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I'm 22 years old, a lifeguard at my local beach. The other day I was getting out of my car to go to work and the parking lot was crawling with like a thousand little hermit crabs that the tide washed up from a storm the night before. I was going to walk barefoot to the beach and avoid them but I was running late so I put my sneakers on my feet and just jogged through them. I couldn't avoid stepping on and crushing a bunch of these little crabs.
Now I'm actually a pretty good guy, but some dude and his kid saw me stamping through and approached me when I was wiping my feet off on the sand to remove the layer of little crab guts and exoskeletons that got gunked up in the treads of my running shoes. Basically told me I was careless, shouldn't be working at the beach, etc.
Was what I did really that wrong? I'm pretty environmentally conscious but I was running late. I'm pretty good about preservation of the environment; I step on most bugs I see and smack flies.. but honestly the smell of my feet is probably enough to kill those guys. What are your thoughts?
Different people will have different opinions of course. As a society, we decided that it's not wrong to step on bugs. As a society, we decided that we are important, but bugs and animals are to be used by us.
Is it wrong?
Well, from bugs' perspective and animals' perspective, we are barbaric and we are killers.
Just because bugs are tiny, does it make them unimportant?
I don't know. We set the rules. And so far we decided that.
It's hard to know whether something is right or wrong sometimes.
Of course, an ideal way to be is to never hurt another living being. But then some people believe that plants are also living beings and some even believe that they can feel fear or joy.
So, in that case, we should not touch anything. But we wouldn't survive, right? We need plants for various purposes and we are choosing to eat meat too.
Personally, I am uncertain whether it's right or wrong to step on bugs, but it makes me feel a bit unpleasant when I do, like I am doing something wrong, because I am putting myself in their shoes and I know that I don't want to be stepped on. So I try not to do it whenever possible.
I am afraid of spiders and have to kill them, I can't live with them. But this reminds me of people who always kill others when others are a threat. Like if aliens came, some of us would consider them a threat and would have killed them. It's like a survival reflex. Not necessarily a good thing to do though. But it's about fear and fear wins.
"Some dude and his kid saw me stamping through and approached me when I was wiping my feet off on the sand to remove the layer of little crab guts and exoskeletons that got gunked up in the treads of my running shoes. Basically told me I was careless, shouldn't be working at the beach, etc."
Quote:
"What are your thoughts?"
My thoughts?
Ignore it and go about your business. Marvel at how people like that aren't afraid to get out of bed in the morning, let alone set outside and see their own shadow.
(Shouldn't this thread really be filed under "Psychology"?)
Hmmmm..... You've asked this question previously. You were stepping on ants then. Are you hoping for a different reaction if you report you're squishing something larger?
Was what I did really that wrong? I'm pretty environmentally conscious but I was running late. I'm pretty good about preservation of the environment; I step on most bugs I see and smack flies..
No. You are far from being environmentally conscious. Bugs exist for a reason and many are beneficial. If you're stepping on bugs willy nilly and crushing crabs because you're late for work you're one more guy doing what he wants without thinking about the ecosystem you are a part of.
It's generally okay to step on bugs - but stepping on stuff is completely out of line and might even land you in Hell immediately. You'll be whisked to Hell so fast that you'll have to die along the way.
Yes, I think it is wrong to do it if you are able to avoid it. I am vegan, and I try my best to not kill/harm any living creature even bugs. I will admit though that ticks and mosquito I do kill.
This ^^^^^! The Spirit that does not feel any remorse or angst over doing so . . . even inadvertently . . . is not very enlightened or mature.
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