"To blessed animals the utmost kindness must be shown." ~ Baha'i Writings
Good friends occasionally send me shocking videos of cruel practices regarding animals, knowing my love for the earth and all its creatures -- which these folks share. Some people argue that aboriginal people use, have long used, animal hides for clothing, to cover tipis and so forth, in a somewhat odd effort to suggest that skinning dogs alive in other places for the fur market isn't as awful as common sense tells us that it is. These are certain of my thoughts on the matter, in early Fall, 2011
Eskimos and Inuits make good use of Carhartt these days. Plains Indians of the USA have used a lot of canvas to cover tipis since they discovered the strength of that fabric. Practical people, Native cultures proudly retain tanned hides and fur for dress occasions. Traditional practices include thanking the animal for its sacrifice in behalf of the hunter after it has been killed.
Extreme cruelty to animals around the world is not limited to the fur trade. Think of bears being illegally shot and only their gall bladders removed, rhinos being not even half dead when their horns are sawed off, sharks having their fins cut out while they are alive. Much of this is for the eastern aphrodisiac market. In Korea bears have been made to dance on burning coals to sear their paws, which are then chopped off and eaten by people who think that treatment improves the flavor. The same goes for the Moon Bears which are boiled alive. I have noted videos of these practices for close to 30 years and nothing tells me that the number of animals involved is dwindling. Nonetheless -- a great many Koreans never heard of such things happening in their midst and would be outraged if they did.
My disaffection for a few anti-cruelty campaigns is due to the practice of shocking the public with horrendous images. While it works for some people, where, exactly, do you think adolescents get the ideas to do horrible things to puppies, kittens, even full grown, tame horses? Campaigns based almost entirely on videos and graphics of extreme cruelty, in my judgement, often fail to emphasize the economic factors behind the practices outlined above, and that's a mistake. There is a place for graphic images, yet for long lasting change what must be addressed are the underlying attitudes that set the tone for economic decisions. Which all starts with kids. And that tone needs to be rational, not mainly the gut shock.
Information and education together
I feel strongly that by dwelling on the harm that people are capable of perpetrating we strengthen the evil. "I charge you all that each one of you concentrate all the thoughts of your heart on love and unity. When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by a more powerful thought of love. Thoughts of war bring destruction to all harmony, well-being, restfulness and content." -Abdul Baha
Note that He says "a thought," not an act. Thought is energy and it grows into action. "'Abdu'l-Baha also observed, "Some men and women glory in their exalted thoughts, but if these thoughts never reach the plane of action they remain useless: the power of thought is dependent on its manifestation in deeds."
The Baha'i Faith is world's first major religion which views kindness to animals as a Law of God. Can we really stop people in other countries from doing the things in these videos by shocking the heck out of American/European audiences? Think about it -- how much influence do horrified westerners actually have over laws in China, the Philippines, Korea, Russia, Thailand, Sumatra, etc.? Especially when western hunters go to Africa to engage in canned hunts sometimes? And when you can shoot an endangered African antelope or Asian onager (donkey) while it is locked in a pen in states including Texas? And do you have any idea of the horrendous conditions in American feedlots for cattle? The utter degradation of "husbandry" of market hogs, turkeys, chickens in the USA?
Yes, people can and do vote with their wallets, which certainly has gradual influence at the root of a market. Particularly so with the fur market, where celebrities go public to swear off fur garments. But I cannot help but think of these graphic images sticking in people's heads for a long, long time after after viewing, and feeling that the potential for harm needs to be addressed. I won't, for space and focus considerations, present my views right now on the need for public education that addresses the spiritual and moral needs of young people in addition to the need for "hard facts" and the ability to pass some tests. Nor to address the also critical need adults have for spiritual understanding, a sense of purpose, an ability to control more of what is happening in their world.
Mankind is in its adolescence, not its maturity. Adolescents down the millennia have been noteworthy for doing what they are told not to do. For clinging all the more to what disgusts others.
Carefully thought about, those who practice such unkindness to animals have more to lose or learn by the spread of the Baha'i Faith, and of veganists, than they do of (for instance) PETA. On the plus side, the Baha'i Faith and veganism both provide strong, positive alternatives, too. The active practice of kindness to animals is a place to start.
The Baha'i Faith: Official Website of the Baha'is of the United States
Resources If You Are Interested in Becoming a Vegan
