Cougars, Coyotes, and Bears. Oh my.
There has been a lot of stories in the news lately about people being attacked by wild animals. And people are shocked and outraged anytime a person is killed by a cougar or a bear. So much so that the offending creature is inevitably hunted down and shot. Because after all, how dare an animal attack a human? Don't they know their place?
God gave humans dominion over animals, right? They are here to serve us as we see fit, right?
Bullshit.
Some people believe that there is nothing larger than the universe. But it seems to me that even the universe is not large enough to contain human arrogance. How is life more precious to a human than to any other creature? Mahatma Gandhi once said "To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body." There is nothing more divine about being born a human rather than a chipmunk or an elk. Don't get me wrong, being born human is very fortunate. People have a greater capacity to reason than animals. The problem is that we seldom use that capacity to generate compassion for those creatures who take a less fortunate birth than ourselves.
When an animal attacks and perhaps kills a person it is driven by survival and instinct. This is unlike humans that often kill for greed, revenge, or even pleasure. Human beings have moved past the necessity of killing for survival. When a person goes out into the woods to kill for pleasure it is called sport; when a grizzly bear, driven by hunger and instinct, attacks and kills a person, it is called a monster and is hunted down and destroyed. But I got news for you folks, when you walk into the wilderness, when you buy a house that is close to wildlife, you should not be surprised when a coyote tries to take a bite out of your ass. And what's more, it is your damn fault not the animal's. Don't be a dumb-ass and don't blame the animal.
Our intelligence and technological development could allow us to push past our savage instincts. Humans do not need to kill to survive, they choose to out of habit. Albert Einstein said that "nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." So perhaps it is time to start breaking antiquated habits for the good of all the creatures on the planet, including ourselves.
What's worse is that people kill (animals and each other) for something called justice. Killing as a vehicle for justice is nothing more than revenge. It serves no purpose whatsoever other than to fuel the cycle of violence. You cannot make something right by committing the same wrong.
Everyone dies, that's the fact. It is killing that is wrong. Perhaps when our species finally figures this out we can begin to evolve again. We are supposedly the ones with the increased capacity for thought. We should start using this capacity to develop compassion rather than as a tool for greed, anger, and domination.
God gave humans dominion over animals, right? They are here to serve us as we see fit, right?
Bullshit.
Some people believe that there is nothing larger than the universe. But it seems to me that even the universe is not large enough to contain human arrogance. How is life more precious to a human than to any other creature? Mahatma Gandhi once said "To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body." There is nothing more divine about being born a human rather than a chipmunk or an elk. Don't get me wrong, being born human is very fortunate. People have a greater capacity to reason than animals. The problem is that we seldom use that capacity to generate compassion for those creatures who take a less fortunate birth than ourselves.
When an animal attacks and perhaps kills a person it is driven by survival and instinct. This is unlike humans that often kill for greed, revenge, or even pleasure. Human beings have moved past the necessity of killing for survival. When a person goes out into the woods to kill for pleasure it is called sport; when a grizzly bear, driven by hunger and instinct, attacks and kills a person, it is called a monster and is hunted down and destroyed. But I got news for you folks, when you walk into the wilderness, when you buy a house that is close to wildlife, you should not be surprised when a coyote tries to take a bite out of your ass. And what's more, it is your damn fault not the animal's. Don't be a dumb-ass and don't blame the animal.
Our intelligence and technological development could allow us to push past our savage instincts. Humans do not need to kill to survive, they choose to out of habit. Albert Einstein said that "nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." So perhaps it is time to start breaking antiquated habits for the good of all the creatures on the planet, including ourselves.
What's worse is that people kill (animals and each other) for something called justice. Killing as a vehicle for justice is nothing more than revenge. It serves no purpose whatsoever other than to fuel the cycle of violence. You cannot make something right by committing the same wrong.
