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sapinker's profile
Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker
Verified account
@sapinker

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Steven PinkerVerified account

@sapinker

Cognitive scientist at Harvard.

Boston, MA
pinker.wjh.harvard.edu
Joined January 2010

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    Steven Pinker‏Verified account @sapinker Jun 23

    When condemning human treatment of animals, many people confuse ecological naturalness with animal welfare. Controlling deer populations with wolves (or mustangs with cougars) means extreme anxiety, terror, and agony for thousands of sentient creatures.https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/bambi-or-bessie-are-wild-animals-happier/ …

    2:27 PM - 23 Jun 2018
    • 147 Retweets
    • 488 Likes
    • J. Pascual Wyck Thayer Tristan Tondino Vishwas Jha Poort Lina Andersson Bill Craske Herr Behro Judah Gabriel
    35 replies 147 retweets 488 likes
      1. Jacy Reese‏Verified account @jacyreese Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        Wild animal welfare is an important and neglected #EffectiveAltruism issue.https://www.vox.com/2015/12/14/9873012/wild-animals-suffering …

        0 replies 4 retweets 17 likes
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      1. New conversation
      2. Matthew Fraser‏ @frasermatthew Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        Philosophically, do "natural rights" apply to animals? If not, natural rights are relative. Do we wish to argue that? If natural rights do apply to all sentient creatures, what is the justification for depriving animals of those rights?

        1 reply 1 retweet 2 likes
      3. Chris Elvidge‏ @ckelvidge Jun 23
        Replying to @frasermatthew @sapinker

        What is sentience? Cats will hunt for fun, and if birds and mice are sentient, what do we do about the cat problem? Or any predators?

        0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
      4. End of conversation
      1. New conversation
      2. Joel Engel‏ @joelengel Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker @Rand_Simberg

        This is why Jim Kirk had such a hard time with the Prime Directive.

        1 reply 0 retweets 10 likes
      3. Nicholas Jon King‏ @NickJonKing Jun 24
        Replying to @joelengel @sapinker @Rand_Simberg

        I thank Janeway for defying the Prime Temporal Directive.

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
      4. End of conversation
      1. New conversation
      2. Sidhe Dreams‏ @built_of_glass Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        It is a mistake to morally value individual animals. Ecological function is an infinitely greater priority than animal comfort.

        4 replies 0 retweets 5 likes
      3. eahunbay‏ @EAhunbay Jun 23
        Replying to @built_of_glass @sapinker

        That’s stupid. The only thing real is suffering and that matters. Nature sucks

        1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
      4. Sidhe Dreams‏ @built_of_glass Jun 23
        Replying to @EAhunbay @sapinker

        I don't say this out of romanticism, I say it out of practicality. Though hedonism isn't terribly attractive to me even for humans.

        0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
      5. End of conversation
      1. New conversation
      2. Joey Cryptoloco‏ @joeycryptoloco Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        Why aren’t we more concerned with controlling human population? Animals are not the ones destroying the environment.

        1 reply 0 retweets 5 likes
      3. Rollo Pickens‏ @PickensR0110 Jun 23
        Replying to @joeycryptoloco @sapinker

        Cow farts bruh!pic.twitter.com/GV2Vta9grl

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      4. Joey Cryptoloco‏ @joeycryptoloco Jun 23
        Replying to @PickensR0110

        That’s a human created problem. Not that cows fart, but that human intervention has increased the cow population so much that their farts now affect our environment.

        2 replies 0 retweets 1 like
      5. Rollo Pickens‏ @PickensR0110 Jun 23
        Replying to @joeycryptoloco

        Are you one of those people who cry about the population of everything but also cry every time something gets killed?pic.twitter.com/3GmlcCVGlv

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      6. Joey Cryptoloco‏ @joeycryptoloco Jun 23
        Replying to @PickensR0110

        No, but your lazy generalisations reveal much about you.

        0 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
      7. End of conversation
      1. Jeroen W.‏ @HavidTweets Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        While I think it's an interesting article, it doesn't really compare WAS to current livestock and zoo suffering. That would've been a lot more interesting. It just says wild animals live worse lives IF captive animals are cared for well.

        0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
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      1. David Fuchs‏ @Davidfuchs84 Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        "Confuse ecology w/ welfare." Archie Bunker always says it better than we ever could: "Oh! Mink is not endangered. That's good news for the mink hanging around your neck. It's not endangered--just murdered."

        0 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
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      2. Eric Lombrozo‏Verified account @eric_lombrozo Jun 24
        Replying to @sapinker

        But in nature, apex predators DO control populations. Without this, the ecosystem destabilizes and prey lose defensive adaptability.

        4 replies 0 retweets 6 likes
      3. 1 more reply
      1. New conversation
      2. Priya‏ @tweetprix Jun 23
        Replying to @sapinker

        I agree about this when it comes to pets. However domesticated animals far exceed the wild animals and that domestication is primarily for food . Are they treated well? Is that a life they are happy in?

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      3. Brian Urbancic‏ @SciGroupie Jun 24
        Replying to @tweetprix @sapinker

        So should we fight for better treatment of livestock? Or essentially ensure their extinction by setting them free? The author cites the claim that pigs owe their existence to the demand for bacon.

        1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
      4. Priya‏ @tweetprix Jun 24
        Replying to @SciGroupie @sapinker

        Would anyone want to exist for the explicit purpose of being slaughtered ?

        2 replies 0 retweets 2 likes
      5. Berlincopa‏ @Berlincopa Jun 24
        Replying to @tweetprix @SciGroupie @sapinker

        Do Not humanize; The Pigs do Not Know Why they Are there

        1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
      6. Priya‏ @tweetprix Jun 25
        Replying to @Berlincopa @SciGroupie @sapinker

        So if one doesn’t know the purpose of their existence it is fine to kill them for taste. Dehumanising makes it easier to eat bacon?

        2 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
      7. Priya‏ @tweetprix Jun 25
        Replying to @tweetprix @Berlincopa and

        That’s why you do it 😄

        1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
      8. Berlincopa‏ @Berlincopa Jun 25
        Replying to @tweetprix @SciGroupie @sapinker

        Maybe; Important is, that there is No cruel Treatment of animals

        0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
      9. End of conversation

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