Christopher Corbett’s Clowns & Harlots: A Zoo Story
Posted January 28, 2008
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"I think the country would be best served if the zoos were closed. Shut them all down. They are expensive, archaic and – no pun intended – bestial. They speak to a time when man was even more primitive than he is today (if such a thing is possible)." — Christopher Corbett |
By Christopher Corbett, TodaysFinancialNews.com
Baltimore – (TFN): “And all the monkeys aren't in the zoo everyday you see quite a few…” — Would You Like to Swing On A Star (1944)
Ever wonder what prompts people to go to the zoo? I drive past the zoo in the city where I live almost everyday. Often, the place appears packed. I’ve been thinking about zoos following the recent tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo. The incident was back in the news recently when the police released 911 tapes of two of the tiger attack victims howling for help.
In case you have been in the Seychelle Isles… a brief recap. A Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped from her enclosure at the San Francisco Zoo on Christmas Day and killed a zoo patron and then badly mauled two others who were with the deceased. The tiger was shot to death by the police.
I am not a member of PETA, but keeping large animals in zoos is plainly a bad idea. It can serve no useful purpose. The conditions under which such beasts are confined bears no resemblance to life in the wild. Zoos are grim.
I am not an especially sensitive soul but I wince to see a big cat pacing furiously inside the terrible confines of a cage. The beast is plainly traumatized by this confinement. Animals range over vast expanses in the wild but in a zoo they live in a box. Not a good idea.
Keeping animals in zoos is also dangerous.
The very concept of zoo is outdated, inappropriate and preposterous. Nothing is to be gained by visiting the zoo. Taking small children to zoos (and I have done this myself, God forgive me) is a troubling thing. Small children should not be scarred this way. Why not take them to a crucifixion? A hanging? A colonoscopy? What possible benefit could come from a day at the zoo?
Taking a child to a zoo is a sick thing to do. It does not teach the tykes to respect the lower orders. It introduces into their little heads early in life that confining large creatures into small and filthy spaces is normal. It teaches cruelty and cruelty to animals is a terrible thing. One need not be board certified to note that it heralds other problems, especially in the young. It is a preview of coming attractions, so to speak.
I think the country would be best served if the zoos were closed. Shut them all down. They are expensive, archaic and – no pun intended – bestial. They speak to a time when man was even more primitive than he is today (if such a thing is possible).
They recall the days of yore – bear baiting, et al.
The case of the Siberian tiger in San Francisco is an interesting example. Great concern has been raised about the zoo’s alleged negligence. Published reports note that the fence surrounding the enclosure was four feet below the recommended level. (I smell a personal injury lawyer.) But what of the actions of the zoo’s patrons? In addition to investigating the zoo’s responsibilities, authorities also are looking into the behavior of the three young men involved. Were they were teasing the tiger? Was Tatiana provoked? Witnesses quoted in news account have said that happened. This has not been resolved. The tiger attack victims were not tiny tots in strollers. The deceased was 17, his companions, both brothers, were 23 and 19.
The police have now obtained a court order for their cell phones and car by way of investigating the cause. Published reports this week indicate the two survivors – both brothers – had a few minor entanglements with the law. The circumstances of the incident remain a puzzlement. The San Jose Mercury News reported that the two brothers did not contact the family of their deceased friend – or respond to repeated telephone messages from his family – for two weeks. Odd behavior.
The cause of the tiger attack is far from being resolved and the cause is fascinating. It seems probable that such a beast might respond to provocation.
My interest was further piqued by a dispatch from the Russian news service Novosti which reported this week that wildlife officers in a remote section of Russia’s Far East recently shot a Siberian tiger after it attacked a man who the news agency said was “so drunk at the moment of the attack that could not remember the place where he had met the animal.” The drunk suffered lacerations on both arms and fractured ribs. But here’s where it gets interesting. The Russians think the tiger was goaded to attack.
"We guess that the victim may have provoked the attack himself, as these predators normally don't attack humans without a reason," Vitaly Starostin, a local wildlife official, told the news agency.
Very interesting.
Christopher Corbett spent 25 years as a working journalist and is the author of three published novels. He lives in Baltimore and teaches journalism at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County. He is a regular contributor to TodaysFinancialNews.com. His column "Clowns & Harlots", takes long, hard, often hilarious, looks at Amercian life.
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