Stuart: "I've been over this many ways with different people here and only take them to task when I hear moral incriminations of this practice which is:"1. Legal
"2. Widely supported by a massive majority
"3. Supported in ecclesiastical terms - at least in most cultures
"Using incriminating rhetoric to levy a moral judgement against meat eaters or those that support animal testing suggests that true morality is a construct of minority opinion. That cannot be true. If a person feels they cannot partake of meat or of the benefits of animal testing, they have every right to abstain from that and promote their values. But a moral judgement is out of line unless the basis of that moral code is something substantially larger than a personal opinion."
Well, sir, the enslavement of Africans in the americas was:
1. Legal
2. Widely supported by a massive majority
3. Supported in ecclesiastical terms - at least in most cultures
(Needless to say this is less true today, though the issue is up for debate as far as some are concerned.)
My questions are as follows:
1. Is slavery morally wrong?
2. Was it ALWAYS morally wrong?
3. If you answered "No" to the above statement, please explain what made slavery right before. By this I mean in hindsight, by your judgement.
If you answered "Yes" to question 2, please explain how this can be, given your above assertion that it cannot be wrong if it meets the 3 criteria.
I asked you this once before and you did not reply. Please enlighten us this time with your wisdom.
The reason I ask is because if your 3 criteria were met with regards to slavery in past centuries, yet it was still wrong, then I would submit it would be POSSIBLE that despite the fact that animal testing (or the consumption of factory-farmed animal products) meets your 3 criteria, it could still be morally "wrong".
Examples other than the one given above could also be "fleshed out" further, including:
-the "rule of thumb" regarding beating wives and children
-lack of female suffrage
-the burning of "witches"
-torture for any reason
-public executions of adulterers (more often adulteresses) and homosexuals
My mind fails me, but I'm sure the list is endless. Please let me know if you would like to discuss any of the above mentioned issues. I'm sure you'd agree they are all morally wrong.
None.
