Flies, Fruit and the Wave of a Hand
written 7 Jan 2007 while the sun tried, at least, rising
Whether Christianity, vegetarianism, treehugging or just plain respecting life, at what point of the foodchain is a creature lowly enough to kill?
Most people would agree that killing humans is wrong, though throw in self-defense, mercy killings or pre-emptive strikes and you start to waiver opinions. Perhaps killing a pet dog is wrong because he seems to become a part of the family. Many vegetarians refrain from eating meat but throw in the “fish is okay” clause. And the same treehugger who would fight to save the whales might swat a mosquito were it to bite him on the back of the neck during a long hike.
Not to mention that plants are life as well, which throws in a whole other aspect that is rarely thought about.
So, to conclude and get at the point, if I don’t believe in killing anything at all unless I am going to use it, for food or clothing or whatever, how can I forgive myself for the systematic genocide of the fruit flies which once were swarming in my kitchen?
A lone soul responds...