Hello, all.
I have a very good online friend, who I'll just call Jack. Jack and I were friends for over the last year, and we shared many different hobbies, so it was easy to talk to him.
Jack has a 12-year-old sister who I'll call Elaine. Last June, Elaine brought home a cat from an animal shelter. The cat was about a year-old, and he was neutered, checked for rabies, etc. So at first, everything is fine, but the day after Elaine brings the cat home, Jack tells me how the cat is always biting and kicking Elaine in the arm. I told him that's how cats play, and my cat does that all the time.
I then told him that a cat is a big responsibility, and you have to do research before choosing to get one, and you're stuck with what you get.
Every few days, he's complaining to me how his sister's getting "beaten up" by the cat -- hissed at, kicked, bitten, etc. I gave him literally twenty different websites on cat behaviour, and urged him to keep the cat, as it was attached to them. I told him to get the cat checked at the vet.
Of course, he made excuses, saying that "this cat isn't normal" and "he's a very bad cat". I told him cats are beyond morals like good and evil because they're not like us humans in terms on intelligence. Of course, he kept making excuses.
I told him I'd take the cat if he didn't want it, and I'd pay for the transportation, since I like fiesty cats, and I didn't want him to go back to the shelter. His sister immediately said no, even though I offered to pay $200. Her attitude, to me, is a "if I can't have it, no one can!" type of attitude.
So I talked to him a few days ago, and he told me he's getting a new cat. I asked him what happened to the old one, and he started saying, "He was a bad cat, he was a bad cat..." This didn't sound good.
He said that they put him to sleep because he was "anti-social, mean, bad", etc. He said his sister was actually the one who asked their parents to have the cat put to sleep because "he was too mean". Like the cat is some kind of ****ing toy you can replace.
Today, he and I got into this whole debate about morality. I told him that I eat cows, pigs, chicken, fish, and lamb, and I feel bad about it, but I'd never kill a family member like a dog or cat.
Now, you have to keep in mind I'm an atheist, so I don't believe in god, but he kept saying how his god says animals were made for us to eat, and we could do whatever we wanted to them, etc.
Now, no offence to Christians, you can believe what you want to believe, but this guy was trying to justify killing a cat he adopted and brought into his own home for no reason. You killed him because he was "bad"? How? All cats bite and scratch when playing with their owners.
It's disgusting. He said the cat would rub against his legs every morning. How could you condone something like this? How could you kill someone that gives you affection every morning?
It's not like the cat had some life-threatening disease, or was suffering from old age. He simply killed it because it was an inconvenience, and then got another one a week later (last Sunday).
I don't know if I should be his friend anymore, or if I'm over-reacting. After all, I eat animals of equal intelligence to cats, like cows and pigs... But, c'mon, family members are different, right? I would never harm or eat a cat or dog. I know I'm being a hypocrite with double-standards here, but, should I be condoning Jack for killing his cat? Or am I right for blocking + deleting him, thus cutting off the friendship?
Guys, I'd like to hear your opinions on the situation. Is it right to condone Jack for putting his cat to sleep because he was an inconvenience, even though I eat meat?
I have a very good online friend, who I'll just call Jack. Jack and I were friends for over the last year, and we shared many different hobbies, so it was easy to talk to him.
Jack has a 12-year-old sister who I'll call Elaine. Last June, Elaine brought home a cat from an animal shelter. The cat was about a year-old, and he was neutered, checked for rabies, etc. So at first, everything is fine, but the day after Elaine brings the cat home, Jack tells me how the cat is always biting and kicking Elaine in the arm. I told him that's how cats play, and my cat does that all the time.
I then told him that a cat is a big responsibility, and you have to do research before choosing to get one, and you're stuck with what you get.
Every few days, he's complaining to me how his sister's getting "beaten up" by the cat -- hissed at, kicked, bitten, etc. I gave him literally twenty different websites on cat behaviour, and urged him to keep the cat, as it was attached to them. I told him to get the cat checked at the vet.
Of course, he made excuses, saying that "this cat isn't normal" and "he's a very bad cat". I told him cats are beyond morals like good and evil because they're not like us humans in terms on intelligence. Of course, he kept making excuses.
I told him I'd take the cat if he didn't want it, and I'd pay for the transportation, since I like fiesty cats, and I didn't want him to go back to the shelter. His sister immediately said no, even though I offered to pay $200. Her attitude, to me, is a "if I can't have it, no one can!" type of attitude.
So I talked to him a few days ago, and he told me he's getting a new cat. I asked him what happened to the old one, and he started saying, "He was a bad cat, he was a bad cat..." This didn't sound good.
He said that they put him to sleep because he was "anti-social, mean, bad", etc. He said his sister was actually the one who asked their parents to have the cat put to sleep because "he was too mean". Like the cat is some kind of ****ing toy you can replace.
Today, he and I got into this whole debate about morality. I told him that I eat cows, pigs, chicken, fish, and lamb, and I feel bad about it, but I'd never kill a family member like a dog or cat.
Now, you have to keep in mind I'm an atheist, so I don't believe in god, but he kept saying how his god says animals were made for us to eat, and we could do whatever we wanted to them, etc.
Now, no offence to Christians, you can believe what you want to believe, but this guy was trying to justify killing a cat he adopted and brought into his own home for no reason. You killed him because he was "bad"? How? All cats bite and scratch when playing with their owners.
It's disgusting. He said the cat would rub against his legs every morning. How could you condone something like this? How could you kill someone that gives you affection every morning?
It's not like the cat had some life-threatening disease, or was suffering from old age. He simply killed it because it was an inconvenience, and then got another one a week later (last Sunday).
I don't know if I should be his friend anymore, or if I'm over-reacting. After all, I eat animals of equal intelligence to cats, like cows and pigs... But, c'mon, family members are different, right? I would never harm or eat a cat or dog. I know I'm being a hypocrite with double-standards here, but, should I be condoning Jack for killing his cat? Or am I right for blocking + deleting him, thus cutting off the friendship?
Guys, I'd like to hear your opinions on the situation. Is it right to condone Jack for putting his cat to sleep because he was an inconvenience, even though I eat meat?
