No easy answer. 

If we go with the moment- then children are in danger of not being viable. Especially, while they are adjusting to becoming adults.

If we look at potentiality, then the danger comes when a disease strikes that could in the future drastically affect that person's life and others detrimentally.

Life in and of itself has value.  Maybe not to anyone other than ourselves, and sometimes even we do not find value but someone else does.

Responsibility and emotions.

Responsibility for being the caretaker of the child, providing food when scarce, housing, clothing as an infant. Emotions definitely affect us concerning the sperm and egg embryo along with responsibility.

Mosquitoes are little critters that make me unhappy when they swarm and bite me.     Killing them is convenient, but the aftermath is that a scent is sent out that attracts even more of the buggers. So a good mosquito spray to repel them is my answer.  They get to live, emotionally I am no longer angry and take out my frustration with being their food supply and we get along. 

One can have respect for life along with being a omnivore.  I and everyone else eats some kind of life to survive.  It is through acceptance that we are all connected in the food chain that I believe allows for the taking of another life form to survive.  Even when we die, the decomposition of our bodies feeds the lowest of life forms. In the wild, we actually become food for large carnivores. 

I think that there is a distinction between value of life and acceptance of how everything is interconnected toward being a type of food source for something else.  In the American Indian culture, one must bless the value of what you are going to consume before it is used, so that one would always remember that life itself has value.  That the giving of one's life for the benefit of another is an agreement made by our intertwinement. 

I know where you are going w/ this, but I still have to say that they do produce a lot that benefits society...it's just not always tangible.


I think we should just value life, right now, whether it has potential or not.  We are not always good judges of the potentiality of things.

All life or just human life?

Yes, all life.  That being said, I am still going to eat chickens and carrots (or insert other animal and/or vegetable).     And swat pesky mosquitos.     But, I only swat them in self-defense.    I also only kill bugs, intentionally anyway, if they have come into my house.  Sometimes, I even free them!!

As a side note, I still believe humans are higher than animals, not equal to them.  Just thought I'd throw that in there!    

Above.  more special than.  not equal to.  in a different grouping. 

I'd say smarter than, but really, there are some people that I cannot say that for!!    Though, I think the capability is there.  I'm also talking about over all, not in specific cases.