Bleeding Heart

I have a bleeding heart for animals. I blame my parents. I grew up surrounded by pets. Iguanas, bunnies, guinea pigs, dogs, hamsters, birds. You name, we had it. My first dog was this Great Dane cross, his name was Patches. That dog was my best friend up until I was seventeen and he died. I can't count the number of hours I spent talking to him.

It started at a young age and never let up. When I was in grade 12 I read this book called Animal Liberation. The atrocities the animals went through in factory farming horrified me and I gave up meat. Actually, I gave up everything and turned vegan. I haven't turned back, haven't regretted my decision in the least.

And now? I find myself growing angry over the state of the world. As a species we are so gluttonous and ignorant. I get it. I understand it. We disassociate ourselves from what goes on. That chicken burger isn't one of these chickens:
http://www.vegetarismus.ch/bilder/img/chicken_b_022.jpg

That steak isn't this cow:
http://wholebeef.com/imgs/CattleRestrainedForSlaughter.jpg

(By the way, that cow above is slaughtered in a factory farm that kills a cow every 43 seconds.)

I get. Oh, I get it.

Alright so we do this to survive, that's your argument right. God said, so therefore it is ours. To treat however we want? To abuse? To torture?

I see these articles and news clips about animals and I get all emotional. I can't help it. Am I the only one who feels like we've invaded their territory and used it up? Greed breeds greed. And I don't think this is our land to abuse like we do.

So okay, you feel it is your right to eat them. What about the circus? What about the zoo? What about clothes out of fur? What about trophy hunters?

We took a trip down to Oregon and Washington and when we stopped at the convenience stores along the way in the little out of the way towns there were these photos of hunters with their kills. Way to celebrate taking a life. One picture was of a fat woman holding a bear head in the air like it was a fucking gold trophy. Nice prize. I get so angry and long to watch these people get mauled by bears.

We're such assholes. Humans that is. What is wrong with us?

I have a bleeding heart, it just so happens it doesn't extend to humankind.