Is it wrong to kill bugs?

[Future Raptor Ace]

I want you to really think about this, is it logical and morally right to kill bugs and insects that cause no harm to you?
You are not allowed to use religion in anyway to prove your point!

I will explain my point of view now
Who gives us humans the right to judge the significance of any living thing? Why should we have the right to kill and torture insects but not other humans? If we are allowed to kill insects then I think it should be ok to kill and torture dogs, cats and etc. In terms of significances we are clearly more significant than dogs and cats in the same way as we are towards insects! What is the difference then and why is it considered wrong with cats and dogs? Could it be one's appearance is better towards us than the other? Insects are disgusting and ugly; so that is a perfect reason to kill them over a cute little kitten. I say fine; then lets kill every ugly human out there, clearly we are better looking then them and their utter disgusting look antagonizes me so lets eliminate them just like we do with the disgusting bugs! If you were to agree with that you would sound more like Adolf Hitler than a moral human being. But who is to say the ugly despicable bugs aren't the beauties and we humans are the nastiest creatures ever to walk the planet..... beauty is in fact in the eye of the beholder so why should we be allowed to kill those poor innocent insects who just crawl around minding their own business? Is it because they are dirty and mess up your clean house? What about when you have a little kid or a pet that tracks mud and dirt and breaks things and messes up your house; should we kill them also? If you think it is just because of the sole fact that they are clearly inferior to humans then why not kill someone who is mentally handicapped; should we be allowed to kill them too because it is clearly obvious that their mental capability is nowhere near ours? The point is there is no excuse, they are living things and have the same right as us humans to live! I only hope if some creature evolves up the chain and over takes us as the dominate species on this planet that they would do the same for us and not exterminate us just because they feel they have the right to do so just because we are being considered inferior! If you kill bugs, I think you should be viewed the same way as a serial killer, you might as well just not discriminate and just kill anything and everything that you want just because you have the ability and the arrogant thought to do so!

[wasabi622]

well.. biologically speaking, a one fly really has no significance.

and comparing killing bugs to killing humans (aka Hitler style) is a huge stretch.

a human usually has a loving family, and is a functioning, beneficial member of society.
by killing said human, you cause great pain to their loved ones, friends, and could even impact the future of the human race (another big stretch.. but hey, what if this person could find the cure to cancer or something?)

you kill a bug... nothing happens. at least, nothing significant.
and its not just cuz they are "ugly" that they are killed. they are usually pests, and carry diseases and such. even dogs and cats considered a pest to society (too aggressive, over populated, etc) are also killed off. as are human "pests" such as murders, rapists, and the like.

and the mentally handicapped, that's what they are, handicapped, so its up to us capable people to assist them, and not kill them off.

[puffyrock2]

I don't kill insects if they don't pester me in my home. Anything crawling around my room gets eliminated. Summertime in the country means right now it's Cockroach city.

[Fish]

Insects are by and large mindless drones. Some of them can be quite malevolent and dangerous- wasps, yellowjackets, fire ants, mosquitoes. As wasabi pointed out, some can carry disease and cause harm to humans. We cannot reason with them, we cannot be separated from them, and it isn't genocide to not want ants, termites, flies, or much more harmful insects living in one's space.

Your comparison of somebody who kills insects to a genocidal maniac, a serial killer, arrogant, or even of a bug and a human of any kind presents a very weak argument. None of them are the same situation. Humans are creatures of reason. Animals are capable of feeling pain and also of learning. Insects are not.

If anyone has read Orson Scott Card's Speaker for the Dead, it presents a good system of classifying species. 2 human species; those that are local to you (ie same country), those that are not (ie other countries); ramen, or non-similar species that are sentient (we haven't encountered anything like this, but 2 alien races demonstrate this in the book); and varelse, non-human non-sentient species. The first three should not be fought if it can be avoided for any reason other than survival, because agreements can be worked out rationally. Varelse, however, cannot be anything other than instinctual, and if that instinct cannot be coped with by us then the only option is to combat it.

Insects are simple organisms with set purposes whose individual species population is unfathomably large. If they pose a problem to a human, ridding one's self of that problem because it is the only option available is never equitable to genocide.

By the way, I'm curious if you're a vegan, as the arguments you pose wouldn't allow you to be anything but.

[Tiwaz]

The human species have become the biggest disease on this planet. We more or less destroy and pollute anything in our way. So the argument that some insects can be dangerous and carry diseases is ridiculous in comparison. As higer beings we should take care of this planet as good as we can and with the least harmfull impact on the ecosystem as possible.

you kill a bug... nothing happens. at least, nothing significant.

People die every second around the world, manily the third world, nothing happens. at least nothing significant.

