Monday, 25 February 2008
ron pauls animal supporters
Ron Paul's Animal Supporters
As Part of Ron Paul's "A Friend of All Animals" campaign, here are
some more of Ron Paul's supporters.
Turtles Vote Ron Paul
The deep sea turtles put up their Ron Paul sign in Maui.
From: mauidiveguy
Monkey Supports Ron Paul
Uploaded by txlibertylady
animal sketches take 1
animal sketches take 1
as you may or may not know my thesis is on animal portrayals in
folklore, myth and legend so here's a bunch of sketches that i've done
for some of the paintings i have finished or am working on
beaver
tiger
ram
animal mascots made of wool japanese
animal mascots made of wool-japanese needlefelting book
i think this book is the cutest japanese craft book yet. full of wacky
and adorable needlefelted critters, including the postal donkey
barbaro and barbarians
Barbaro and The Barbarians
Michael Bryant / Inquirer
"Man is the cruelest animal." Friedrich Nietzsche
What is it about our culture that makes us accept--even
applaud--grievous injury to human beings while at the same time we
abhor even the hint of harm to animals?
No, this isn't about animal rights. Well, yes it sort of is, but it's
really more about human rights.
I'm willing to bet more people turned away in horror from Barbaro's
breakdown and limping gait at the Preakness Saturday than from the
sight of Phillies center fielder Aaron Rowand slamming into a metal
fence May 12.
Okay, partly that's because Rowand walked away a hero. Injured but
alive, with a broken nose and a fractured eye. Bloody but unbowed. He
sacrificed his face to make a game winning catch. And Rowand will be
back on the field. He already showed up in the dugout this week to a
well deserved standing ovation.
Barbaro got his own ovation, but in defeat, not victory. In response
to a crushing loss. No win at the Preakness, no Triple Crown, nothing.
And his fate is far less certain. Even if he survives, his racing days
are over. It's a heartbreaking injury for a thoroughbred horse.
But. It's. A. Horse.
Yes, Barbaro is a 25 million dollar horse. A champion. If he lives
he'll make his owners millions more in stud fees.
I'm not sure what Aaron Rowand's contract with the Phillies is worth,
but for sure no baseball player ever gets that latter benefit. Well,
maybe Pete Rose. No, just kidding.
What's not so funny is the peculiar reflexive reaction most people
feel if an animal gets hurt. I'm on board as an animal lover, grew up
with cats and dogs, still have a cat. And no, I won't get into that
boring debate. If you love your pet and he/she/it loves you, that's
all that matters.
Just to add to my creds, I've cried and mourned sincerely when various
of our pets died or had to be put down. And I talk to the cat when
we're alone together. Don't ask.
On the other hand, if somebody said, Your pet or your kid, which one
dies? No contest. In fact if they said, Your pet or another human
being ... pretty much no contest there either. Admittedly pedophiles,
terrorists, murderers and such would give me a harder ethical dilemma.
But still.
People. Animals. Food chain. Do the math. It's as old as time. And in
this modern age, somebody's got to kill a lot of animals if we want to
eat chicken, pork, lamb and beef.
Which brings up another issue: I'm not against hunting either. I don't
like it, but if it's legal and the animals aren't endangered,
hunting's really no different from fishing. As long as it's a fair
fight. You don't fish with an AK-47 and you don't need a
shoulder-mounted missile to bag a duck.
What bothers me is the way our culture marginalizes, lionizes, even
monetizes violence against humans in entertainment ... and accepts
with far too little protest the very real violence against humanity in
a war.
People get beaten senseless and knocked off left and right on the
Sopranos, but hey, it's a TV show. Yet the same viewer vultures go
postal if Bambi's cousin is hit by a car or a kitten gets stuck in a
drainpipe. Has Walt Disney's anthropomorphizing of animals so seeped
into the collective American consciousness we can't distinguish an
animal from a real person?
No living, breathing creature should be made to suffer. And no one
should celebrate when they do. Violence is bad. Period. But we need a
reality check about who comes first. And a priority makeover about
what's really important.
If the news media carried on half as much over every injured soldier
or civilian in Iraq as they did about one horse, we might get the hell
out of this horrible war.
Let's remember, if Barbaro lives, he'll father lots of children. Dead
soldiers never will.
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