Is it normal to dislike phrases like "stop breeding, humans!"

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20 Comments

I hate it when those people say humans should "stop breeding". "Breeding" is the word we use for animals, and to apply it to humans is, well... dehumanising. I know humans are animals, but why start treating humans the same way we treat other animals when we don't even treat most other animals well to begin with?

I always hear this word in the context of debates about population growth, and it's starting to annoy me because using a dehumanising word like "breeding" signifies a lack of respect towards the very people whose lives you're talking about. I mean, if you want people to agree with you stop treating them like cattle or mindless slaves-to-impulse with generic accusations like "people are breeding too much".

Is it normal that this causes me irritation?

Voting Results
45% Normal
Based on 55 votes (25 yes)
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Comments ( 20 )
  • Holzman67
    10 years ago

    prepare to die earthling!
    unless you
    RECYCLE!
    STOP BREEDING!
    SAVE THE RAINFORESTS!
    DEVELOP CLEAN ENERGY!

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  • loopoo
    10 years ago

    Truth hurts

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      10 years ago

      Care to clarify?

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  • hoppy
    10 years ago

    But there isn't a good single word alternative that relates to both genders. Conceiving is gender-specific. Having children is more than one word. Procreating, maybe, but that has a religious overtone and not everybody is of the same religion or of a religion at all.

    I'm not sure of the problem of using the same word for animals and humans. Most verbs and adjectives relate to both equally. Even if they didn't, are animals so terrible that we couldn't even bear to be associated with them by using the same word in a human-devised language?

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    • bananaface
      10 years ago

      I completely agree, as per usual. I don't see what the big deal is.

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      • hoppy
        10 years ago

        What I was thinking was we don't have a different word for when an animal sleeps. It's just sleeping. Or eating. Or scratching. It seemed like having sex was a bit of a grey area where the story writer would want to separate animals from humans. But I don't get why.

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        • bananaface
          10 years ago

          That never even crossed my mind, and it's a really interesting point. I guess it's just because for a lot of people, there's a romantic aspect to sex, rather than it being purely animalistic. I mean, most of the time, it's not even about reproduction. In fact, loads of us try to avoid that part of it (with contraception). Whereas I think people have the opinion that the main purpose other animals hold for having sex is to reproduce.

          But then, surely the same could be said about eating? Humans don't just eat for nutrition. In fact, I think our choice of what we eat is based purely on what we find tasty, with very little regard for nutrition. I just think sex is a big deal in society. It seems to polarise opinion, and I don't know why there's so much fuss over it, to be honest. It's pretty weird.

          As for why the word breeding is dehumanising to the OP, I'm not entirely sure. It just seems a bit arrogant to me. As if being likened to other animals is insulting. Although, I think the OP saying it makes us seem like "mindless slaves-to-impulse" says a lot. I think people just don't like anything that even slightly implies that their behaviour is a result of "impulse", so to speak. Yet I notice a lot of people use the very same thing as an excuse ("humans have instincts!") when it suits them. Can't really have it both ways. Maybe the OP could elaborate on why they dislike it a bit more.

          Oh, as a side note, I know I've already welcomed you to the site and all that, but I just wanted to say you've been leaving really good comments. I hope you stick around!:)

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          • hoppy
            10 years ago

            I definitely agree with this and I forgot to thank you for welcoming me. It was really nice to have someone react so positively. Other sites aren't anything like as friendly.

            The only thing I have to ask you now is what OP means. I'm a confused hoppy and confused hoppies put their shirt in the microwave and their dinner in the washing machine.

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          • Anonymous Post Author
            10 years ago

            I don't get why we can't just say "they had children" instead of "they reproduced" or "they bred".

            To me the word "breeding" has connotations of being something not really controlled by the humans or other animals doing it, rather something set up by humans to create animals with specific traits. Maybe I'm the only one who has that connotation; it wouldn't be the first time I had interpreted something differently to most other people.

            Also (and this is my main point), the word "breeding" refers only to the act of having reproductive sex. It doesn't include the act of raising an offspring like lots of animals (including humans) do, which is a part of the child-having process which I believe is just as important. Using words like "breeding" and "reproducing" dismisses the importance of that stage and reduces the child-having process to conception alone. My thoughts apply for other social animals too where child-rearing is especially important, like elephants, not just humans. Perhaps I should have clarified that. I think that's a better way of phrasing what I meant than I said in my OP.

            It's not that I find being likened to animals insulting; I am an animal, after all. I don't find anything wrong with that. I love animals. In fact, I won't even eat them :P

            I like hoppy too. She (or he, but it seems to be she) is one of my favourite new people here for a while now.

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            • hoppy
              10 years ago

              Thank you to you too. That was really nice to say.

              Can I ask, do you live close to the land? That's maybe not quite the phrase I was looking for. I'll try again. Do you live in a community that has strong links with keeping animals or farming or rearing meat or keeping animals for show (even pets like dogs)?

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  • RomeoDeMontague
    10 years ago

    Oh how foolish you seem to think we are not animals. Well we are animals simply having ways of communicating like English, Chinese ecs might be far more advanced than say a dogs bark but they have one too.

    Though animals seem to go more by smell, body language apposed to only voice signals. You like many other humans have fulled yourself into believing you are different. You are no different you are just a naked ape.

    Also people in general are (cattle or mindless slaves-to-impulse). No one can keep it in their pants now a days. They fuck around and than say "Oh no I have a baby or oh no I got aids"."I dont want the baby let abort it" they say.

    Always talking about what celebertis look good naked, and oh how much weight she gained and how all the stupid little teenage girls have nothing but posters of boys,boys,boys they imagine sleeping with or kissing. So do tell what makes you think humans are so dignified? People act like its hard to NOT FUCK. That would mean they are slaves to impulse.

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      10 years ago

      If you took the time to read my OP, you would see that I do believe humans are animals.

      I don't think anyone can honestly deny that humans are more intelligent than most (or maybe even all) other animals. I don't believe we are better than other animals, but we are more successful at a lot of mental tasks and we can do a lot of things with our brains that other animals can't do.

      You have a very negative view of humanity. I assure you, not all of us are as bad as you think and you would do well not to prejudge people. Perhaps it is you who has fooled yourself into believing you are different, not I.

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  • Silverback133
    10 years ago

    Definitely not a fan of humans. Animals have it a lot more figured out than we ever could. Humans are below animals and have proved it on many occasions over the past. We are equivalent to a pack of hairless money hungry barbaric chimps.

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  • Wuggums47
    10 years ago

    The term breeder is often considered a derogatory term towards people who have children, especially many children. The word breed is closely related to that slur, and brings it to mind. The people who talk like this usually don't have children.

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  • Terence_the_viking
    10 years ago

    wow what a cry baby.

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  • TZ79
    10 years ago

    Humans are technically animals too

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  • sega31098
    10 years ago

    OK Political Correctness. How about "cease permitting the male gametes from reaching the female gametes"?

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  • braintrip
    10 years ago

    its a joke.
    nuff said.

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  • GuessWho
    10 years ago

    THE WORLD IS NOT OVERCROWDED:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVeA07d2F_I

    Watch the whole video. It's quite Eye-opening.

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