Inhumane Anthropocentrism

“Happy Mother’s day, Mom!”
-- Randall

Inhumane Anthropocentrism

Having recently watched Herzog’s “Grizzly Man”(2005) and Morris’s “Gates of Heaven,”(1978) I couldn’t help noticing animal issues in the news of late. You may recall that “Gates” is a documentary about pet cemeteries. One of the comments by a grieving pet owner concerns the question of why God wouldn’t allow four legged, as well as two legged, species into her kingdom. Envision, if you will, Christopher Reeve astride the recently euthanized Derby horse, Eight Belles (she broke both ankles). Further consider whether you’d want to enter the pearly gates without Fluffy? If animals could vote, would they elect to go heaven knowing this might mean they could also go to hell. And finally, where do you think the French Fido that ate the lady’s face would end up? While you chew on that, rewind to Superman fearlessly leaping cloud banks, while his noble filly dreams of winning the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Yes, life is good in Heaven. Except, they have no beer, that’s why we drink it here. Love those suds! Speaking of suds, did you see Sudzy’s letter to the Marquette Mining Journal on 4/25/08?

To the editor:

Regarding that laughing sound? That has to be Ann Coulter on her way to the bank. I’d be slapping my knee and holding my sides too if I’d just collected 23 grand for spouting such non-sequiturs as: ‘For liberals, free speech is nude dancing and treason. For conservatives, free speech is hate speech.’
And the people who wrote the big check? Let’s just say P. T. Barnum had them pegged at birth.

Robert G. Glantz, NMU 1979
Berkeley, Calif.

Speaking of non-sequiturs, what do Eight Belles and Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens have in common? It just so happens that Stevens mentioned the horse at the 68th conference of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Stevens said that Eight Belles was treated more humanely than most death row prisoners. “According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Stevens told an audience of judges and lawyers that he checked into the procedure used to kill Eight Belles and was surprised to learn it is against the law in Kentucky to kill animals using one of the drugs in a three-drug lethal injection cocktail that many states, including Kentucky, use to execute prisoners”(AP 5/11/08).

Of course, it’s always been a fact that we’re more merciful to suffering animals than late-stage terminal cancer patients. Dontcha know, we only play God with lower animals, not ourselves, unless you consider resuscitating a patient as much as 50 times playing God (see Barbara Huttmann’s 1982 Newsweek essay, “Mac”). It’s only when animals die that we disrespect them. Consider what follows.

“Change Is Sought in Cremation Policy

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Pentagon is recommending changes in the handling of the remains of military personnel after it was revealed that Delaware crematoriums contracted by the military are used for both humans and animals.
A military official said there had been no instances or accusations that human and pet remains were mixed. But officials are recommending that human remains be cremated at a site dedicated entirely to them.
The Dover Air Force Base Port Mortuary, where military remains arrive, lacks its own crematorium, so it contracts with two funeral homes.”

Speaking of private contractors, I was pleased as punch to hear our wise administration renewed its partnership with Blackwater Security.

While I think it’s disrespectful to imply humans deserve better treatment than animals (Aren’t all God’s creatures, great and small, sacred?), tis probably a noble thing to segregate the ovens. But when we treat our living veterans so shabbily, why the brouhaha?

“‘Shh!’ said the e-mail in February from Dr. Ira Katz, head of mental health services for Veteran Affairs, to a colleague. ‘Our suicide prevention coordinators are identifying about 1000 suicide attempts per month among the veterans we see in our medical facilities. Is this something we should (carefully) address ourselves in some sort of release before someone stumbles on it?’ (NYT, 5/11/08)”

Since there’s no way we can ever come close to repaying our soldiers for making the ultimate sacrifice, isn’t it time we reallocate some of the billions spent on the war toward our returning veterans’ health care?

Sincerely - Shadow