Yesterday, it was aired that summer would officially start and there would be no need to be bothered by monsoons and tropical depressions.
I didn’t care to bring a raincoat although the sky was grey and foreboding rain. It was time to let the weather bureau redeem itself from wrong forecasts, I supposed.
Then at 4PM, it rained for 15 mins. Stopped. Then poured again. If not for the piece of wood a guard lent me, I would have been soaked.
Today at noon ’til past 1PM, it rained again!
While the population of some countries carries a net decrease, the overall global population is increasing exponentially. And, it is positively growing in less-developed countries. Along with it is the continued depletion and degradation of our natural resources. Say, animals. Since the end of the dinosaur age, biologists estimate more or less 5,000 species go extinct every year. On that list, we have bears, wolves, mountain lions and sharks. The cause? Human activity. Humans have either hunted them down for sports or poisoned many if they threaten livestock. But even livestock is not free of abuse. If you heard of the McDonald case, egg-laying hens are packed into wire cages so small, they cannot even lift their wings. Their feet never touch the ground. Frustrated, they peck on their cage mates. So the farmers slice off their beak and sometimes a part of their tongue or faces.
Rene Descartes and others believe that animals could not feel pain. Critics call it the Bambi syndrome to label those who get emotionally involved instead rather than being intellectually engaged in the management of wild species.
I say, animals are sentient. They have the capacity to experience both pain and pleasure as Singer concludes. The chimpanzees not only share 98.3% of our genetic make-up but they also have similar brain structures with us. According to him and I agree that there can be no moral justification for REFUSING to take this suffering into moral consideration.
According to Roderick Nash, the whole idea of animal rights may be a human construct. We can assign them God-spirits, partial or complete rights or something in between. The goal should be some place on the continuum that works for us and for the planet and its millions of creatures.
May I take our own savages who brutally beat up and kill dogs that we consider as man’s best friend? If we continue to eat dogs, our country will soon be the number one dog-eating country in the world. If we continue to eat dogs, rabies will get us. If we continue not to act for the welfare of animals, by all means we show how we have not progressed as a nation.
Or we can choose that our cattle, from where we get our hamburger, be injected with painkillers before they are castrated and butchered. Or choose to humanely trap and transport animals elsewhere when a mountain is bulldozed or a farm is converted for commercial reasons.
Please choose to take a stand and stop the maltreatment of animals.
The references I used:
My fondness towards animals includes reading about them, watching animal cartoon characters to literally talking to a dog wandering around the neighborhood. Yet, I am a meat-eater and I agree to one view, that is, if we all vow to be Vegans, everyone will be competing with all herbivorous animals. Man’s view of animals has evolved through the centuries. Historically, cats are associated with witchcraft. Today, pet ownership is more than a status symbol. It is not just the queen of England who grooms a Corgi. The manufacture of animal feeds now caters to the middle class. Likewise, the lower class sees to it that their own adopted pets will never be part of the dish served on the table. Doctors and nursing homes recommend the elderly get companion animals. Unless you are someone who is disgusted by animals or have absolutely no time to care for one, numerous studies show that the medical benefits they provide are beyond dispute ranging from the lessening antisocial behavior in children with autism to faster healing times after surgery. I bet the 1986 film Richest Cat in the World was inspired by the man who bequeathed his wealth to his cat!
Trees and rocks are not like us but animals are clearly very similar to humans. While traditional psychology is slow to admit that animals have personalities, research is trying to link animal to human personality. It is also key to understanding oneself. Key to finding a pet. Otherwise, a macho wannabe will end up being controlled by an aggressive dog. Or if you get a sporty dog and you are not sporty yourself, blame yourself for the dog’s poor physical health and behavioral problems.
To the Native Americans, you are an ant if you are a team player. Ants live and work with hundreds if not thousands of others without squabble or complaint. You are a deer if you peacefully and noiselessly go about your daily business. Perhaps, no animal epitomizes you than a butterfly, if change is an essential part of your life.
Getting a pet entails responsibilities and costs. There are no hypoallergenic raccoons. If you live in an apartment, how much space will you afford a lion? If you get a parrot, a highly social animal, will you live long enough for its 50-70 year lifespan or because it screeches, will your next door neighbor live long enough? We can therefore suit our personality and lifestyle to the kind of pet we are getting.
By the way, the last time I knew that the neighbor’s pig I befriended once in a rural area was the same one we were eating on the day I was to go back to the city, I was saddened. Very well, what kind of an animal am I then? I am a mongrel: 50% cat, 30% dog and 20% all others. Maybe that’s why I adore them all. Have you considered what kind of an animal you are?
Refererences:
Franklin, Adrian. “Animals and Modern Cultures.” c1999. Sage Publications .
< http://www.educationworld.com/At_Home/student/student017.shtml >
< http://www.utexas.edu/features/2006/dogs/index.html >
<http://www.natural-pet-care.com/natural-pet-health-blog/choosing-your-pet/ >
< http://animal.discovery.com/fansites/ms-adventure/animal-in-you/personality.html >
<http://www.smalldogsparadise.com/case-studies/does-your-personality-really-match-up-with-the-dog-you-choose/ >
<http://www.doglirious.com/best-dog-breed-personality.html >
What am I doing?
