Team-BHP - Accidents in India

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom (Post 4246634)

There is no valid excuse for killing anything if it can safely be avoided. We are not being hard-hearted or cruel here.

Completely agreed with your points. As I said, accidents do happen! What I wanted to point out was the mistake in dismissing a sentient being as "just an animal". If we can be careful enough to not run down any stray pedestrians, why not extend the same courtesy to stray animals? We wouldn't be suggesting to not avoid any pedestrian if it compromises our safety or of the other road users!

Agreed we have gone a bit off topic so I will refrain from further commenting on this topic!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hickstead (Post 4246573)

Isn't it sad to keep some one else life in risk for saving an animal ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom (Post 4246600)

Maybe, but he's right.

Sure, not many of us would kill or hurt an animal if we can avoid doing so, but do not endanger pedestrians or other drivers.

Agreed with the swerving part. But I still disagree with the point that it is okay to kill an animal to save a human life. Your point that it is sad to put someone else's life in danger due to an animal has the underlying assumption that humans are more important than animals.

Now just go ahead and replace that unknowing animal who is on the road with a knowing human and imagine what you would do. Would you run him over to save the swerving (and other lives and drivers?). No.

In all probability, if a human was in your path, you would try everything not to kill. Reasons? He might be important to his family. OR You might be in court or in jail, despite being not at fault. But killing an animal? You know nobody will care. It will probably lie there rotting away. It might be important to it's family as well. But people just don't care unless that life is a human.

This is what is wrong with the world. Next time you think of hitting a dog on the road to save a human, see this attachment.

In panic situations, I assume most of us would try to save the life which is in direct line of danger with our car. It's just an impulse.

I wish the government and people involved paid attention not only to human accidents and deaths on road, animals too.

It's instinct mostly to swerve to avoid hitting . We have seen many instances where a bus or lorry is swerved to avoid a child on his bicycle and hitting other people. It's less so with an animal. Here too, size matters. If it's a cat or dog, if one cannot avoid hitting, one will go and hit it. What if it's a Buffalo? No one would dare hit it. In most instances, a two wheeler rider prefers human to Buffalo to hit. Same with Pigs too. I don't think many two-wheelers would escape unhurt after hitting it.

It's primarily instinct for survival, own and other humans. Animals do come second, in most cases. It also depends on the ride.

I think we should move on. But lets take one more point into consideration. It's not kind, it's not humane but it's very real-world-true: nobody gets arrested for running into a stray dog.

But these are pretty good final words on the topic

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathwalkr (Post 4246811)

Nobody wants to willingly hurt anyone on the road.

Anyone, any species.

Quote:

Originally Posted by beingyukeit (Post 4246568)

Are you pointing out that only human lives matter not animal lives? That is an extremely sad statement to make.

In my book, if the choice is between a human and an animal life, I will unhesitatingly hit the latter. Subject to it being small enough. One can't hit a bull or cow without coming to harm.

The question is not whether the animal is a sentient being or not. It is, but less so than a human. And certainly will not cause the legal trouble and liability of hitting a human.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gansan (Post 4246998)

I'm astonished! I really felt that maybe somewhere as more sentient beings we will be able to be a little more responsible, but I guess we will just save the legal trouble and run over an animal instead.

I'm sorry if this is a dig, but I just can't see the logic of the statement made.

Drive responsibly, watch out for people, animals and other objects should be the way forward!

Cheers and apologies in advance!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gansan (Post 4247193)

Just tell me if the choice is either hitting a boy or swerving and running over a dog, what will you choose?

By all means, nobody want to kill an animal.
however, if I have to make a choice between a human and an animal, I will be a bit more selfish and try to save the life of my race - human. Its not belittling the other life OR saying human life is more valuable. Its plain selfishness that one of my kind is going to survive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by beingyukeit (Post 4246568)

Are you pointing out that only human lives matter not animal lives? That is an extremely sad statement to make.

First of all, animals should not be on the roads. In most countries, especially in the developed world, all stray animals are caught and killed. Yes, there are adoption programmes but over 95% of stray animals get killed by the authorities. Stray animals endanger lives by causing accidents in addition to other problems such as biting humans, barking and leaving excrement everywhere which leads to a lack of cleanliness and diseases. Do you see stray dogs, cows or pigs in the streets of London, Paris or New York? How are they eliminated? The brutal truth is: by killing them. Why? Because even human convenience, let alone human lives, are far more important than animal lives.

Of course human lives are far more important than animals. All countries allow humans to kill animals just for food. No country allows you to kill a human for any purpose (except death penalty by a court). Personally, I do not eat meat as the thought of killing an animal for food is repulsive to me but that doesn't change the fact that billions of people kill millions of animals for food every day all across the world.

Of course one should try to stop and not kill any animal but it is silly to equate an animal with a human in this context.

Bad, bad crash on the Madras-Bangalore hwy this afternoon around 2. One side of the road was cordoned off by the cops. Couldn't see much, but the cop told me that two cars had crashed into each other, and a parked vehicle was involved. Six casualties, apparently. One of the cars was a mangled black Scorpio. This was right before the Ratnagiri Muruga temple on the right.