I went to the grocery store today, like I do every week, and I saw something that bothered me. Actually, I see it every time I go there and every time, it bothers me a little more. Now that I am writing this, the thought occurs to me that most people probably aren't as bothered when they see it, and that is a little disturbing to me.
In fact, me even talking about it as if I were bothered and disturbed will make me come across as preachy. Doubtless, most people will automatically clump me in with the rising pile of ethically outraged citizens that seem to be a-dime-a-dozen nowadays. But however people might write me off and to what degree, this is something that I feel needs to be said, and it needs to be thought about more intently by everyone as we go into this still very young century.
What I saw was located a corner of the store near the produce section, which, ironically, is supposed to be one of the most ethical and organic sections of the typical grocery store. Even as I was browsing the selection of honest and healthy foods on sale, I caught a glimpse of it out of the corner of my eye, just like I do every time I go there.
I saw something that made my heart fracture just a little more, something that made me ashamed of myself and my society more than any smug, environmentally themed movie ever could. I saw a drama unfolding that was a microcosm of the greater cruelty and evil that I know is surely everywhere.
The odds are that with all this dramatic buildup, you're likely to laugh or role your eyes when you hear what it was that affected me so, but here it is: I saw a small, grimy tank full of lobsters. They were crowded together, claustrophobically so, with little to no space between any of them. Especially to the left side of the tank, they concentrated in mountains, piled on top of each other, all remaining motionless except for the barely visible workings of their feelers. None of them moved, and even though I knew they were incapable of expressing any kind of obvious emotion, I got the sense that they were all resigned to this situation that they found themselves in.
Approaching the tank, I imagined all the incessant tapping of the dirty glass of children, gawking at what they thought to be fascinating monsters worth goading. I decided it would be better to not get right up to the glass, but I was still close enough to see many details. I noticed, for example, that there was one loner just outside the pile on the left. He (or she, I couldn't tell) was even more motionless than any of the others, because he didn't have any antennae; they had been cut off, very neatly and at even lengths, so that only stubs remained. I felt a small surge of outrage. It's probably not easy for a human to relate in any way to a crustacean, but this was the equivalent of my ears being cut off or my eyes being gouged out. This creature had been subjected to the deprivation of its own senses. Whether this was caused by one of his irritated brethren or by human hands, I couldn't be certain, but I still observed that the severed antennae were too neat and even to likely be lost by natural means.
As if this was not bad enough, every one of the lobsters had bands over their claws to prevent them from using them. Understandable, since creatures confined like this would probably become violent and harm each other, but it made me feel like I was looking at a cell full of cuffed prisoners.
While I was observing the loner, the man behind the counter was unloading even more lobsters into the already crowded tank. These fresh lobsters moved about with vigor that the others lacked. One of the newcomers marched boldly up to a lobster at the outset of a large pile. The challenger used the brunt of his bound claw to slam into the other. I assumed that this was a male sign of exerting dominance, which I know male lobsters are prone to do in the wild. But the remarkable and depressing thing was that the lobster he slammed into did nothing in response. He just let himself be knocked around, as if it didn't matter anymore. Of course, I know that lobsters aren't intelligent enough to feel resignation to fate, but it struck me as unusual that this creature would be so subdued and lethargic. The loner watched the scene unfold with disturbing stillness.
The more I thought about lobsters and their behaviors, the more I thought back to an article I once read about them. It said that lobsters have highly developed senses of smell and taste, and thanks to their central nervous systems, they can feel a lot of things. I imagined how much more trapped those in the giant piles must have felt.
It could just be that I watched District 9 recently and that I've always felt sorry for insects and smaller creatures that most people write off as pests, but it hurt me deeply to see these creatures caged and mistreated so. Later that night, I did some Googling and saw that while lots of people are uncomfortable with the way we treat these animals, even more people dismiss the entire issue as the usual animal-rights-activist rhetoric to be ignored or laughed at.
I should tell you right now that I'm not an animal rights activist. I'm not a vegetarian and I certainly don't approve of the choices PETA has made. But every time I see this tank, full of creatures who are very likely to meet their ends by being horrifically boiled alive, I start to think a little more that we, as a people, have become desensitized to the suffering of the animals we use every day.
