Lie to yourself, join the parade!

Western culture has it all backwards and we're meant to feel guilty should we think otherwise. 

The animal we are has been broken down into a mere circus animal, forced to perform at the behest of the elite. The pride we have in our jobs is a facade to please the crowd that is the people that surround us. To see the real pain, the defeated animal beneath, would make the crowd uncomfortable, so it is hidden under a performance. It's not a circus if the animals fail to do their tricks, much less so if the animals retaliate and reclaim their nature. 

When an animal handler is attacked, the handler is not blamed. Often, the animal is euthanized or executed on the spot. The dog that bites at the hand that grabs at it is put down, but the hand that showed the dog just how scary it can be is often not reprimanded or blamed. 

A little boy fell into a hyena enclosure and was immediately and horrifically mauled. The mother sues the zoo, the zoo says that there were warning signs meant to prevent such a tragedy. The hyenas are shot or later euthanized, yet the zoo still operates and the mother feels brave enough to avoid her part in the mess. When an animal attacks a human, especially an animal kept in captivity or a as a pet, the animal is labelled evil, as we would label a human who has harmed another. When an animal hurts/kills a human, it is given a more human identity. Its actions are seen as intentional, malicious, calculated. Our anger at the animal is justified as is their euthanasia. A cuddly ape once a treasured pet quickly loses all of its charm when it mutilates a human being, even though that animal was capable of such a thing all along. 

In animals, we see the best of ourselves AND the worst. 

We see a loyal companion, an innocent and helpless creature, a loving thing, an entertaining thing, a companion.

And we see a powerful being, a ruthless predator, a selfish user, a calculating, cold, and intelligent manipulator. 

Everything we need to know about ourselves we can know by looking at animals. Especially dogs, thanks to domestication. 

When forced to live for another, we lose our innate power and true identity. An animal that lives in a zoo can never return to its natural habitat, even if it lived there once before. Everything natural about an animal is so fragile when taken out of an ecosystem it has spent thousands and thousands of years evolving alongside of. 

Without work, what are we?

Without an education, what are we?

Without a social circle within which we serve a role, what are we?

Stripped of everything, left with nothing but what evolution has given us, we are nothing. And for many, that's much too heavy of a burden to carry. It's easy on the mind to put your head down and fall into the accepted line, but it weighs hard on the soul to pretend that we should be grateful to have the privilege of living in a developed society.