High cultures are
actually just subtle ways of concealing reality,
so that pretentious people can pretend that they are above the level of the
lower classes,
whether animal or human.
By now we are all too good to go crudely banging a bull on the head with a
mallet or sticking a knife through it and tearing it apart and eating it.
All that is done for us way off in the stockyard,
and the meat comes to us in the butcher shop as a completely neutral-looking
thing called a steak.
But steak is something wrapped-up, packaged.
Almost nobody picks up a steak and thinks "Poor cow."
A plastic-wrapped steak doesn't even look like a cow,
and it doesn't remind you of one in any way - that's culture.
(Alan Watts)
Respect
How many of us can claim to treat animals with respect?
Do we allow them the dignity and quality of life we take for granted?
Reverence for all life
People enjoy watching small animals with their mothers.
They feel compassion and empathy for the other creatures.
Then they go home and eat meat.
If we truly cared for animals, we might think to leave
them alone.
We could protect and preserve life, rather than treat everything
as a product.
We might plan our society and culture with compassion in mind.
Compassion not contempt
If we wanted to demonstrate our harmony with nature we might start with
consideration.
Animals have the right to live in freedom.
They do not need to be looked after by humans.
If we truly cared for their wellbeing we would improve our relationship with
them.
We might deliberately protect animals from humans, shaping our world
around these wonderful creatures.
Perhaps from that foundation, we might even learn to respect other
people too...
More...
Page created 6 March 2003