And I'm not even talking about lobsters anymore. Dairy animals like cows, pigs and chickens suffer just as much as lobsters, if not more so. The unethical activities of the factory farming industry are numbered too many to list here. Chickens have their beaks cut off, pigs are kept in gestation cages, and cows are fattened on a diet that all but destroys their digestive systems. We, as a society, have become blind and indifferent to the suffering of living beings.
Wait, how can that be? Lots of people today are animal lovers, and many different species are kept as pets and well cared for. There are even organizations created solely for the purpose of the welfare of animals.
That's all well and good, but let's examine the popular stance towards animals. Most people would never hurt a cat or a dog. In fact, most people become morally outraged when they hear of these animals being abused in any way. These people usually do not want to understand why cockfights exist or anyone would be cruel to cats, dogs, or other various pet species.
But why aren't these people just as outraged at how young male chicks are thrown into grinders while they are still alive or stuffed in bags to be suffocated? Why aren't they as outraged by the forced mutilation that pigs endure in lightless factory floors? Why aren't they as outraged when lobsters are tossed into pots of boiling water, where they scream and flail in pain and break their own appendages against the metal sides, or when they are sliced open on plates while they are still alive? How is it that most people today, as aware and informed as they are, are so paralyzed in their indifference that they do nothing to eat more ethically or show more kindness to living things?
If I wasn't preachy before, I will be now. I should tell you that I am a Christian. As such, I believe in taking care to never harm living things when I can help it. If God loves creation like the Bible says he does, then the good Christian is one who is kind to animals and respectful of nature, even to the lowest worm and the smallest shrub.
Last year in an ethics class, the issue of cruelty to animals was raised, and I was exposed to a way of thinking that I felt was particularly poignant, and it was this: the issue is not about logically constructed arguments or about the question of whether or not animals should have rights. The issue is one of mercy. If I, as a Christian, believe in a God who wields absolute power but yet has mercy on me, am I not obligated to show that same mercy to those under my power? I could kill the small worm with the slightest pressure of my boot, but I choose to have mercy on it and I leave it alone. A tree is helpless before me when I have an axe or a torch in hand, but I show mercy to it and never chop it down unless I need to. Even a mighty bull is ultimately defenseless against me, the more intelligent and well armed creature. All of creation is completely at humanity's mercy. We have nearly unlimited power to destroy and abuse, just as God has power over us, but He chooses mercy; by His example, I am obligated to show mercy to those under my power, whether they are people or animals.
You don't have to believe what I believe to see that these aren't bad beliefs to observe. I'm sorry if I come across as too blunt and I don't mean to shame you into sharing my religion's doctrines, but Christian or not, why shouldn't we think it a good thing to show mercy to animals? Likewise, I don't mean to tell you that you can't eat meat anymore because I actually enjoy meat myself. My point is that in everything we do, we are obligated to avoid inflicting pain and to prevent the suffering of those under our care. Whether you view it as divinely ordained stewardship or just our responsibility as the most intelligent animal on the planet, I think we can agree that deliberately being cruel to animals in order to satisfy our tastes is morbidly wrong. There is a time for eating meat, but that time is not every day at every meal, especially not when it comes at the expense of millions of God's creatures living out their lives in darkness and torment. We are better than this. God's creation, Mother Nature, whatever you want to call it...it deserves better than this. If an industry profits from the pain of God's creatures, then it must go. We should not want to live in a society where this kind of thing is passively accepted or endorsed. Your money is yours to spend, but please, please think twice before you give your money to people who hurt animals instead of having mercy on them.
If there is just one thing that you take away from all this, I hope it's that you please think long and hard about mercy the next time you eat. It isn't about whether or not an animal is intelligent enough to feel pain, it isn't about being guilt-tripped into becoming some vegetarian animal-rights-activist chump; it's about showing mercy to those weaker than you.
Remember the loner in the cage. Remember mercy.
Until next time, this is the Idiot, signing off.
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