An old blog that I used to visit (here) has been somewhat resurrected by its author. It appears he’s being sued for libel over posts he made about a dog shooting incident that occurred about a year ago. You can see his original posts here and here, the small video of the shooting here, and a blog put up in defense of the accused here.
I suggest watching the video first, then viewing his post, then reading through some of the witness statements here and here. Of course it’s disgusting watching dogs get shot (watching any animal get shot!) but what interests me about the whole matter is the different perspectives on the same event. I have no trouble feeling anger toward the shooter who knew, I believe, that he was shooting dogs, and I have no trouble feeling anger toward the dog owner who was negligent in training, irresponsible as a pet owner and the main reason why his dogs got into the situation they did. Dogs will be dogs and cows will be cows …they can’t help it. People on the other hand…
People seem to walk that balancing line between natural/innate urges and that higher sense of self. We all have reasons for doing what we do and for saying what we say …and we all justify our actions that seem, at the time they’re done, as not only being in out best interest but in the best interest of the society we live in. Standing behind ones convictions is usually an indication of character and strength, while in turn advances our own virtuous and ethical beliefs.
I feel that appreciating this process in others though, goes a long way to helping us better understand ourselves.
I’ve been thinking about this kind of thing lately, how we are so animal, and yet so different from all other animals.
Also, how there are as many versions of the truth as there are people. Because they sometimes contradict, does that make them any less true?
The ‘truth’ thing you mention has been on my mind as well. I have this weird thought that truth is only a function of our expectations. If you except it to be true, then it will be …which unfortunately rules out any ‘absolute truth’ as far as we might understand. It’s kinda far-fetched, but when things settle down for me I hope to put these mixed up thoughts into some sort of coherent post.
*edit*
Troy you are treading dangerously onto the cliff of absolute relativism……some things may be universally true….
your friend,
plato
Universally true in as much as we expect them to be universally true
Give my best to Aristotle ….Elvis and MJ too.