The second speaker affirmative’s speech

Posted by Matthew M. under School

April 14, 2009

I was the second speaker affirmative. Yes, I am very proud to say that.

A very good morning I bid to the members of this most august house. The motion of today’s debate is that
this house would not experiment on animals for human benefits. Ladies and gentlemen, we, the
government team strongly agree with this statement as we believe that animal experimentation is not
necessary in order to gain benefits for mankind. Now, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to rebut all the
points laid out by the opposition.

The first speaker of the opposition team has stated their stand that animal testing is in fact the most
reliable source to find cures for animals and humans. Ladies and gentlemen, look at the motion of today’s
debate. The motion of today’s debate is that this house would not experiment on animals for human
benefits, FOR HUMAN BENEFITS, ladies and gentlemen. What has finding cures for animals got to do
with today’s debate?! Next, the first speaker of the opposition team also mentioned that antibodies,
vitamins, insulin are all based on animal testing. Ladies and gentlemen, there are many alternatives which
have proven to produce antibodies, vitamins, insulin and etcetera that do not involve the use of animals.
These alternatives include tissue cultures, mechanical models and etcetera which I will further elaborate
in my speech later on. And also, the second speaker of the opposition team brought up about testing on
chimpanzees being able to produce cures for AIDS. Ladies and gentlemen, yes, we agree that chimpanzees
are 95% genetically the same as human beings. But however, you cannot ignore the fact that chimpanzees
are histologically, anatomically and physiologically different than us. Moreover, their body shape is
different, the internal arrangement of their organs is different, the elasticity of their tissues is different
and the postoperative effects are different! So the fact that experimenting on chimpanzees being able to
find cures for AIDS as mentioned by the first speaker of the opposition team is rubbish.
Today I, as the second speaker will be speaking on why experimenting on animals is morally and ethically
wrong as well as the alternatives to animal experimentation.

The small, shivering cat huddles against the corner of her tiny cage, trying to sleep but was kept awake by
the ever-present pain in her head and her body. The electrode tests require electrodes to be strapped to
her head and electrical shocks delivered straight to her brain. Ladies and gentlemen, she is sleep-deprived
and dazed with pain, she is barely conscious. All she can do now is shake with fear and pain and hope that
it will all end soon. Fortunately for her, it will – tomorrow the scientists are going to decapitate her and
remove her brain to study the effects of their
experiment. (source: http://www.youthagainstanimalcruelty.org)

Ladies and gentlemen, I would love to tell you that this is a made-up story, but it’s not. It’s a real scientific
experiment, and it’s happening right now as we speak. Ladies and gentlemen, worldwide, hundreds and
millions of animals die each year in laboratory experiments, experiments whose methods are
unnecessarily cruel and whose results are often inconclusive. Ladies and gentlemen, animal
experimentation is UNETHICAL, IMMORAL and IMPRACTICAL, and I will present our case
against it!

Ladies and gentlemen, according to Louis P. Pojman, author of The Quest for Truth, there have been
accounts of animals in labs being drowned, I repeat, ladies and gentlemen, DROWNEDin oil to study
effect of oil spills, and given LSD to test aggression. Scientists also insert rare and painful genetic diseases
and viruses such as cancer and HIV. Ladies and gentleman put yourself in the shoes of these animals.
These animals suffer. These animals feel the pain. Ladies and gentlemen, would you like it if you’re a
perfectly healthy human being and some doctor picks you as his guinea pig and forces a needle filled with
HIV virus into your body? Would you like that? Of course not! THIS IS TOO MUCH!!! THIS IS
CRUELTY TO ITS MAXIMUM, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!!!

Many of the tests researchers imposed upon animals are excruciatingly painful and it, one way or another,
lowers the animals’ quality of life. As mentioned by the first speaker, many of the tests on animals
produced insignificant results. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to move on. And therefore, I, as the second
speaker of the government team will now list to you the alternatives to animal experimentation.

Ladies and gentlemen, there many effective alternatives to animal experimentation such as clinical studies
of humans, test tube research, also know as ‘in vitro’, scans, computer simulations, mechanical models,
human genetic research, tissue cultures, computer-aided drug design and list goes on and on and on.

Ladies and gentlemen, okay, how exactly do tissue cultures work? Human cells and tissues can be kept
alive in cultures and used for biomedical research. The FDA scientists have indeed managed to produce
anti-cancer, anti-tumor and anti-AIDS agents as well as other types of drugs, vaccines, antibiotics, and
therapeutic proteins through tissue cultures. The U.S. National Disease Research Interchange provides
more than 120 types of human tissue to scientists investigating diabetes, cancer, muscular dystrophy,
glaucoma, and other human diseases. Now ladies and gentleman, I proved to you that there are indeed
better and more effective alternatives that do not involve the use of animals.

Moving on, we have mechanical models. Ladies and gentlemen, in the mid sixties, chimpanzees and
bears were used in crash tests which analyses the crash compatibility of automobiles. They were actually
forced to sit on rocket sleds and these rocket sleds were purposely made to crash onto rigid walls. And
now, thank goodness ladies and gentlemen, General Motors have found an alternative which is to use of
crash dummies in their crash tests. Ladies and gentlemen, crash dummies are indeed an excellent
example of mechanical models which I’ve clearly mentioned earlier on. Crash dummies have been proven
to produce much more accurate results and are more effective than the animals previously used.

Before I take my seat ladies and gentlemen, allow me to reaffirm my team’s stand this house would not
experiment on animals for human benefits. Why ladies and gentlemen? Human experimentation is
indeed cruel and using animals for our benefit is certainly not necessary.

With that, thank you.