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Old 01-01-2011, 11:03 PM
 
Location: 53179
14,418 posts, read 22,365,211 times
Reputation: 14461

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Trimac20 View Post
I even felt a tiny bit guilty for killing a cockroach, believe it or not (I usually don't, but this particular time I still felt a bit like a murderer)...nah in general I don't feel guilty killing cockroaches, mosquitos, flies, and very small insects - the first two because I have a 'reason' for it. I'd find it difficult to kill anything else though; even beetles, butterflies.etc.

Call me hypocritical (because I do eat meat, and cows and pigs are higher sentient beings) or too soft, but I still don't like the idea of killing things including the animals we eat even though it's a natural part of the ecosystem. In general I'm very sensitive to cruelty to animals etc but I'm still not ready to join PETA or something.

So I'd like to hear your opinions on the subject and if you feel like I do. Is the guilt over killing instincts an innate or conditioned response? I don't think primitive people feel guilty about hunting animals, but I feel that's a bit more justified than killing for no reason.

It would be a red fla g if you actually enjoyed killing insects.( serial killer thing )
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Old 01-02-2011, 12:24 AM
 
Location: Bradenton, Florida
27,232 posts, read 46,502,481 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GloryB View Post
I've never felt guilty for killing any sort of bug.
I seriously doubt I ever will.
I agree with this...
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Old 01-02-2011, 12:25 AM
 
Location: Bradenton, Florida
27,232 posts, read 46,502,481 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Trimac20 View Post
If it's proved that plants feel pain would Jains starve to death?

They would only eat plant matter that dropped off on its own, like some fruits do.
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Old 01-02-2011, 01:47 AM
miu
 
Location: MA/NH
17,758 posts, read 40,010,815 times
Reputation: 18034
Default Is it natural to feel guilty over killing insects?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Trimac20 View Post
I even felt a tiny bit guilty for killing a cockroach, believe it or not (I usually don't, but this particular time I still felt a bit like a murderer)...nah in general I don't feel guilty killing cockroaches, mosquitos, flies, and very small insects - the first two because I have a 'reason' for it. I'd find it difficult to kill anything else though; even beetles, butterflies.etc.

Call me hypocritical (because I do eat meat, and cows and pigs are higher sentient beings) or too soft, but I still don't like the idea of killing things including the animals we eat even though it's a natural part of the ecosystem. In general I'm very sensitive to cruelty to animals etc but I'm still not ready to join PETA or something.

So I'd like to hear your opinions on the subject and if you feel like I do. Is the guilt over killing instincts an innate or conditioned response? I don't think primitive people feel guilty about hunting animals, but I feel that's a bit more justified than killing for no reason.
Seeing as how you are a pro-lifer who is vehemently against all abortions, I'd say that it is perfectly natural for you to feel guilt over killing insects. Shrug.
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Old 01-02-2011, 01:56 AM
 
Location: The 719
17,875 posts, read 27,269,911 times
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When we were about 7, my friend Gary and I used to kill a bug and have a bug funeral.

I'm not a bug-ologist or anything. I'm with bugs like I am with snakes and cops and stuff... I don't mind that they exist, I just like it better when they're not around.

If I find a bug in an area that I deem inappropriate, I become a bug murderer and dispose of the evidence in a sanitary fashion. I do not believe in the undue harassment or torcher of bugs or God's other creatures.
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Old 01-02-2011, 02:41 AM
 
Location: Mississippi
6,712 posts, read 13,424,067 times
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I think it really depends on your state of mind when you're squashing bugs. I might even say there would be something wrong with it if you had a compulsion to walk into the backyard with the intent of causing severe damage to some innocent beetles or other insects just because you feel the urge to kill something. But, look, if they're building a nest of larvae in your house, you do the obvious thing and squash them. Think of it as a safety measure in your own defense.

I'm not a big fan of insects either and I'll smack a mosquito, swat a fly, and crush a cockroach. But I'm not doing it just to take the life of something innocent. I think there's a pretty big difference when it comes to the reasoning behind why you're killing pretty much anything...
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Old 01-02-2011, 03:00 AM
 
18,270 posts, read 14,362,061 times
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I agree. Sometimes I go out and spray bug spray on the annoying critters that buzz all night in the summer. I let them buzz, but then it gets annoying and that's when I've had it with them. I also give mice a chance to leave the premises, if they ever find themselves in my turf. But then I just set up traps everywhere when they wear out their welcome. I don't like to watch them suffer, so i'll let the cat play with them till they are good and dead.

On the other hand, i don't like to bother butterflies, cause I heard somewhere that if you touch them, they will die sooner.
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Old 01-02-2011, 03:07 AM
 
Location: SW Missouri
15,853 posts, read 35,001,778 times
Reputation: 22693
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trimac20 View Post
I even felt a tiny bit guilty for killing a cockroach, believe it or not (I usually don't, but this particular time I still felt a bit like a murderer)...nah in general I don't feel guilty killing cockroaches, mosquitos, flies, and very small insects - the first two because I have a 'reason' for it. I'd find it difficult to kill anything else though; even beetles, butterflies.etc.

Call me hypocritical (because I do eat meat, and cows and pigs are higher sentient beings) or too soft, but I still don't like the idea of killing things including the animals we eat even though it's a natural part of the ecosystem. In general I'm very sensitive to cruelty to animals etc but I'm still not ready to join PETA or something.

So I'd like to hear your opinions on the subject and if you feel like I do. Is the guilt over killing instincts an innate or conditioned response? I don't think primitive people feel guilty about hunting animals, but I feel that's a bit more justified than killing for no reason.
99 percent of the time I kill nothing. The only exception I make to this rule is if an insect is dangerous - and that means REALLY dangerous. I would only kill Brown Recluse and Black Widow spiders if I found one in the house. Everything else gets thrown outside to fend for themselves. I will also swat mosquitoes if they land on me because I figure at that point it is self defense.

I have gone to great lengths to rescue little bugs that have fallen in the bath tub so that they do not drown when I turn on the shower. I just do not feel right killing anything unnecessarily.

20yrsinBranson
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Old 01-02-2011, 10:24 PM
 
Location: 53179
14,418 posts, read 22,365,211 times
Reputation: 14461
Quote:
Originally Posted by GCSTroop View Post

I'm not a big fan of insects either and I'll smack a mosquito, swat a fly, and crush a cockroach. But I'm not doing it just to take the life of something innocent. I think there's a pretty big difference when it comes to the reasoning behind why you're killing pretty much anything...

You crush cockroaches!
I can't stand the crunch. I spray them to death!
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Old 01-02-2011, 10:26 PM
 
Location: 53179
14,418 posts, read 22,365,211 times
Reputation: 14461
Quote:
Originally Posted by gman6974 View Post
The only insects I don't feel guilty about killing are of course roaches, mosquitos and flies.

Even though I'm a little arachnophobia, I will pick up a spider and move it outdoors. I actually respect their lifestyle because they eat the ones above.

You are like me. If I see a spider, I take it outside !
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