The actions of the U.S. Marine shown throwing a puppy off a cliff in an Internet video are shameful and denounced by the Animal Activists of Alachua. That a person could take pleasure in the abuse and suffering of an innocent animal is appalling and cannot be justified. Animal cruelty is a felony in many states, and the Marine should be dishonorably discharged and serve prison time if the video is depicting reality. He should not be shown leniency in this matter based on the fact that he is a Marine. In fact, members of the military should be held to a higher standard.
This matter also should not be taken lightly because the victim is an animal. Every creature has a right to live its life freely, whether it is human or not. An animal's basic interests should be shown the same consideration as ours, and sympathy should be given to all victims of injustice, regardless of their species.
Some say the video is doctored, but humans commit millions of similar acts of animal abuse every day; the only difference is not all of them make it to YouTube. So why do only a few acts of animal cruelty ever surface to catch the attention of the public? Americans are interested in cases such as this and Michael Vick's dog fighting, but they turn a blind eye to many others. Unfortunately, animal cruelty reaches far beyond this one case and reaches far beyond cute puppies. The puppy in the video feels the same pain as animals slaughtered for food, yet for some reason many don't make that connection. Some would say a soldier who is trained to kill in war could become desensitized to such cruelty. That is no excuse for the actions seen in the video. It is unfortunate our tax dollars fund a Marine who makes light of animal abuse. Though we cannot control where our tax dollars are spent, we can take many things into our own hands to eliminate unnecessary suffering. It is our hope that people will make the connection between their choices and the consequences they have on other living beings.
Shivani Patel is the former president of the Animal Activists of Alachua.
