714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-14598314226285094792010-04-20T10:44:07.655-04:002010-04-20T10:44:07.655-04:00Thank you for your kind words. The underlying aim ...Thank you for your kind words. The underlying aim of this blog is to reduce animal suffering at the hands of humans, by showing that they are as conscious, aware, and emotional as you or me. Lack of understanding leads directly to creating suffering.<br /><br />Insect consciousness certainly expands the definition of "sentient animals", doesn't it?<br /><br />I've had a look at some of the articles on your blog, and I see that you frequently deal with religious issues, such as "hell". I've deliberately mostly avoided that, but I wonder if that's something I should change.Craig A.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14830290282849594120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30928966.post-27620053320387112562010-04-20T01:00:08.581-04:002010-04-20T01:00:08.581-04:00Thanks for pointing out the great article! I inclu...Thanks for pointing out the great article! I included some of the same quotations in a <a href="http://reducing-suffering.blogspot.com/2010/04/research-on-insect-consciousness.html" rel="nofollow">post</a> on my own blog.<br /><br />I think research on insect consciousness is highly important, because if insects are conscious, it has major ramifications for the amount of <a href="http://www.utilitarian-essays.com/suffering-nature.html" rel="nofollow">suffering that exists in the wild</a>. I'd like to see more support of the types of projects described in the article. And of course, I thank you for publicizing such findings (for insects and other animals) on this blog!Brian Tomasikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10510289096715716609noreply@blogger.com