Rav: Hey! I havent met you in such a long time! How are you? Rad: I am doing great!

After high school, I pursued my passion for science and became a scientist. I invent new cosmetics and such. Rav: OhwowI am an organizer for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). You do know that they test those new cosmetics on animals dont you? Rad: What is your opinion on the ethics of testing medicines and products on animals? Rav: I think it is very wrong. Animals have the right to be treated as beings of value in themselves, not as objects to satisfy human ends; this principle must be applied in order to guarantee the end of cruelty to animals. The application of this principle means that animals should never be experimented upon whatever the potential gain for humanity. To infect monkeys with the AIDS virus or to expose rodents to toxic chemicals and radiation is simply not acceptable, whatever the supposed benefits. After the experimentation the animals either die, or have a terrible quality of life. They do not deserve that. Rav: What do you think? Rad: I dont think its that bad, in fact I think its a great idea. If the experiment goes well, it will be of benefit to humans and will cure a lot of diseases and the animals will not be harmed. The cure will enable us to understand more about biology and it will be a break-through. One piece of new information can open up doors for us to learn more about other things. A lot of new things can be discovered. There are many humans dying of terrible diseases, for which there can be a possible cure. For the risk of the lives of a few animals used in experiments, we are losing thousands of humans. Rav: What if the experiment goes wrong? What if the animals get harmed? Rad: The chances that something should go wrong are very low so the risk of the lives of animals is
low. Rav: What is the guarantee that if the animals dont get harmed, that humans will not also? Rad: There is accuracy when you perform these experiments on the animals because the chimpanzee has 99.8% same DNA as humans do. We are genetically very similar, so if the animals are unharmed, humans will be too. Rav: most animal experiments are done on animals that are nothing like human beings - rats and mice - which undermines the argument that these experiments are a reliable guide to human reactions. Scientifically, as well as morally, most animal experimentation is to be rejected - the reaction of a mouse to a substance is no guide to human reactions. Each species has its own unique physiology. And the more similar an animal is to a human being - e.g. a chimpanzee - the more intelligent it is, and so the more immoral it is to treat is as a disposable and worthless biological object.

Rad: Genetically, most animals are very similar. Even a mouse doesnt have that big of a difference in genes compared to humans. They are different physically, but they will react to most substances in the same way. Rad: Why is it that the lives of these lowly animals matters so much to you? They cannot think, and are not as superior as humans are. Rav: One life is not greater than another. Animals feel pain, suffer, and have the same feelings as humans. Some animals are very intelligent. Animals are far more superior to us when it comes to physical talent. A dog is an animal and dogs are more compassionate, loving and caring than any human I have ever met. If something can feel pain, it does not deserve to be tortured. Rav: Why do you think that animals are any lesser than us? Rad: The life of an animal is important, but they cannot make any change to the world. They live their lives in a very primitive way. They rely on their instincts and cannot think about anything more than their pleasure principle. In Sigmund Freuds theory, there is the id, ego, and superego. Animals have only id. Humans, however, have all three. This is what makes the difference between humans and animals. Thus, humans, in a way are superior to animals. We can use our minds to invent and help not only ourselves, but also the rest of the species. We can make a difference. Animals will not progress in their lives. They will only think for themselves and think of only their food and habitat. Humans have the capacity to gain more knowledge and get closer to knowing the truth about the universe. Rad: The animals do not have any will. They cannot make decisions. They do not have enough judgment to decide what is good and bad for them. They do not refuse to these experiments. Rav: A human baby also does not know what is good and bad for them so can we perform dangerous experiments on them as well? Rad: A human baby will grow up and become intelligent. Animals will remain the same. Rav: It is only acceptable to test human medicines on human beings if they give their consent. animals are never able to give such consent. It is therefore never acceptable to test medicines on perfectly healthy animals. Should we pursue the truth at any cost? Rad: According to scientism, we should. If we have the truth, we have everything. Rad: If we do not experiment on these animals, then there will be a huge rift to our population. Many humans will die. The animals that are used in the experiments are not anywhere close to being extinct. They make sure to use the animals which can reproduce very quickly. There will not be any change to the population of the species used.

Rav: Well, I do not believe that animals and humans are different. Would it be ok to test medicines and procedures on humans who are sentenced to a death penalty? If animals are allowed to die when we choose them to, why is there so much debate about euthanasia? Rad: If we do not test on animals, we will be allowing dangerous medicines into the market. We will not know for sure whether the medicine or procedure is safe. Who else will we test those medicines on? We cannot break families and perform them on humans. Even the people who are sentenced to death penalty or want to undergo euthanasia have families and people who care about them. If we test on animals, other animals wont have any problem with it. Animals are selfish in that way and only think for themselves, not for the whole species. Rad: If you are so against the use of animals, can you suggest any alternative? Rav: Well, we can replace experiments on animals with alternative techniques such as experimenting on cell cultures instead of whole animals, using computer models, studying human volunteers, and using epidemiological studies. Rad: I guess we should consider these alternatives too.