There has been a news story brewing in the Canadian media the past few days about 3 men in Saskatchewan who blasted ducks with shotguns and posted the carnage on YouTube. The court case was Monday (see CBC story here) and they were appropriately fined and the men can not apply for hunting licences for 3 years...one wonders why they would even be allowed to pick up a weapon at all in the future. The sad part of all of this is one of the men has been telling the media that the whole thing has been blown out of proportion. See his words of wisdom here...
This morning I was reading the CBC news and there is a story out of Newfoundland about 3 boys on bicycles who chased a baby moose, hitting it with sticks, until it collapsed in exhaustion and had to be put down by wildlife officers. You can link to the story here.
I'm done my rant and am now at a loss for words. I know that these actions are by no means a localized phenomenon and people all over do stupid things. We live in a large and beautiful country where you don't always have to go to the wilderness to find nature. In fact nature encroaches into urban centres and can often be found right in our back yards. I think that the subjects of group mentality and animals cruelty have been explore many times in literature. An example of this is in ' Whale For the Killing' by Canadian author Farley Mowat. I can't recall if 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding touched on animal cruelty, but it certainly dealt with the "mob mentallity" and how cruel boys could be to one another.
Those of us with children try hard to impart the importance of nature and how to appreciate it and the creatures that live within it. I suppose not all parents do this. Or perhaps some kids don't get the message. Or is there something "broken" inside these people? Are they de-sensitized to the point that they don't understand their actions? I guess there are no easy answers and as long as there have been people, there have been cruel and senseless actions against both man and beast. Sometimes the horror hits a little too close to home.
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11 comments:
Unfortunately, I bet it wouldn't take much for this comments thread to turn into a catalogue of horrors, if everyone was to post recent animal cruelty stories from their local areas.
Yeah, what Anton said. I tend to hope that kids who do things like that just need a good talking to, but grown-ups who are cruel to animals and children make me wish I believed in hell (or anything, really). It'd be a comfort. :/
I'm afraid we'll see more of this in the "new media" as it becomes "cool" (at least to some sickos) to post their sickness for everyone to see. A Clockwork Orange was pretty prophetic, unfortunately.
Now wildlife around here, but if there was I don't think it would fare too well. Makes you sad.
I hate this sort of thing. I try to temper my angst and remind myself there are souls who spend hours saving beached whales, cats from sewer pipes, deer from stores, rare turtle eggs, elephants from man holes . . . *sigh* okay, that's a bit better.
The idea that everyone, especially children, have empathy and compassion is sadly false. Some develop it slowly, some never. The latter scare me.
What really scares me is that all kinds of studies show that people who abuse animals often progress to abusing children (or spouses, etc.), but animal abuse is still usually treated as a minor infraction.
Anton-Thanks for not starting the catalogue.
Katey-I am hoping that they return in their next life as a small creature hunted frequently...
Aaron-I think that you're right on about the Clockwork Orange scenario. The youth of today seem to lack a respect of their elders that we once had (or at least a healthy fear of...)
Cate-Yep. It is sad.
Rebecca-I, too, am glad that there are kind sould out there trying to counter the negative effects of others.
Natalie-I like to think that they all eventually clue in. But the others scare me too.
KC-You're right. The animal abuse should be handle more severely. The young offender business really helps the youth get away with a slap on the wrist. I know that the whole system up here really needs looked at.
I agree I think there is something very broken inside these people and I also think the law should be a lot more severe in these cases.
I think the problem is that not all people with children do what you described. Of course, that doesn't mean that you can't attempt to teach your kids right and wrong and still have them make the wrong choice, but for god's sake, people. At least try.
Danielle-I agree about the stricter laws. I think that the 12-17 crowd need to be more accountable for their actions (and since they probably live at home, their parents as well).
Carrie-Agreed. It's a pity that an instuction book noting such things doesn't pop out with the kids when they're born...
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