Denial of rights of inanimate objects

Inadequate legal rights of natural objects
Inadequate legal rights of trees

Nature

The denial of rights of inanimate objects refers to the philosophical and ethical debate surrounding the moral status and legal recognition of non-sentient entities, such as natural features, animals, and artificial constructs. This issue raises questions about environmental ethics, property rights, and the intrinsic value of nature. Advocates argue that granting rights to inanimate objects can promote ecological sustainability and respect for the environment, while critics contend that such rights undermine human interests and legal frameworks. This discourse challenges traditional notions of personhood and ownership, prompting a reevaluation of humanity's relationship with the non-human world.

Claim

Pieces of art, natural wonders and unusual objects have a right to existence in and of themselves. The wanton destruction of inanimate objects by human beings is one more example of the human species' need to control existence rather than be a part of creation. It is no answer to claim that streams and forests cannot have legal standing because they cannot speak. Corporations cannot speak, nor can states, estates, infants, incompetents, municipalities or universities. It is lawyers that speak for them.

Counter-claim

At present there does not seem to be accepted minimum values that can keep the world straight and protect human rights, let alone rights for animals and trees.