Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Demigawd · 10-23-2002, 02:18 PM

I would put my money on Homo Sapiens, but that may just be indicative of what species I am.

That reminds me of an Emo Philips routine, which I will paraphrase:

One day, I was thinking about which organ was the most important, and the answer was the brain. And then I realized what came up with that conclusion.

[ October 23, 2002: Message edited by: Demigawd ]

Marduk · 10-23-2002, 02:21 PM

"In a way I think dogs are kind of like parasites that survive by butt kissing"

Hey, just like the people I work for!!

Agricola Senior · 10-24-2002, 04:23 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by GeoTheo:
Whats wrong with being superior to animals?
Must atheists disbelieve it merely because Christians say it?

And who is the arbitrator (judge)? Someone neutral ? <img src="confused.gif" border="0">

Agricola Senior · 10-24-2002, 04:33 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Yggdrasill:

I would put my money on Homo Sapiens, but that may just be indicative of what species I am.

What else could it be? We are all humans and can't help ourselves being anthropocentric.

[ October 24, 2002: Message edited by: Agricola Senior ]

bluefugue · 10-24-2002, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Friar Bellows:


What's not objective about our superior ability to build things? We can build things that can...

calculate at ridiculously fast speeds, capture and reproduce moving images of the real world, detect incredibly tiny objects like elementary particles, detect amazingly large objects like galaxy superclusters, fly to the moon and back, travel at speeds several times faster than the speed of sound, destroy entire mountains, hold back the flow of giant rivers, etc etc...

I don't see anything subjective about our superior ability to build things.

On the other hand, if you believe that the only objective yardstick is survival, then you have a point.

That last bit was more or less my point, although even survival doesn't *have* to be the yardstick you'd choose. You could choose prettiness if you really wanted. Or green-ness, or noisiness. I'd argue survival is the most meaningful yardstick, since living organisms seem to exist only to survive and spread their genes.

Sure we're superior at building things. And we're also superior at playing the piano, and cooking a mean gumbo. But that doesn't mean we're superior to other animals in any absolute sense, obviously. It's only important if you value the piano, or gumbo.

One thing we do have is our versatility -- I'll give you that. Our building-things ability allows us to ape other animals' innate abilities. We can't fly, but we can build planes. We can't run fast, but we can build cars. We can't stay underwater forever, but we can build submarines. This translates to an unusual degree of adaptability and it means we perhaps one day will be able to go to another planet, which no other organism could do (except the ones that ride along with us).

[ October 24, 2002: Message edited by: IesusDomini ]

babelfish · 10-24-2002, 07:16 AM

Usually when my kids ask me whether humans are better or smarter than animals, I ask them to imagine themselves naked and lost in the woods. How would they fight off a mountain lion? How would they get food? How would they stay warm?

Basically humans are physically weak, vulnerable creatures who have been able to survive by utilizing their over-large brains to invent stuff to make up for not having big teeth, big claws, and a furry covering.

Amen-Moses · 10-24-2002, 07:44 AM

What I wanna know is that if humans are so damn superior why is it that my cat comes in every morning completely shagged out with a great big smile on his face (yep cheshire style) and I'm now into my 5th year as a born again virgin!

Amen-Moses

Starboy · 10-24-2002, 08:16 AM

Superior for what, sucking up to god?

wdog · 10-24-2002, 09:24 AM

In our family pack, (2 dogs, 2 adult humans, and 1 adolescent human male) it is a female doberman named ellie who both thinks she is the pack leader and in reality is in some ways.

Viti · 10-24-2002, 10:53 AM

wdog...in my pack (3 dogs, two adult humans) it is the smallest dog who is Alpha. He has me conditioned to get up at 3:00am (of course his annoying perfectly spaced barks in my ear help), let him outside to pee, then he barks at the door for a cookie, eats the cookie, then goes poop, then barks to be let back in.

Even my Rottie and my 13 year old fat pointer mutt (whom we refer to as "The Fun Police") back down if Max gets in their face.

How pathetic I am...my dogs determine everything.

10-23-2002, 02:18 PM	#21
Demigawd Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: On a sailing ship to nowhere, leaving any place Posts: 2,254	<strong>I would put my money on Homo Sapiens, but that may just be indicative of what species I am.</strong> That reminds me of an Emo Philips routine, which I will paraphrase: One day, I was thinking about which organ was the most important, and the answer was the brain. And then I realized what came up with that conclusion. [ October 23, 2002: Message edited by: Demigawd ]</p>

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10-23-2002, 02:21 PM	#22
Marduk Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: the 10th planet Posts: 5,065	"In a way I think dogs are kind of like parasites that survive by butt kissing" Hey, just like the people I work for!!

10-24-2002, 07:16 AM	#26
babelfish Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Augusta, Maine, USA Posts: 2,046	Usually when my kids ask me whether humans are better or smarter than animals, I ask them to imagine themselves naked and lost in the woods. How would they fight off a mountain lion? How would they get food? How would they stay warm? Basically humans are physically weak, vulnerable creatures who have been able to survive by utilizing their over-large brains to invent stuff to make up for not having big teeth, big claws, and a furry covering.

10-24-2002, 07:44 AM	#27
Amen-Moses Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Portsmouth, England Posts: 4,652	What I wanna know is that if humans are so damn superior why is it that my cat comes in every morning completely shagged out with a great big smile on his face (yep cheshire style) and I'm now into my 5th year as a born again virgin! Amen-Moses

10-24-2002, 08:16 AM	#28
Starboy Banned Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Tallahassee, FL Reality Adventurer Posts: 5,276	Superior for what, sucking up to god?

10-24-2002, 09:24 AM	#29
wdog Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Ohio, USA Posts: 1,547	In our family pack, (2 dogs, 2 adult humans, and 1 adolescent human male) it is a female doberman named ellie who both thinks she is the pack leader and in reality is in some ways.

10-24-2002, 10:53 AM	#30
Viti Contributor Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Down South Posts: 12,879	wdog...in my pack (3 dogs, two adult humans) it is the smallest dog who is Alpha. He has me conditioned to get up at 3:00am (of course his annoying perfectly spaced barks in my ear help), let him outside to pee, then he barks at the door for a cookie, eats the cookie, then goes poop, then barks to be let back in. Even my Rottie and my 13 year old fat pointer mutt (whom we refer to as "The Fun Police") back down if Max gets in their face. How pathetic I am...my dogs determine everything.

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