"murder"

On redefining the word "murder" to include animals.

I was watching Full Metal Alchemist and a specific line troubled me greatly.  A homunculus spoke to a prince and said, "when you look down upon an insect, do you consider whether he is strong, smart, or of high political standing?  Such a being is so far beneath you humans that I highly doubt it.  So too you, human, are so far beneath me that I simply do not care who you are, only that you will sacrifice your life for me."

This line troubled me because the non-human was right.  His atrocious acts were justified under the very same logic we use today.  Animals are below us.  Legally, if they kill, it is the owner's responsibility.  If we kill them, we hardly need a reason for there is no thought for punitive damages; they are below us.

I reject this ideology, my dear readers.  Murder is taking the life of another living creature whether it is a human, a pig, or a tree.  Murder may be justified based upon survival needs, but murder may ALWAYS be avoided if one is simply strong enough to conceive of a nonviolent solution.  Many old cultures hold great reverence for life and have rituals of apology for the act of taking a life.  It is this reverence to the cycles that we have lost; that lack makes us no better than the homunculus and far worse than our potential.  

Murder might be part of the Yup'ik cycle because they cannot cultivate the land to fill their needs.  What CAN separate us from the other species of life is our power to change cycles.  This godlike ability can terraform entire worlds and forge cycles where murder may not be necessary at all for a global community.  We can be so much greater than we are.

The occasional murder will happen.  Life is chaotic.  But we CAN discourage it.  We humans can love great enough to break our cycles of murder.  Surely lions may still kill gazelle and Alaskans may still kill moose, but if we can but love great enough, we can imagine a new cycle for ourselves that does not harm others.  Again, it falls back on you, dear reader.  Only you.  I have chosen to see the world this way; to see my power this way.  Make up your own mind wisely, for you are one drop that helps move the whole ocean.