This example is being chosen in hindsight. You could easily have E-coli being afraid that the apes would evolve into something that destroys them, or humans being afraid that dogs would evolve into something that would destroy them.
Also, if whales could argue like this, whale relations with humans would be very different, and hunting whales for lamp oil would be unlikely, or at least would be about the same status as hunting humans for slaves is now.
Because 1) they would be able to trade with (or threaten) humans and 2) even ignoring that, humans behave differently towards obvious sentients—anti-slavery movements and anti-whale-oil movements are not comparable.
I think it is not that unlikely that they are roughly as biologically smart as us and have advanced forms of communication, but that they are just too alien and thus we haven’t deciphered them yet.
This example is being chosen in hindsight. You could easily have E-coli being afraid that the apes would evolve into something that destroys them, or humans being afraid that dogs would evolve into something that would destroy them.
Also, if whales could argue like this, whale relations with humans would be very different, and hunting whales for lamp oil would be unlikely, or at least would be about the same status as hunting humans for slaves is now.
Why?
Because 1) they would be able to trade with (or threaten) humans and 2) even ignoring that, humans behave differently towards obvious sentients—anti-slavery movements and anti-whale-oil movements are not comparable.
I think it is not that unlikely that they are roughly as biologically smart as us and have advanced forms of communication, but that they are just too alien and thus we haven’t deciphered them yet.