Many species of mammal are nocturnal. They sleep during the day and become active at night. Zoologists say the reason this trait evolved was to achieve an upper hand in hunting. Species such as big cats are endowed with the ability to see in the dark and this gives them an advantage over other species that can not see very well when the sun is down.
My friend Alan is a big huge animal rights activist and feels that this is an injustice. Hundreds of species of small animals can not see in the dark and they are slaughtered every year by crafty panthers.
Alan feels this is unfair and his passion for the plight of these unfortunate animals was so intense that he initiated an animal rights campaign called "Light the Jungle." His organization hoped to install powerful flood lights throughout the jungles in Africa and Asia. As the sun would set each night, the lights automatically would switch on to illuminate the jungle floor. This would level the playing field, he thought, and save millions of small and disadvantaged animals normally gobbled up in the night.
It was tough for Alan to get any support. I made a modest contribution because Alan is my friend. But a group of people calling themselves environmentalists believed that Alan’s plan would do more harm than good. Not just because it would upset the natural order of things, but also because the plan would require lots of electricity and long extension cords. Alan believed this point of view was short-sighted. So what if a few giraffes tripped on the extension cords? At least giraffes don’t sit huddled and shivering every night in mortal terror of being devoured.
Before long Alan gave up his quest. We met for a beer on the night "Light the Jungle" officially folded. Alan was dejected and felt that he had failed his little friends vulnerable in the night. Luckily, all he had to do to close down the operation was to throw out the Light the Jungle letterhead and business cards he had printed.
He was hunched over the bar and shaking his head. To comfort him I played some of his favorite songs on the juke box and before long he perked up and we split an order of chicken wings. Alan just loves chicken wings.
2 comments:
I wonder if your friend Alan would be interested in coming to my town to head a people rights campaign called "Darken the Night." Everybody here has insomnia because the powers that be have put up so many street lights, driveway lights, mailbox lights, porch lights and dog lights that people don't know when night time starts. We need somebody like Alan.
You raise another point used by the environmentalists in arguing against Alan's "Light the Jungle" effort; they said 24-hours of continuous light would not allow the small creatures of the jungle to ever get any rest. And you need your rest to elude hungry predators. The environmentalists who opposed "Light the Jungle" must have been very well-rested themselves because they were tireless in their efforts. They wore Alan out, that's for sure.
You could see the fatigue setting in on Alan. I remember his response to the "rest" argument at a press conference. He said, "At least my little friends would have a chance to survive if they were awake, for Christ's sake!"
It was at that moment I knew the whole thing was over. After Alan used the expression "for Christ's sake," at a press conference the environmentalists were joined in their opposition to Alan by religious groups. That's when the death threats began.
I know that Alan honestly cares about the plight of little creatures. But, as Alan himself says often, you've got to know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em.
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