Animals are capable of feeling pain and also of learning. Insects are not.

That's just daft, why wouldn't an insect feel pain and be able to learn something? Just look at bees and ants. Extraordinary creatures with a far more advanced civilization and than most contries in Africa for example.
Many insects are very important for the ecosystem, servings as food for birds, eating (decomposeing) dead animals, spreading seeds from flowers etc.

I try not to kill insects for moral reason and even try to help them out if they get in my room or something. But sometimes I have to get rid of them, especially moths, they are the spawn of satan and plain disgusting.

Most animals are horizontal, since
Their homeland is not other than this Earth;
But man’s essential stance is vertical;
Free will to choose Salvation proves his worth.

Nobility some animals possess:
The genius of their symbol lives in them.
They can be more than a corrupted man;
Only their possibilities are less.

Be humble when you meet creation, for
An animal may be a sacred door.
Do not despise a noble plant, a stone:
They bring a message from God’s blessèd Throne.
Frithjof Schuon

[Ben]

Originally Posted by Tiwaz

That's just daft, why wouldn't an insect feel pain and be able to learn something?

Because their central nervous system isn't connected to their brains? They can sense things, but only respond in reflex.

I think it's perfectly natural to become less hesitant about killing something the further removed it is from us. There's no objective right or wrong, only our subjective point of view. And the invertebrate line is a big one to cross because of the reason above.

I mean, millions of microorganisms are destroyed every time you take a step, yet no one even really thinks about that. It's practically impossible to exist without killing something, insects just happen to be the smallest we can see.

I don't go out of my way to harm them outside or in places I can't see. But if they're in my home... well just think about how you'd treat a human intruder. Not kill them, but well you can't exactly reason with or call the cops on a bug!

[jung_adore_ALIZEE]

I guess I'm a bug murderer for killing something trying to suck out my blood
where does one stop? Humans are pretty much at the top of the food chain, but that does not mean such a small organism such as a mosquito or mouse could harm or even kill us some times it is better to be safe then sorry

Originally Posted by Ben

I don't go out of my way to harm them outside or in places I can't see. But if they're in my home... well just think about how you'd treat a human intruder. Not kill them, but well you can't exactly reason with or call the cops on a bug!

that all depends on the human intruder if they are in your house they are already breaking a law they may just not worry about breaking another and doing you bodily harm or possibly taking your life, thus if they are in my house I would not hesitate to hold them at gun point if they try anything near to attacking they are down and don't wait for them to draw a gun or knife at that time it is too late for you to get to your weapon what ever it be it takes someone under 2 seconds to cross 7 yards and stab you and if it's between my life and that of an intruders I'll use every tool in my possession to make sure it isn't mine that is taken

[Future Raptor Ace]

Originally Posted by jung_adore_ALIZEE

I guess I'm a bug murderer for killing something trying to suck out my blood

we aren't talking about mosquitoes, I am for killing them in defense because they cause you pain and extreme irritation. What we are talking about is ants, flies and spiders, bugs of that nature who pose no threat irritation or harm to anyone.

[jung_adore_ALIZEE]

Originally Posted by Srbski-kralj

Oh yeah totaly agre with you Jung, no hesitation to put them at gun point or no warning and wack them with a baseball bat.

I wouldn't suggest wacking them with a baseball bat as they will most likely end up sueing your ass and most likely win

Originally Posted by Future Raptor Ace

we aren't talking about mosquitoes, I am for killing them in defense because they cause you pain and extreme irritation. What we are talking about is ants, flies and spiders, bugs of that nature who pose no threat irritation or harm to anyone.

ants, flies, and spiders can all harm you

certain species of ants are quite dangerous

flies carry diceases and can also bite you causing irritation

spiders can be poisonous and bite you not always intentionally either

I honestly don't know many people who will go out of their way to kill bugs that won't harm them or their personal property

[jung_adore_ALIZEE]

is it wrong for a dog to kill a rabbit? Is it wrong for a lion to kill a zebra? Is it wrong for a horse to kill BUGS? Is it wrong for someone to protect his family from a wild predator on a hike? Is it wrong to eat meat? Is it wrong to eat plants? Is it wrong to use deadly force on someone who is wrongfully in your house and has the potential to have harmful intent?

I in all seriousness have no problem with any of those and I also have no problem killing insects that have the potential to kill me via a slow painful agonizing death

and please tell me this, do you eat meat? because surely if you find killing insects wrong then eating meat from any type of animal is surely wrong heck the same could apply to plants they are just growing there minding their own business too so the question could be, who are we to kill animals and even plants just so we can survive?

should one lose his primal instincts just because they live in an modern "advanced" society?