Where
could we have gotten the destructive idea that this world is ours to
do as we please, that humans are so utterly special that we
are the only ones privileged with a 'soul'? Where could we have
gotten the destructive idea that we are utterly separate from this
whole cosmos thing, that our ability to reason is more important than
our ability to feel and that we are therefore above natural
instincts, and indeed above all things natural? Where could we have
gotten the destructive idea that we are free to put our desire for
materials and status above the principle of life, to chase our
desires to the ends of the earth, or rather, the end of the earth?
The
answers are more nuanced than I can give here, and vary across the
world. But here in the West, Judeo-Christian religion, Enlightenment
individualism and Consumerism, respectively, would be a good place to
start! To carry these prejudices is part of being a 'civilized' human
being, as opposed to a 'savage', or, heaven forbid, some form of
hippy!
For
too long we have confused 'civilization' with striving to be better
than everything else, rather than being benevolent toward everything
else. The so-called civilized ones chose mastery over mutuality, and
imposed binary concepts (nature / civilization, black / white, master
/ slave, self / other, man / woman, good / evil) upon a world where
these concepts are irrelevant illusions. Civilization has not
tempered violence out of Man, and indeed, if you look at the
superpowers of history, civilization has only given them new and
exciting ways to create and / or destroy things. In short, if you
move the posts which mark out what is civilized, civilization as we
know it does not score terribly well.
It
took us long enough to recognise the basic rights of fellow humans in
our own societies, let alone those half way across the world. Well,
now a group of humans has redeemed us all somewhat and extended those
basic rights to a non-human species; the cetaceans.
Perhaps
this indicates that our view of nature is finally changing. Maybe the
rights of dolphin and whale will be a foot in the door for us to
mature into a real civilization. The first step on a long,
long path to moral and technological enlightenment! For now at
least the Cetaceans populations of India are free from human abuse
and predation, and perhaps this will spread across the rest of the
world. Cetaceans have the same basic rights not to be harmed or
exploited that human beings do (although oddly enough, the
environment and prey they need to survive are not necessarily
protected). Let us take a direct look at this legalistic morality,
from the first seven clauses of the bill of rights found at
cetaceanrights.org:
i)
Every individual cetacean has the right to life.
ii)
No cetacean should be held in captivity or servitude; be subject to
cruel treatment; or be removed from their natural environment.
iii)
All cetaceans have the right to freedom of movement and residence
within their natural environment.
iv)
No cetacean is the property of any State, corporation, human group or
individual.
v)
Cetaceans have the right to the protection of their natural
environment.
vi)
Cetaceans have the right not to be subject to the disruption of their
cultures.
vii)
The rights, freedoms and norms set forth in this Declaration should
be protected under international and domestic law.
Now
that whales and dolphins are by law immune to the harpoon and the
net, what of similarly intelligent creatures? Pachyderms are not only
beautiful and awe-inspiring, but have brains as complex as our own.
Is it right to turn them into ivory or use them as circus
entertainment? And bringing things closer to home, what about
Primates? Not only do they form complex societies, but some of them
can use language in a clever and intuitive way.
Where
can the line possibly be drawn? Why does an animal species need to be
intelligent, accustomed to 'family values' and fully self-aware for
us to stop killing them and plundering their habitats? The principle
of life, the axiom of harm not lest thou be harmed, should be
enough for us to respect all that breathes, at least to the extent
that we do not intrude upon their basic 'liberty' to survive, thrive
or perish in their native environments (how arrogant of me to even
use liberty in such a way!)
But
here is the real rub. Why should I care about a whale, a dolphin or
an orangutang when my own economic situation is dire. Lets say I have
a child on the way, I can't afford to pay my electricity bills, nor
go out with my friends. That guy I hated from school is driving an
executive motorized vehicle and going out with a fashion model
whilst I am forever stuck on sweaty public transport solutions, going out with with no one at all. Why should I pay interest to such
abstract concerns which are so distant from my own?
I
guess the obvious answer is that it is not an abstract notion, and
that without environmental awareness we are all pretty much dead in
the long run - so it is something of enlightened self-interested at
the very least. Secondly, the problems facing us are not mutually
exclusive. You are not either 'in it for the Whales' or 'in it for
the poor' or 'in it for yourself'. If you see the human world as
entirely separate from nature, than you might prioritise one over the
other to the extent that everything outside of your sphere of
experience effectively ceases to exist. A word for this kind of
closed-mindedness is 'ignorance' (although 'irresponsible' would
probably be better, as it can account for those who know but do not
care). If you see us all as belonging to one thing, nature, it is
inconsistant to make this separation. You can care about both and
all. Indeed, going to that pro-whale protest, you might meet that
pro-squatter girl who helps you sort out with your housing problem.
However,
I am a romantic mind, and I will go one step further. To care about a
distant sea mammal has a far deeper and more resonating purpose. We
have lost a sense of wonder, our flat lives dominated by trash
entertainment, material excess and soul-crushing labour. Our eyes see
nary further than the walls of our city, and it is a rare occasion
that we take in the literal depth of a hilly landscape or the sheer
wonder of a starry sky. Our trees stand in neat rows, our parks are
contrived and dull, our rivers are hidden beneath concrete slabs. Our
art is in decay, our heroes are artificial faces and withered
heroin-inflicted innards, our natural souls are dying. A bit of
wildness will help inject our lives with the real excitement and
sense of belonging which cannot be provided by human societies alone.
We
need causes to fight for. We need to live for something beyond the
four walls of a house and the weekend trip to a shopping mall. This
is the vitality of existence. This is the battle that we need
to rise up and fight. This is the antidote to nihilism,
disconnection, depression, meaninglessness.
Preserving
incredible creatures for the future is part of that purpose, and part
of our common inheritance.
Selim 'Selim' Talat
