Uh-huh, sure. We should acknowledge and celebrate the good that we do, but does that really absolve us from guilt? No! We claim to be “complex creatures capable of immense acts of love and kindness” but the fact remains that we caused this destructive mess in the first place. We can tug at turtles’ beaks all we want but that won’t undo the harm we have caused. As Nikhil pointed out, of the mammals still left on the planet, 96% are either man or being raised for human consumption in factory farms. We have effectively eradicated wildlife and are continuing to do so regardless of good deeds like the ones mentioned in the manatee video.
We can applaud ourselves for trying to be better all day, but it isn’t until we face reality and come to terms with our wrongdoings that we can truly move forward. We cannot leave the conversation here; we must accept the fact that our faith in humanity is misplaced and work towards actually restoring it. Meaningful change doesn’t come from light-hearted youtube clips or rescuing stranded manatees – it comes from committing to ongoing action, meaningful reform and progress.
UrRong; our faith in humanity is indeed misplaced, and only if we recognize this can we strive to work towards actually restoring it.