[zdc1]

Personally, I'm more anti-suffering than anti-death.

[verisimi]

Would the animal feel the same? Or if you were the animal and had reached your tastiest, would you be ok to die if you didn't suffer?

[skeledrew]

Does suffering matter if death follows eventually? The dead cares about nothing, because it remembers nothing, because... it no longer is (alive).

[andsoitis]

> Does suffering matter if death follows eventually? The dead cares about nothing, because it remembers nothing

Yes it matters. Causing suffering to a consciousness that can experience pain is inhumane.

Now, reasonable people can disagree how far to extend our circle of empathy. Some would exclude animals or even other humans (eg criminals or someone of a different ethnicity), while other people would go so far as to include ants, plants, or rocks. I think both extremes are wrong.

Perhaps more poignantly to you question, what if you ask yourself:

- does your answer change considering humans are also animals?

- regardless of target, what does it say to the character of a person who chooses to be cruel when they don’t have to