All creation has moral standing

Thank you Randall Balmer for this intelligent and thoughtful post.
Personally I am sick and tired of the largely white-man human animals being obsessed with their own species to the detriment of all of our other fellow animals. Human supremacism, ignorantly specist. Most humans are so scientifically ill-taught that they will not even admit to being animals.
Turns out we have the Human People, the Dolphin People, The Whale People, the Cow People, Dog People, etc.
The vested interests of the meat, livestock and fishing industries do their best to keep us all stupid and confused with regards to kind consideration for our non-human animal brothers and sisters. Eat meat you trash your body, eat beef you trash the land, eat fish you trash the oceans. Simplistic but truth there. Vego for the Planet then vegan is easy peasy no greasy or obesy.
The Golden Rule is still valid, but applies to all beings, not just to the boof-headed humans. Peter Singer for one explains that a person in ethics is simply a being with consciousness of self, able to learn from her past eg upbringing, and able to plan for or think of tomorrow, eg store nuts. Humans are all too good at thinking derogatively of the abilities of nonhumans. Oh just instinct, they blah. Sagan said intelligence has been selected for in the evolution of all species. The stupid do not survive to breed. Even a cockroach is smart, but he doesn't want to play golf or gamble on horses. Roach racing maybe. Fish are very smart people. Etc. Be a bully to other species who cannot speak humanEnglish to protest if you must. My post YouTube How to be a Decent Human may be of interest. Ethics, Universal Values and Golden Rule updated. Peace and kindness to all beings. Violence and cruelty if that is the best you can do.
Example the smallminded hunters with arrows and bullets brutalise peaceful deer, kangaroos, and pigs dumped in the bush so they can be labelled feral then cruelly victimised. Who would be a deer in America or a kangaroo in Oz. Kangaroo babies stomped to death. Humans or sick Nazis.

Conflating animal and human rights is a dangerous practice which, as Wesley Smith properly observes, does not raise animal life to the level of the human but drags humans down to the level of animals. Does responsibility for creation include responsibility not to misuse it? Yes. But that responsibility comes from MAN's own awareness of HIS responsibility, as steward and regent of creation, NOT/NOT from investing the non-human world with a specious concept of "moral rights." Who will enforce these "rights?" Kangeroo courts? The fact is: they will be enforced by HUMANS in human courts, and therefore the responsibility belongs to humans, not farmed out--even for the nicest of reasons--to non-human beings. Animal welfare yes, animal rights, no.

Do ANIMALS have A SOUL and/or have RIGHTS?
And, as such, do they have any "MORAL STANDING?"
This is The REALPOLITIK here.
The Semitic religions/books i.e. The Bible. Torah & Quran permit meat-eating and animal sacrifice. So, why this FALSE MODESTY of acknowledging any "right" or "standing" of animals, birds etc.?
We, of The Deep East, India, acknowledge the "soul" of the animals; that is, of so-callled "lower living beings".
Of course, many Indians eat meat with the same relish and belief as their Christian, Jewish and Muslim friends. A lot of Hindus/Sikhs and Buddhists do too. And, do so uncaringly, unthinkingly.
The Yogis and Free Mystics do not.
This lot relies on its FIRST HAND EXPERIENCE to SEEK and FIND The ULTIMATE REALITY. The yogis/free mystics live and die in this TRUTH. In "THAT', WHAT-SO-EVER IS, it is found ONE WHOLE ONENESS; wherein, there is "NO OTHER". Therein, ALL IS ONE!
Who know not this "ONE", funtion from a different reality, thus, are all pretending to care about ANIMAL RIGHTS/STANDING etc.
Hence, this whole debate is FALSE and PRENTENTIOUS.
It is MEANINGLESS.

A misreading of Genesis 1:26?? I don't know but it seems pretty clear to me that if you are Judeo-Christian, you have dominion over just about everything. That is pretty plain and simple. If you misread that, then I guess everything else is pretty much up in the air.

This seems to me just another attempt to bend and twist what Christians and Jews have believed for centuries into some kind of New Age Funk.

Instead of trying to twist and extract some bizarre interpretation out of the Bible, why not take the approach of right living. How should we use the animals and plants and environment in an appropriate way that is consistent with good or right living.

First off, the notion of creation mythology is absurd; the need to account for millions of species is beyond even the most creative interpretation of this hoary fiction; and the contradiction of encompassing the good old Noah and his ark for of "all" Gods creatures except either the fresh or salt water fish species is comical at best. Why would you give any credence to a small desert tribe of blood-thirsty murders legends and self justifications? For any but the deluded human supremacists, most good religious folks, it is self evident that simple ecology and species survival requires support of the natural order not dominated by the exaggerated importance of humanity!

That said, if a religious fiction can be used to prevent the total and complete destruction of life on this 3rd rock from the Sun in this lonely backwater Galaxy, then cool!

I agree with what Randall wrote here. But the questions were: do animals have souls and/or have rights?

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