Entry 03052013 // Our heritage.

We live in a world where we fantasize about dragons, unicorns and other mythical and legendary creatures. But we forget that there are still majestic, beautiful and incredible creatures on this planet that we live on. But sadly there are those among us who would hunt these creatures for different reasons, one of these, the most sad and pathetic being money.


One of the major flaws of being human, which is also what separates us from other living creatures, is our ability to think (or so they say... a gift as well as a curse). Sadly we just think of ourselves. Because of this some of us prefer to live in greed while others prefer to live in ignorance. And although there are those who fight and try to save animals, there are those who would hunt them till extinction for their own benefit.

A list could be made of the reasons and excuses while another of animals that are extinct or on the verge of extinction, but that is not the point of this post. The reason of this post is because is most of us wish to have a dragon or see unicorns or a real sphinx, that we take for granted the creatures that are still alive. But the sad truth is that although most of do not realize this, but if things continue this way, some of these animals are going to be extinct, such as elephants, tigers and whales and more... it is not about whether we should eat meat or not. But between hunting, exploitation and natural diseases many animal species are on the brink of being added to the extinction list or just available to see in the zoo. 

It is understandable that ivory is a rare material but killing to the brink of extinction animals such as rhinos or elephants? Killing tigers and seals for their fur/skin? Overfishing in the oceans? Shark for fins? It is important to note that some animals are making a comeback like American Bison or foxes in the United Kingdom. But it is more important to know that there is an exploitation of other animals in other parts of the world, and that many are being hunted and killed for some things that can be lived without. Also to be taken into account that some governments are taking measures into protecting animals but on the other side are not doing anything to stop the killing of others (example: China protecting Pandas yet has not done much to stop ivory trade). There should be more support, not only national but also international, to protect these animals. Animals such as tigers, lions and others have been hunted and killed for "invading" human territory when the truth is that it is the humans who have invaded animal territory. First it was to protect human interests like cattle, but now it's just for fur or other materials which aren't necessary for the day to day living.

I believe that both humans and animals can live together in harmony (I know it sounds clichéd but why not?). If we are better/superior than them, should we not be able to come up with a way to not kill/exterminate other species? I am not saying that the world should become vegetarian but I believe we could do without ivory or fur, have more controlled fishing policies etc. We have the power, we have the technology. What we lack is the will to get it done. And just because some people wish to sell their heritage for greed, does not mean that we should take advantage or allow them to exploit this heritage. We live in a global world, with multinationals and global marketing, therefore it is no longer just their heritage but OUR HERITAGE. And we deserve to see that this abuse is stopped, not only so that we can enjoy the beauty/majesty of these wonderful creatures but future generations too.