"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. Even the very wise cannot see all ends." --- Gandalf in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
Sometimes a short paragraph, in this case about choosing not to kill a fly, will start an avalanche of thoughts, and this is what happened when I read Roy's post, which wasn't really about killing (for that you have to check his previous entry) but exercise. But please, read more than just one paragraph of his post, read even the entire blog, it is good.
For now I don't want to write about wars, murders, and such. I am going to talk about killing of what we consider lower forms of life. While it is hard to feel compassion towards something that on the life ladder is so much lower than we are, maybe it is time to consider that we are harming ourselves in our quest to eliminate what we think deserves to die.
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| This is one stubborn, hard to kill spider |
Did you know that in many traditional cultures spider webs were and still are used to aid in healing wounds as they contain penicillin like substance? So even if we cannot show compassion for arachnids then maybe before we kill them all, we can consider that they could be of use to us.
Such considerations take me even lower down the chain of life. We have even less mercy on the creatures we cannot see. I am thinking about bacteria. With those we are waging an outright war of extermination.
A short story about the use of antibiotics:
When my son was little, like many kids his age, he developed an ear infection. I watched him for a while but then decided to take him to his doctor who checked his ears and sat down to write a prescription for some kind of antibiotic. I gathered all my courage (I was much more timid in those days) and asked if that was really necessary, adding sheepishly that I was raised in Europe and had this strange notion that antibiotics were to be used only as the last resort. The doctor smiled and said that we could just watch my son for a couple of weeks and see what happens, and no, there wasn't any danger in doing so. My son recovered just fine and that was his last ear infection ever. A few months later I happened to stumble upon a Dutch study stating that in kids whose ear infections were left untreated with antibiotics, the recurrence rate was 15% (or was it 10%?), while in kids who received antibiotics, recurrence rate was 85%! Maybe without drugs it took my son longer to recover but his organism had time to develop antibodies that have been keeping him ear infection free since. What is more, antibiotics would would have killed a lot of beneficial bacteria in his body.
We go after bacteria with a vengeance even though in our own bodies our own cells are outnumbered 10:1 by bacteria, without which we would not be able to survive. Just check out this link.
The overuse of antibiotics and antibacterial products forces bacteria to develop defenses. Already many of our strongest drugs are powerless against some bacteria. In this fight we are also damaging our friendly bacteria who keep our bodies alive.
What can you do? Do not buy meat that has been treated with antibiotics. Do not use antibacterial soap, regular soap will do just fine. Let your kids develop their immune systems by allowing them to get dirty and letting their organisms fight disease under your watchful eye before reaching for drugs. There is very strong evidence pointing to overly clean environment as a cause of many allergies and asthma.
And if you are still having doubts, our mitochondria, which, among other things, are responsible for cellular metabolism, used to be bacteria, who in ancient times got into symbiotic relationship with host cells, and the rest is evolutionary history. So every time while running you get that extra kick from your energy gel, thank the bacteria.
Again, it is not a matter of compassion (though it could be that too), just common sense and self defense - "do not be too eager to deal death in judgement".
When my son was little, like many kids his age, he developed an ear infection. I watched him for a while but then decided to take him to his doctor who checked his ears and sat down to write a prescription for some kind of antibiotic. I gathered all my courage (I was much more timid in those days) and asked if that was really necessary, adding sheepishly that I was raised in Europe and had this strange notion that antibiotics were to be used only as the last resort. The doctor smiled and said that we could just watch my son for a couple of weeks and see what happens, and no, there wasn't any danger in doing so. My son recovered just fine and that was his last ear infection ever. A few months later I happened to stumble upon a Dutch study stating that in kids whose ear infections were left untreated with antibiotics, the recurrence rate was 15% (or was it 10%?), while in kids who received antibiotics, recurrence rate was 85%! Maybe without drugs it took my son longer to recover but his organism had time to develop antibodies that have been keeping him ear infection free since. What is more, antibiotics would would have killed a lot of beneficial bacteria in his body.
We go after bacteria with a vengeance even though in our own bodies our own cells are outnumbered 10:1 by bacteria, without which we would not be able to survive. Just check out this link.
