I have never realized the power of images and movies until I watched part of the documentary entitled Earthlings. The written screenplay does absolutely no justice the emotional power that these horrifying images evoke from the viewer. Whoever said, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” might want to reconsider their math after viewing this film.
When the film began discussing pets, I thought that as an animal lover, I would feel happy about being a pet owner. However, I began to feel ashamed as I saw that people who chose to take pets in their homes ignored the assumed responsibility that they would care for these animals. My family has always gotten pets from breeders who gave us their AKC certificates. I felt really naïve to find out the reality of puppy mills. I had no ideas dogs were kept in unsanitary cages with no veterninary care for the sole purpose of reproducing as many puppies as possible. The thought of humans taking advantages of dogs reproducing puppies is absolutely sick. The screenplay only says “one dog circles his kennel endlessly; another’s eyes are swollen,” but the image of what these suffering dogs look like turned my stomach in all kinds of unnatural directions (569).
I thought the film would give its audience a break to catch our breath, but it just got worse. The film moved to killing the excess dogs in shelters. The images of cats dying is horrific and the narrators words behind it saying “ in a gas chamber, animals are packed very tightly and can take as long as 20 minutes to die” (571). Moving to slaughter houses, we watched multiple cows die while hearing “the captive bolt gun, which was designed to reduce animals unconscious without causing pain, fires a steel boat, that is powered by compressed air or a blank cartridge, right into the animal’s brain (574). At this point, we had watched forty-five minutes of horrific animal torture and had fifteen minutes left. I decided to close my eyes and just listen to keep my stomach from emptying its contents on the floor. However, hearing the words was still incredibly powerful. I had a test the next period and I wanted to be able to sit for the midterm exam without running to the bathroom so I began reviewing my notes in my heads. That did not work either. I found myself fixed on the screen with a dropped jaw until the bell rang. Needless to say, I was a little late to my midterm via a trip to the ladies restroom.
Afterwards, I began to consider whether I should become a vegetarian. The more I thought about it, that didn’t seem a practical solution either. Americans will never stop consuming meat. However, they can consider the amount of meat they are consuming. If they do not consider the cruelty that the factory farms inflict on the animals that they eat, maybe Americans should consider their own health. The portions that steak houses serve are outrageous. No one can eat a 16oz steak and feel well or be healthy afterwards. America’s obesity problem could originate with its large portions, the dependence on large quantities of meat, and the obsession with fast food restaurants. Another issue to consider is the amount of meat that these factory farms produce that go to complete waste because of the American cultural thrive on convenience. We have hundred of grocery stores all over Austin that have meat that goes to complete waste after a while. Do we really need all of these grocery stores? If we were to remove one quarter of them, think about the decrease in wasted meat would be.
I think my personal feelings would be similar to that of a plantation owner hearing of the true conditions his slaves were endearing. They know that the slaves have a hard and unjust life but they choose to not let it bother them. After seeing visual evidence depicting the reality, this plantation owner may not be the same again. Whereas I have considered ways to correct the issues that were presented to me in Earthlings, the farmer would continue on with his heavy heart because Southern American culture would tell him nothing was wrong. Today’s culture encourages reform and I believe that we should grab that spirit and run with it. One person can make a difference with the power of their words and voice. I believe it is possible to reduce the amount of wasted meats in today’s grocery stores so that fewer animals will have to suffer the conditions of factory farms. I also believe that as humans, we should pay higher prices for meat so that these animals can have some kind of quality of life. The USDA should consider it their ethical duty to strictly monitor slaughtering practices so that the animals experience a painful death. One last grudge, just because a slaughterhouse is Kosher does not mean it should be exempt from any of these laws. It only gives them a greater outlet to make more money by inhumanely slaughtering animals in cost cutting ways.
I'm a vegan. Though I'm not a very emotional person, I would hug those living beings and I would cry and cry and cry and would want to heal them.
ReplyDeleteEarthlings exposes the ever unfolding holocaust. Everybody I have shown it to has immediately switched to vegetarian or vegan lifestyles.The consequences of our unconscious uninformed consumption and use of other animals is beyond horrific. It is a 21st Century issue. After viewing Earthlings it is no longer possible to not take responsibility for your choices. You cannot say "I DIDNT KNOW" it is very likely the viewer will share the experience of the Wedding Guest in S.T.Coleridges Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner
ReplyDelete“He went like one that hath been stunned,
And is of sense forlorn,
A sadder and a wiser man,
He rose the morrow morn.”
Your assumption that America will never stop eating meat is certainly what I thought at first, however I now realize that everyone has the potential to change. I am now a vegan. It was the best choice I've ever made. However I used to consider myself a carnivore through and through. One person has the ability to change the world. I have educated many people over social media, who have no doubt educated many others. There are 15 million vegans and vegetarians in the US alone. That number is constantly growing. If you look closely, you will find that the nutritional needs you were taught as a child are not the truth. We do not need vast amounts of protein or calcium, and we do not need meat to survive. In fact, meat is far unhealthier than is told. There is a 41% chance of cancer in America. 1 out of 3 US citizens will die of heart disease. Obesity is a major issue in western countries. Almost every major disease in the west can be prevented, treated, and in some cases even reversed on a vegan diet. World hunger is caused by the animal agriculture industry. There are enough crops grown to feed over 10 billion people, yet in the US alone over 70% of all grain is fed to the animals eaten for dinner. Over 90% of Amazon Rainforest destruction is done for the animal agriculture industry. On top of all this, it all comes down to the ethical argument. Is there a humane way to kill a creature that is innocent and has a desire to live? If a human had the intelligence of a cow, would that justify needlessly murdering that human? Once you really start to evaluate your morals, the environmental impact, the human impact, and the health impact of consuming animal products, most people will find that a vegan diet is really the only lifestyle that is in line with their morals. There are so many online guides, health and nutritional info, and vegan foods available at stores and even restaurants that going vegan is so much easier than it was 10 years ago. I would encourage you to think about a plant-based diet a little more before dismissing it. I would recommend the documentaries Cowspiracy and Forks Over Knives which can be found on Netflix. Another documentary which really inspired me was Unity, which can be found on iTunes or Earthlings.com.
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