Ground
beef is the mutilated and pulverized remains of a cow. That leg of
meat that we use for food, was ripped off the body of a corpse.
Before the wings were wrenched from his body and his breast was cut
out and seasoned, a rancher grabbed him by the neck and snapped it in
half. It was an incident of murder that would be repeated, time and
time again, with his neighbors and family being the victims in his
stead.
Yet
we ignore all of this. We walk into the grocery store, see the
prepackaged body parts and pretend they're something else. We don't
have to see the light and life fade from their eyes. We don't have to
remember that they were on our land, just a few hours before, grazing
and drinking and playing amongst themselves.
There
isn't much difference between them and the family pet. You feed them,
shelter them and care for them when they're sick. You get to see how
they express their emotions and personalities, without the use of
language. It's only because of custom and practice, that we cuddle
with one and lead the other to slaughter.
Even
if a strip of meat hasn't passed your lips in a decade, you're only
alive because you take the life from others. Those leaves that you
depend on are living appendages. Do you assume that all of the plants
survive to replace them? Like it or not, you're either a killer or an
accessory to murder. I say, why not accept what you are?
Classic
Movie Trailers - Interview With The Vampire (1994)
From
all of the monsters we know, there are none so like ourselves. They
have all our manners, our clothes and our countenances. They must
feed and sleep as we do, and they have the same need of
companionship. Vampires however, are closer to their own bestial
natures.
Humans
deny that they're animals all the time, whether or not they do so
vocally. We separate, in many cases, the name of the food from the
name of the prey. For the vampire, there is no such thing as a hot
dog, or a steak, or a hamburger, or even a lamb chop. The reality is
the lamb, squealing, gasping and convulsing until death.
This
film shows us something ironic. I was aware that a big part of the
vampire's appeal, is his role in wish-fulfillment. After all, what
human doesn't dream of immortality? It's such a strong desire that it
permeates our fiction, and yet, this fiction shows that immortals
want what mortals have.
I'm
sure we can all understand, that a young girl wants to be a woman. I
wonder how many also realize, that a young man might want to age.
It's more than just the pain of the long centuries. It's more than
the lack of family and friends, fatherhood and retirement. What he
might miss even more, is the ability to deny the animal.
Look
at how we live. We cover ourselves with silk and wool and leather and
cloth. We talk philosophy, recite poetry, and we dine with tools to
keep us apart from our meals. We use so many containers to hold our
drinks, that lapping from a well is an alien practice.
There
are no such illusions for a vampire. No dinner plate will curb his
hunger, and no flask will kill his thirst. When he takes a life he
sees the transfer; he hears the begging, feels the struggle and
experiences the fear. On and on it goes, as the price for his life is
the trail of death that he leaves.
Think
of how cold you must become. Think of how hard and immune you would
need to be, to the suffering of others. Human beings live a long
time, in relation to their kin. I imagine that fact is due to mood
and a clearer conscience.
We're
allowed to sleep soundly, without being haunted by the faces of our
victims. If we so wish, we can pretend that they didn't exist at all.
The grocery store allows us, to make it the source of the food that
we need. As a result, we can live in blissful ignorance and die
peacefully; surprisingly enough, that's a reward that many don't
appreciate.
Remember
that a hellish curse is exactly that. If the offer wasn't tempting,
The Devil couldn't get you to sign. He counts on your zeal for the
reward and your ignorance of the costs. As a mortal; your time on
this earth is limited; you may occasionally wish for more but I say,
why not accept what you are?
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@ChannelSeals
See
"Interview with the Vampire" on YouTube / Amazon Instant Video
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