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| Aren't they just too pretty to kill? :-) |
What can you do? Do not buy meat that has been treated with antibiotics. Do not use antibacterial soap, regular soap will do just fine. Let your kids develop their immune systems by allowing them to get dirty and letting their organisms fight disease under your watchful eye before reaching for drugs. There is very strong evidence pointing to overly clean environment as a cause of many allergies and asthma.
And if you are still having doubts, our mitochondria, which, among other things, are responsible for cellular metabolism, used to be bacteria, who in ancient times got into symbiotic relationship with host cells, and the rest is evolutionary history. So every time while running you get that extra kick from your energy gel, thank the bacteria.
Again, it is not a matter of compassion (though it could be that too), just common sense and self defense - "do not be too eager to deal death in judgement".
And now that I am off my soapbox, here is my unrelated to this post new discovery:
13 comments:
Good post. Antibiotics are so overused. Granted I will take them when needed but they are way overprescribed.
I try, I really do, but there is something about a tick crawling on me or partially embedded. I feel a huge urge to crush them.
When I was breast-feeding my first child I had many bouts of mastitis. The first few were treated with antibiotics and I ended up with an allergy to penicillin (that was fun - a new-born, mastitis and a major allergic reaction) After the allergy I just decided to treat any further bouts with paracetamol (because it hurts like hell) and frequent feeding and amazingly the infections lasted the same amount of time AND my breast did NOT go black and drop off.
I'm laughing at the plastic spider :). I try not to kill them but to set them free when I find one in my house...I mean, really, I'd freak if one started up my leg in the middle of the night. They like to play in my basement though so I try to stay away from there. They're just creepy is all. But something like a tick, like your friend Mary said, now that just has disease and bleh, are soooo nasty. Thankfully, not many ticks in my neck of the woods but if I found one, I'd have to smush it.
100% agree on the antibiotics.
I totally agree that you should let kids play in the mud and dirt and not use anti-bacterial soap. Some sources say that is why there's been such an increase in childhood allergies. Poor kids.
I played in the mud, and damn it was fun. My kiddies, when I have them, are totally gonna get dirty and play outside.
Sanitizing hands can be done without creating bacterial resistance if you use an alcohol-based one (I keep these around during cold season and when I fly).
I am right with you on this post! When we get bugs in our house I always try to get them safely outside before we have to resort to more violent measures...
...and don't get me started on the antibiotics! We have been so lucky to have doctors here who don't resort to antibiotics unless really necessary. My kids were all breast fed for a year and they have hardly needed to go to the doctor.
Lovely post Ewa! I so hope I meet you one day. We'll be talking for hours! I never kill anything but just get them out of the house if they are poisonous. Here in Africa bugs can get big and plenty. Luckily I grew up in a nature loving family and even had pet flies when I was at school.:) I will certainly carry on running if I am able to when I reach 2000 races. Maybe I'll be a walker with a cane by then.
Rachel Carson wrote over 50 years ago about the delicacy of the interrelationships and interdependence of organisms with each other. I do not think we will really understand the impact of the overuse of antibiotics until there is an unparalleled catastrophe.
Such an interesting post Ewa! Gets ya thinking! I am one that lived back east as a kid & played in dirt & everything else under the sun! I also have taken antibiotics very few times in my 53 years. I let the doc know that I will only take it if it is absolutely necessary. I understand there are times to do it but we don't have to take them for very little thing!
I'm a recovering spider masher myself...sad but true...
Such a thoughtful post.
I have a thing about killing bugs, even plants. It just doesn't feel right to me and never has, ever since I was a child. For that reason, I find myself naming bugs and plants when I'm with kids, to help them with the fear of critters and to give them a little personification, elevate them in the eyes of kids. It really works. I notice children respecting plants and insects more, often feeling more connected to them. That sounds strange as I write this but it's true!!
By the way, I'm all for playing in the dirt and now I know it serves an even greater purpose!
I never kill the animals. For instance if I find ants or spiders at home I take them by a post card and I "drive" all of them to the garden.
I hate who kill the animals for "sport" or for fun.
A WONDERFUL post Ewa! I have love for all spidies great and small even though they sometimes give me the heebee jeebies. What a good little job that they do.
Also, very interesting about the ear infections vs. antibiotics. Growing up I had chronic ear infections and didn't have a choice about taking the antibiotics, it makes me wonder.
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