Everyone dies, that's the fact. It is killing that is wrong. Perhaps when our species finally figures this out we can begin to evolve again. We are supposedly the ones with the increased capacity for thought. We should start using this capacity to develop compassion rather than as a tool for greed, anger, and domination.
posted by Mark at
9:01 PM
5 Comments:
Interesting...I don't know where I fall on capitol punishment. I don't know what to think about becoming a vegetarian instead of killing for animals for the enjoyment of their meat when it is not necessary for my survival. one day, my spiritual father told me that probably the supreme love would be to become a vegetarian and not eat animals' meat at all. However, he said it as more of an aside, as though he is not expecting that from me, yet. Just putting it in my mind to think about. I had a terrific ribeye steak last Saturday night, but you make a good point. I don't think I have a problem eating meat if I know that the animals were treated humanely while they lived because, as you said, they will die eventually...it's part of the food chain. I just don't like the factory mentality in raising meat. So, I was just thinking about ordering a bunch of organic beef online from a small working ranch.
Anyway, yes, we do have a very arrogant attitude towards the beautiful animals we share the earth with. A couple of weeks ago, someone saw a cougar on our churches property and kind of freaked out saying that we have to always keep an eye on our kids when they are outside. The chances of our kids being killed or hurt in a car accident are so much greater than a cougar attacking them, so I thought it was an over-reaction. At the same time, if a cougar does attack, it's because it is either literally starving to death or is hurt/sick in some way and can't hunt its normal prey as well. So, it goes after a human. To me, it seems somewhat compassionate and wise to kill the animal and put it out of misery as well as protect humans. If the animal can be rehabilitated, then sure, that's better than killing. However, I don't think that is often an option.
All of the deer hunters I know say that killing the deer is the compassionate thing to do as well. If they didn't hunt the deer, the deer would overpopulate and would die of starvation, anyway.
I don't know all of the answers. I do know that before I became an Orthodox Christian, and was a Bible Church Protestant, I did have more of the mentality that man is supreme and animals are there to serve them. Now, I have more of the attitude that man does have dominion, but we are accountable for our wise and compassionate treatment of animals. I have probably also been effected by my 11 year old daughter who has grown into a big time animal lover. She wants to be a vet, but I don't think she could handle the cruelty to animals she would likely see.
P.S. We have been listening to "White Fang" on tape by Jack London the past two days. It corresponds to what you're talking about. Have you read it? What do you think of it? Also, we went to the Houston Zoo today, what do you think of zoos? Sorry about the long comment....
I feel pretty strongly that capitol punishment is a contradiction of morality. It serves no purpose but for revenge. Killing a criminal does not make the harm they have done go away and escalates the cycle of violence. We will never live in peace when we let violence be a solution to our problems. Killing is too easy a solution, and in my opinion, peace and compassion is the path of the truly brave (H.H. the Dalai Lama, Mahatma Gandhi etc). I have no problem locking someone away for life. Although they loose their freedom, they are given an opportunity for spiritual redemption. Giving even the hardest of criminals this chance is ultimate compassion. But I also know that the public must be protected from criminals.
I feel I need to point out a contradiction in what you have said. Deer hunters feel that killing deer is compassionate because their numbers are so large that they will starve to death in the winter, but your cougar is also starving to death. See the contradiction?
The problem is that humans have exterminated all of the predators that keep the deer numbers in check. So we feel justified continuing to kill animals because we have killed all of the predators that keep them in balance. Cycle of violence. Somehow we can always justify our need to take life.
I’ve never read White Fang but I used to work at Wolf Haven International as an animal care specialist. So I know a little bit about wolves and the effect on the ecosystem when predators are eliminated. (See previous paragraph.)
I’m not a big fan of zoos. But they are getting better. They do play an important role in restoring endangered species and education but ultimately I would like it if there were no need for zoos. Animals deserve the right to live free just as we do.
No need to apologize for a long comment. :)
Thanks, Mark. Excellent points you make, and very good food for thought, esp the part about starving cougars and too many deer. I set it up perfectly for you to make that illustration, and I understand what you're saying.
