It appears as if George Orwell was to be believed in the context of the present day realities; human beings are pushed to corners, when the animals begin to retaliate for all the evils dumped on them. Animal Farm today is not just a fiction, parodying the political tenor of the era, but a reality, in literal terms. We were cautioned by chicken flu, which left thousands of men and women (my father being one of the victims) crippled for over a week, draining their energy, and subjecting them to their beds. Today it is swine flu, and the world is witnessing a steady rise in the toll the swine flu is causing across the globe.
One just cannot imagine how and why the animals have suddenly turned against the human race, the so-called custodians of the entire universe. One might even think that it is a calculated attack on the humanity, or else how could it happen that the flu are being caused by the most trusted of all animals and birds just one after another. As we still grope in darkness trying to hurry up our pharmaceutical companies to find a vaccine to remedy the situation, we just don’t know what is next. Is it the dog flu or the cow flu? But we can be sure, something will be in the offing, even before we clean up the dirt made by the swine flu!
What is strange the swine flu has camouflaged itself in the form of common flu, and had decided to attack the weak. There are different stories going rounds across the country, which questions how the flu entered into the nation, who had been guarding all entry points so very efficiently! It is not the time to discuss about how it all began; ultimately we cannot blame even the US alone for ‘creating’ the flu and exporting to the developing Asian countries. It could have happened to any country. All that we can do today is accept the reality and fight a battle to overcome it before it spreads fast.
The chicken flu and the swine flu are great tests to the notion of human supremacy over animals and birds. Who on earth thought that the flu caused in these animals and fowls can really kill the most sophisticated human beings. With all scientific and technological advancement, we are not in a position to arrest the spread of the flu at all! I assume, the swine who were responsible for the flu, were they alive, would be having a hearty laugh at the expense of the inadequately prepared human race. They might even convene a meeting at the jungles to claim supremacy over humanity.
But it is a lesson for us who thought too great about ourselves, to realize that our downfall can be caused by even the innocuous animals and birds, and not necessarily by deadly diseases like cancer and HIV. It is also time that we treat the animals and birds, trees and plants with certain amount of dignity and respect, and not as objects at our disposal. If only we turn to the animals and birds with a little more compassion and love, they too would reciprocate the same love and compassion in some form or other, and in such situations, retaliation and tit for tat cannot become the rule of the game. But is the human race ready to take this lesson seriously?
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