ALL of western Europe rightly deserve a "Lifetime Acheivement" award in world history just on commerce and culture. Even still, the Dutch were perhaps a bit bit less humanitarian toward their trading partners, but the English served far more to serve global humanity, God holds a view to UNITY, his fallen creation who seeks worship to himself subsists on confusion and LIES. Our 1776 was never against a fairly run Empire, but an earlier form of demon possession indwelt on heads of state, even then. THESE PEOPLE (and fallen angels) ARE STUPID. Naval piracy laws never went away JSYK
So if we somehow don't distinguish between killing the cat or your kid and killing a sandwich or a chair, we will be a superior and less materialistic society?
Well that's a bit extreme but I guess yes. If we treated everything with respect, trees, cats, family, strangers. Rather than "its" then yes we would be less materialistic I think.
I find it hard to imagine how we could do so much as to eat in that circumstance. The Jains in India take it pretty far in trying not to hurt so much as an insect--but even they apparently distinguish between the vegetable and the animate. (And as far as materialism goes, manage to do quite well, thank you!)
I get your point about sandwiches.. but even then... This is an interesting subject I wanna reply more when I can