Preservation of America's Wildlife

Tag: spirituality

  • The False Narrative of Myth: Cultural Perspectives

    Written by
    John Cox, M.A. C/M

    “The idea that animals willingly offer themselves up to be killed by humans is a cultural myth. Animals possess a strong, natural instinct for self-preservation and fear death or pain. No scientific evidence shows that any animal wants to die or consents to be slaughtered by people.

    Where did the origins and context of this erroneous myth develop? Or, Why did they develop?

    The answer simple — folklore and religion, as well as Fear from human instinct, to perform a symbolic ritual, or a false-respect so to speak, to win favor rather than animosity from the spirits within the mountains and forests and ranges. Ancient hunting cultures often told stories of sacred beasts or game spirits that “gave” themselves to hunters, under the auspices of proper rituals to be performed — so the belief goes.


    We can also observe, through research, the Psychological Comfort or, the Imagining that an animal consent helps human’s ease feelings of guilt or moral conflict regarding hunting or eating meat.


    Also situations of Misinterpreting Behavior, where the less experience or knowledge a person has obtained, they assume,sometimes, a trapped or cornered animal’s calm or shock response, for acceptance or willingness.


    Once again, we can understand scientific and ethical realities do exist, and all animals, wild and domestic animals, will fight, flee, or show severe stress when facing danger or slaughter. Yes, they experience pain before death.


    We can also find, through science, animals lack the abstract Concepts the humans can develop toward painful experiences, or death. The human mental dysfunctions such as ignorance, bias, bigotry, or Pathological Narcissism, does impose upon the life and death of an animal, to the point of tragic results for all animals.

    Science also indicates, through credible research and observation, and experience, animals lack the complex, future-oriented self-awareness required to comprehend and willingly accept their own permanent death.


    The unmitigated fact is the choice to harvest (a non-conservationist term in today’s terminology and very debatable to indeed use) or raise animals for, is driven entirely by human needs, culture, and choices, not from of the animals themselves.

    We need to think more, about the things we, as humans do to other life-forms on this planet. The acceptability of Myth, at times often Rubber-Stamped as a cultural circumstance, with heritage and history, can be wrong, unethical, and morally inept.” — John Cox, M.A. C/M

  • Nature, Sustainability, Happiness, and Us Common Folks

    Editorial by
    John Cox, M.A. C/M

    We live in a society, currently, and so much over the past couple of centuries, that we can go and purchase what it is we want to be, during the day or into the night.   In doing so we have, in reality, grown apart, or away from Nature…  Yes, ultimately, if one has the cash, we can be whatever one wants to be – Business, rather than Nature, gives us a very false world to live within.  Often the obvious becomes just that, and people simply appear out of place, in both action, or, in deed, style, and natural occurrence, distant from one’s appearance.  Within many aspects, the person, simply, does not fit in the realm of their iconic adventure into what they are not.

    When we, as people, want to steer away from our mundane, and often sad life (an personal assumptive psychological dynamic) many live today.  They go to the store, in this assumptive life-changing event, purchase pairs of e.g. camouflage pants, shirts, and yes, even underwear.  (i.e. as if Mr. Peabody, in the 1960’s Saturday morning Mr. Peabody and Sherman, sends Sherman to whatever Iconic adventure he wishes, and often finds he is unqualified to be there, and just as often the Wizard pulls him back to reality when life and death situations becomes Sherman’s reality).  Undaunted, Sherman then attempts to be something else, and life goes on. 

    Often, people do search for what they indeed are, rather than just be what they are, and can find real-happiness in it, within the natural flow of things, and no other life form nor habitat need be sacrificed to do so – Yes, Nature also plays a roll in this, but in Real-Time – not fakery, mirrors, or false persona’s. 

    But all people are different.  One aspires toward being a businessperson, easy remedy, go out and buy a suite, or buy a business-type dress; suddenly, as if a request from the Wizard of Oz fulfilled, one becomes a business person, whether qualified or not.  This can go to various satiation’s, a Rodeo Star, a motorcycle rider and outlaw, a deep-sea diver, an action-adventure  parachutist, and even paraphernalia to become James Bond and a spy.  I think Sherman had tried all of these, and come out calling, oh wait, comes out pleading for Mr. Wizard to save him from assured death.

    Within all of this, many of us see, sadly, the disconnect from Nature the human species have indeed created.  When we study the problems on how to resolve the issues and conflicts of today, with Nature, one very prominent situation arises, again and again.  Not just the money.  But rather, all those implied situations, yes, that money can provide, falsely, a better life – but the fact that the physiological dynamics conflict, and often destroyed. 

    Our conflicts with Nature numerous, some psychological, some physical, some very psychotic and with bias, hatred, or worse, apathy – and the knowledge that perhaps, the only reason we are so destructive, is that we had a choice, with our opposable-thumbs (the factor that separates us from other life on this planet).  Yes, the Universal Factor of “Choices” we human’s had chosen, beyond survival.  These choices conflict with Nature, and often.  As if God’s or something, that we can pick and choose what other live-forms can live, and others sacrificed, for the way we, the human species, lives. “  — John Cox, M.A. C/M