[West]

Try thinking about morality as a concept of right and wrong independent of humanity.

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There is nothing I can do to another animal that would be immoral.

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Why do I care what happens to a cow? I am not a cow. No one I know is a cow. No cow is ever going to invent anything useful or cure cancer. The best thing a cow can do to advance humanity is to be eaten. That is all I need to know.

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Let's say there's another intelligent form of life out there on some other planet somewhere far away. Let's say one day they (call them Cookers) come into contact with humanity. Let's say they share your general view of morality, from their own point of view, and unfortunately for us, they are technologically superior. They enslave humanity, and torture us with impunity - as far as they are concerned, the slightest "benefit" to them is worth any amount of torture to humans.

How do you think you would feel about their "morality", if you were subjected to it yourself? How do you think another intelligent being, not a Human or a Cooker, ought to view it objectively? Can you reconcile an answer with your view towards torturing animals? Objectively?

Something else to think about:

Let's say all of humanity more or less agreed with what you said about torturing animals. Let's also say that there's also a small subset of humanity (call them serial killers) who, additionally, don't really see the point in drawing a moral line between humans and animals. As far as this group is concerned, what do they care about other people? Do they know you? What are you going to do for them? Why should they care more about you than some dog? People are all out for themselves anyway. Why should torturing a human be worse than torturing a dog? At least dogs never done them wrong.

How would you morally debate them?