Essays on Sentience

In Tom Regan's article “The Case for Animal Rights,” he makes the case for the rights of animals on the basis of equal treatment of all living things that possess inherent value. He argues that morality should be centered on the equal treatment of all living entities, rather than the reduction of suffering and the amplification of pleasure. Consequently, Regan's involvement in the animal rights movement is based on three issues: the elimination of all commercial forms of animal testing, animal agriculture and animal hunting. Ultimately, Regan's argument stands as a sound defense for animal rights on the grounds ...

A. Neuromancer and Cyberpunk Film

Neuromancer discusses the ways in which people augment their bodies with technology, which can easily be seen in elements of The Matrix. The mixture of machine and man is found in The Matrix through the plugs and cables the humans use to connect to the virtual world, most notably the invasive, penetrative plug used to ‘jack in’ to the Matrix through the back of their heads. This is compared to Molly Millions’ razor-nails and eye augmentations found in Neuromancer – both fusion of man and machine used to grant the user abilities not available to them as organic life forms. ...

Just War Theory Just War Theory is the ethical convention devised to ensure that war is started only when it is most necessary and to set the limits to warfare. The theory consists of three essential parts: Jus Ad Bellum (principles of justice of war), Jus In Bello (rules of the right conduct during warfare), and Jus Post Bellum (responsibilities of warring nations after war). According to Jus Ad Bellum, war is just only when (1) it has a just cause, (2) it is the last resort, (3) it is declared by a proper authority, (4) it has the ...