I beg the following question to all the human beings reading this post:  Have you ever flung your feces at another human being?  I would certainly hope not.

I really don’t believe that any animals should be considered ‘non-human persons.’ The term itself is ridiculous and sounds almost like it’s a joke. This article talks about the orangutan, Sandra, who is now considered a ‘non-human person’ with rights.  To me, this article reads and sounds like an Onion article.   I still am not truly convinced that this is really happening; I feel like I’m in the Twilight Zone.

Animals and people are not the same, despite some similarities.  Yes, there are lovable animals that may sometimes have human-like characteristics, but that does not make them ‘non-human persons.’  (There are also many humans who act like animals, so where are they placed in this new order?)  I think the term ‘non-human persons’ is just another way of saying ‘smart animals’ for animal rights activists in denial.

By the same logic that we are calling certain select species of animal a ‘non-human person,’ shouldn’t we be calling Siri a person?  She’s intelligent, she interacts with people, and she certainly does whatever the hell she wants.  And who’s to say she doesn’t have emotions and a sense of self?  Along those lines, how can we be sure that animals have a sense of self?  Just because it appears that they might, how can we be absolutely certain that animals have a notion of self-awareness?

Let me be completely honest.  I do care about animals.  They are beautiful creatures.  But they are just that – creatures, not persons or ‘non-human persons.’  There always seems to be some bandwagon that people latch on to, and this seems to be one of them.  The truth of the matter is, I couldn’t give a Flying Wallenda about whether or not certain animals are considered ‘non-human persons’ or not.  What I find really annoying is that fact that everyone feels as though they have to be uber politically correct in everything they say and do, whether they’re dealing with other people, animals, religion, race, gender, politics, computers, holidays, plants, etc.  Why can’t people speak their minds and have their own opinions without everyone jumping down their throats?  Just speaking my politically incorrect mind …