|
 |
|
.
.
|
|
Justice for “Slumpy”? Last week I had a rare opportunity to go out to a nightclub and enjoy the company of friends. Like many contemporary clubs, this one had a few aquariums. Although I find the notion of looking at creatures in tanks akin to visiting prisons, I felt myself drawn to the tank in the corner for some unknown reason. As I approached it, I noticed a large nurse shark at the bottom who I assumed was sleeping. For nearly an hour, I stood near the tank to listen to the comments from the club-goers and staff. “Wow, a cool shark... how come she’s not moving?” was a standard comment. The shark (whose name I later lea med is Slumpy) may just as well have been a lava lamp to the bar patrons, because it was apparent that he was nothing more than mere entertainment for them. To me, Slumpy’s situation symbolized how arbitrary the choices we, as humans, make when it comes to compassion. If he was a dog or cat in a cage somewhere, the outcry would surely be more evident. But because sharks aren’t cute or cuddly and have he reputation of attacking humans (which we all know is hype), the act of imprisoning them seems morally acceptable to us. In fact, most sharks are very social, intelligent and inoffensive creatures. I recently learned that nurse sharks normally live in packs of 20-35 and sleep piled on top of one another. What a contrast the natural world is to Slumpy’s: having to live in a space roughly 5 times the size of his body with no choices, no opportunity for exercise and, perhaps most tragically, no companionship. The only possible silver lining I could see in Slumpy’s fate, was that he was protected from the thick cigarette smoke from the bar as well as the thundering pulse of the music. Last April, I had the privilege to help extricate a nurse shark named Amy from a similar fate in Oakland County. Amy now lives in a protected reserve in the Florida Keys, which is operated by the Marine Mammal Conservancy. I contacted the good people at MMC and told them about Slumpy and was told that if we can cover the transfer costs, they would be happy to take him. It’s been said that the truest test of one’s moral fiber is to act on behalf of those who are least like us. Now that I’ve stood on my soapbox and preached to the choir, I am going to ask everyone reading this to take specific, direct action. It is extremely rare that I ask for financial support of any kind, but the stakes for Slumpy are too high and I have to ask this time. If you can afford even a few dollars, please send it to me immediately. I am charging all costs to my credit card and will donate the balance to the MMC. Please send checks to:
|
|
