What am I doing living in a place and time where and when, respectively, war and money trump life every time? This pair of news stories is what has set me off today, but this isn't the first time I've been convinced that I am some kind of cosmic anachronism.
From the first story, the headline of which is "U.S. Judge Overturns Whale-protecting Ban on Sonar," we get this quote:
The appeals court added that although the public had an interest in protecting whales, US defense needs must also be considered. "We are currently engaged in war in two countries ... the safety of the whales must be weighed and so must the safety of our warriors. And of our country," Friday's ruling said.How about weighing in a little reality as well, judge. Our military spending is almost as much as the rest of the entire worlds' countries' combined. We're at war in two countries? Two land-locked countries (although it is a chip shot over Kuwait into Iraq). Iraq had a navy of sorts - who knew - prior to our most recent visit. No telling what Paul Bremer did with the yacht and the two pontoon boats. Probably with that missing $9 billion. Did bin Laden get a navy while we weren't looking? And people told the Taliban spending money on an Armada was just silly. Of course I know that's not what's going on. The ramping up for our rumble with Iran must not be deterred. The fact of the matter is, the world's navies that could compete with ours currently belong to our allies. And, yes, I know that navies don't just go up against navies, but did I mention that we spend almost as much on our military might as the rest of the world combined? Just how vital to our national safety can these exercises be? That's a sincere question - I don't know the answer. Circumstantial evidence, however, leads me to believe the answer is "not very." A lower court apparently agreed.
What did I think, anyway? That whales were going to win against the machine that is our military? Stupid me. What the hell can I expect from a society that tolerates the use of a term like "collateral damage" to account for 4-year olds with their faces blown off, old men shot down in their own homes, and women and children blown up at the dinner table? Have you looked at photos of the civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan? If we treat our fellow man with such callousness, really, what chance do other forms of life have? We are, as the judge points out, at war, after all.
The second story, headlined "Judge Okays Rule that May Endanger Species," showcases how money, and not just military might, trumps life. From the Klamath River to the 60 million acres referred to in that second story, I can tell you that the other forms of life that come up against human avarice are not merely inconvenienced - show me the developer or rancher or farmer who's going to die, literally expire, if he doesn't get his way - other forms of life quite simply die; some species die off completely.
And before you go all "Hypocrite!" on me, I'll accuse myself: it isn't just these stories that have me asking Why? It's the fact that I'm born into a system that has trained me to become a cold-blooded killer myself. Here are just a couple of examples, just a few of many: how many insects do I kill with my windshield because it's more convenient to drive to the store than walk? When we mow our grass (back when we had some), what living systems do we thoughtlessly disrupt? How far removed am I from the creation of which I am a part if I don't even know the names of the trees around my own house and their particular attributes? I am sometimes overcome with the weight of my own contributions to the culture of death in which I live. What good are my efforts to offset my own negative impact in a system such as this, a system that constantly chooses death over life?
I just don't belong now. I honestly don't know what I am doing here.
You and the rest of us humans. But the fact that you are questioning -- why? -- is a good thing. We need more questioners. Perhaps that is what you were put here to do.
ReplyDelete...and God Bless You for doing it, but I'm so overwhelmed with "my life" as it exists right now, I just don't have time for that much guilt, HOWEVER, Saving The Whales just ONE MORE REASON Democrats MUST
ReplyDeletebe elected in 08 - as many as possible to reverse some of these ignorant rulings! At least we can do as much as possible toward that goal!