On the topic of the death penalty,today my mother was talking about the Shasta Groene case and why the father does not want the death penalty for Duncan. She was dubious as to why the father had changed his mind. Sounds like he trying to protect his daughter, but my mom thought it had to be more than that. I told her I wasn't sure if I support capitol punishment, ever. She started stating all of the terrible things in Duncan's record. I don't think she wants the death penalty for him because of revenge. She wants him off the street and doesn't trust that he will STAY off the street unless he is executed.
Anyway, I always vote Republican because I am a one issue voter, pro-life. I would rather save the life of a baby than a convicted murderer/rapist. However, this next presidential election most likely won't have a pro-life, Republican candidate. So, maybe I will vote for a democrat for the first time in my life.
I agree with you %100 about the criminal having a chance at spiritual redemption while not having freedom. However, here are the reasons I think capitol punishment might be acceptable, as I alluded to earlier.
#1 - it's a deterrant to other criminals. I used to teach special ed for 4th and 5th graders, and I remember how they talked about wanting to go to jail. I know it's was mainly bravado talking, but compared to the life some of them have, jail doesn't sound that bad. I think that the death penalty might be the only deterrant for criminal-wannabes.
#2-Aren't there alot of people who get life imprisonment only to get out 10 or 15 years later for good behavior? If you don't have the carrot of getting out to dangle before the inmates, what will make them behave? At the same time, we don't want some of them out on the streets again.
#3-Our current jails are overloaded and the people who run them and the guards are so many time corrupt and shady. It sounds like a huge mess. Can we really afford to keep paying more and more for the increase of criminals who do not get the death penalty to spend a life time in jail?
#4-I'm pretty sure I have seen actual criminals who have asked for the death penalty. What about those people?
These are probably the same old, tired arguments, but you seem to be a patient person.
So, any comments?
Some comments to the death penalty arguments:
1. The death penalty has been proven to not be a deterrent to crime. Clearly if it were, there would be no one on death row and Texas would not be putting in an express lane to the executioner.
2. I’m all for a “throw away the key” policy. Instead of supporting the death penalty, support putting violent offenders away with no chance of parole.
3. Killing people because it is financially sound really grates on my morality. Fix the prison system, don’t kill people just because we don’t have room for them. Get the non-violent offenders away from the violent ones. If marijuana was legal, you’d see a lot more room in the system.
4. Sanctioned suicide? Moral quagmire. I don’t support it.
The bottom line is that no matter what the punishment it does not reach the root of the problem. The root of the problem is a culture that glorifies violence. Until we choose to stop making violence a solution to our problems, we will continue to live in a violent world. It takes courage to denounce violent acts even when we perceive them to be a solution to a greater evil. I’ve said it before; we need to stop the cycle of violence.
Thanks again, Mark. I appreciate your thoughtful answers. After reading your responses, I feel somewhat badly about some of the reasons I wrote here. I don't agree with everything you wrote, but as usual, you made some great points. I respect your desire to stop the cycle of violence.
To Airyn: Yes, in the past I have been a single issue voter because I have believed that with the system of checks and balances in our governmental system, things like foreign policy and the environment would work themselves out. While I have felt more comfortable with the Republican platform in general on other issues besides abortion, I would become a democrat tomorrow if democrats were suddenly the pro-life party. Back in the days of slavery, I would have been a single issue voter against slavery (I hope) and I think abortion is just as much of an evil in country as slavery was.
When I see my friendly neighbor who is very mentally retarded, should I think that her mother should have aborted her? Seeing her walk her dog daily, is one of the best and brightest sights I ever see around here. So many times, people with deformities, who are damaged in someway, who are even unwanted, are most beautiful people on the planet. Thank God, my neighbor wasn't aborted. So, that's my rationale.
Since I am somewhat anonymous here, I don't mind if you all want to disagree with me. Also,to be honest, after recently reading an article about global warming by an environmental-biology professor, I have started rethinking my politics a little bit.
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