Lukas_Gloor comments on Arguments Against Speciesism - Less Wrong

28 Post author: Lukas_Gloor 28 July 2013 06:24PM

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Comment author: Qiaochu_Yuan 29 July 2013 12:01:06AM *  13 points [-]

I strongly object to the term "speciesism" for this position. I think it promotes a mindkilled attitude to this subject ("Oh, you don't want to be speciesist, do you? Are you also a sexist? You pig?").

Comment author: Lukas_Gloor 29 July 2013 12:07:33AM 12 points [-]

You pig?

Speciesist language, not cool!

Haha! Anyway, I agree that it promotes mindkilled attitude (I'm often reading terrible arguments by animal rights people), but on the other hand, for those who agree with the arguments, it is a good way to raise awareness. And the parallels to racism or sexism are valid, I think.

Comment author: Zvi 29 July 2013 01:07:49PM 11 points [-]

Haha only serious. My brain reacts with terror to that reply, with good reason: It has been trained to. You're implicitly threatening those who make counter-arguments with charges of every ism in the book. The number of things I've had to erase because one "can't" say them without at least ending any productive debate, is large.

Comment author: Vaniver 29 July 2013 01:20:19AM 10 points [-]

Haha! Anyway, I agree that it promotes mindkilled attitude (I'm often reading terrible arguments by animal rights people), but on the other hand, for those who agree with the arguments, it is a good way to raise awareness.

I don't think that's a "but on the other hand;" I think that's a "it is a good way to raise awareness because it promotes mindkilled attitude."

Comment author: SaidAchmiz 29 July 2013 02:30:13AM 2 points [-]

Actually, I think it's precisely the parallels to racism and sexism that are invalid. Perhaps ableism? That's closer, at any rate, if still not really the same thing.