The rights of rats

I was surprised that the article “Why drugs are harder to quit than we thought” (CTR, Sept. 28) contains few references to humans and concentrates on laboratory rats.

Without discussing whether rat studies gives us the kind of information we need to get people off addictive drugs, including our most dangerous one, tobacco, I’d like to express the opinion that it is unethical for us to continue using fellow creatures in laboratories. It is unjust to kill members of other species as a way of doing research to solve our own problems.

Ask yourself this question: If other mammals are so similar to us so as to supposedly justify using them in labs, don’t you think they wish to stay alive, just as we so desire?

- Shloime Perel

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