Let that image sink in for a moment. The most important part of the body is the brain...according to the brain.
Some of you might be thinking, "Well, duh!" But really think about it. If some other organ were responsible for generating thought and decision-making? Wouldn't that organ tell us - tell itself - that it is the most important organ? Wouldn't it say, "Yeah, those other organs are important but not without me"?
Okay, now apply that same methodology to humans. Don't human beings believe we are the most important species on the planet? How can the species making the decisions be allowed to choose itself as most important? That would be like J. Lo voting for herself on American Idol. The judge should not be allowed to participate in the contest.
In business, they call it a conflict of interest. The same person cannot represent the interests of more than one party, because there will always be a bias.
That is what speciesism is really all about...the bias that humans carry into the animal world. Humans tell themselves they are the most important without having a valid argument other than, "because we said so."
How can anyone even stand behind that argument?
My understanding of why most people believe this is two fold.
First, humans are the only species who communicate at the same level as ourselves. We cannot effectively communicate with any other species in the same manner in which they communicate. In the human mind, that means those other species are inferior; which ultimately leads to the notion of "different equals inferior." (Is there any wonder slavery has been such an issue for so many centuries? If different is synonymous with inferior, then all of those inferior beasts need to be subjugated. Ridiculous.)
Secondly, we have the amazing books supposedly dictating the word of supernatural beings who granted humans the right to call themselves superior to all other animals. If that belief is part of your religious doctrine, fine. I have no right to attempt to sway you any other direction. (But I'm still going to make my argument.)
Every living creature on the planet is equal to every other living creature. To believe otherwise is to engage in speciesism. Just like racism is believing that people of other races are inferior to one's own, or ageism is believing that people of a different age bracket from one's own are inferior, believing that a fish or a mosquito, or a tree is inferior simply because we cannot perceive any level of intelligence similar to our own is considered speciesism.
The truth is, other forms of life on our planet may not match the intelligence level of human beings at all. But to simply dismiss this as fact out of hand because their anatomy is physically different is ridiculous, and to simply destroy other forms of life, calling it okay because they are inferior, is dangerous at best.
The short-term effects of depopulation may seem minute when compared to ourselves, but the long-term effects can only be detrimental.
The bottom line is this: don't simply make the assumption that something is inferior because, either, that's what you've always believed, or that's what you've been told. Stop and think about why you believe such a thing.
