This Blog considers assisted suicide/euthanasia, bioethics, human cloning, biotechnology, radical environmentalism, and the dangers of animal rights/liberation. My views expressed here, as in my books and other writings, reflect my understanding that the philosophy of human exceptionalism is the bedrock of universal human rights. Or, to put it another way: human life matters. (The opinions expressed here are my own and not necessarily those of any organization with which I am affiliated.)
My newest "What It Means to be Human" podcast--this edition on "nature rights" in Ecuador--is up at the Discovery Institute site. Here is the link.
Labels: What It Means to be Human. Human Exceptionalism. Radical Environmentalism. Podcast
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 4:17 PM
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I am a Senior Fellow in Human Rights and Bioethics at the Discovery Institute and the author of 12 books, including A Rat Is A Pig Is A Dog Is A Boy, which is relevant to the issues considered by this blog.
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2 Comments:
Dear Wesley,
Just listened to the Ecuador podcast after listening to the latest episode of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
The Terminator concept is premised on the willing, but unwitting, human enterprise of surrendering power and control to that which is non-human, in this case, the machine. Those few who understand what will happen risk life and limb to prevent the emergence of Skynet and the end of human life as we know it. One is never quite sure of the success of the resistance, which, of course, propels the drama week after week.
The parallels with concerns you express in your blogs and, in particular, the Ecuador podcast, are obvious. Terminator, then, is a cautionary tale about a slippery slope ending at an unforeseen precipice. In real life, while the machine remains a threat, radical non-exceptionalists pose at least as great, if not greater, danger. Whether humanness survives the "eco-challenge" remains to be seen. At the very least, it appears that some humans in Ecuador will come out losers.
I believe there is an "eco-ethic" in Scripture that asserts the Creator's stake in all of creation, and calls for human stewardship of what has been given. The question is, how can we as biblical people vigorously uphold human exceptionalism without falling off the horse on the other side?
brillo591. Thanks for stoppoing by.
I enjoy the Sarah Connor Chronicles too.
Human exceptionalism is two-edged: One is that we have unique value as a species leading to the concept of universal human equality and its comcommitant requirement of universal human rights.
The second is that as the only known truly moral species, we have duties, one of which is to the environment. I think that whether one approaches the issue from a secular philosophical approach--human exceptionalism--or religious, our God-ordered duty to steward the planet, we have the obligation to protect ecosystems, species viability, and reasonably prevent pollution.
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