I just watched The Cove. I know everyone has seen it and been activated by the horrors in the documentary about the annual slaughter of thousands of dolphins in Taiji, Japan…but I knew it would be almost unbearable to watch. I was right, and it has thrown me for a loop (as it was, of course, intended to do). If you haven’t seen it yet, you must. The hardest things to watch inspire the great actions in our lives.
As a parallel, I am so overwhelmed by the daily stories of the huge increase in poaching of African elephants, as the ivory trade and demand is skyrocketing in Asia. As more and more people who couldn’t previously afford the false oppulance of the status they think owning ivory can bring are becoming wealthier–they seek ivory out, despite its being contraband. The largest numbers of elephant slaughters by poachers are being recorded right now, at the end of 2012 and beginning of 2013. In just 6 week, 20 elephant have been shot by poachers in Isiolo, Kenya. In one shooting massacre in Tsavo, also in Kenya, eleven eles were killed and their faces essentially cut off with chain saws.
I know we are filled with rage about the human massacres that have recently touched us, and I ask for us to pay attention to animal massacres not instead of, but in addition to the other tragedies. The way we treat the rest of the animal kingdom is, to my mind, one of the most crucial markers of our very humanity.
I hope you’ll learn more, and consider supporting these, or similar, organizations.
Change by Doing 
Posted by travelerreport on January 12, 2013 at 10:12 AM
There is also an increase of poaching of Asian tigers. Because Chinese are becoming richer, more Chinese can afford to pay tiger bones, skins,… And demand is outgrowing the supply.
Posted by ELEPHANT JIHAD: Islamists Fund Terrorism by Slaughtering Elephants « The Age of Blasphemy on January 12, 2013 at 8:43 PM
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