Planet of the...Apes?

"Beware the beast Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport or lust or greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death."  from the Sacred Scrolls (Planet of the Apes)

Believe it or not I have been thinking about Roddy McDowell as Cornelius reading from the scrolls in the movie in response to the news of that ghastly "zombie" attack in Florida.  I only read a bit of the text of what occurred and couldn't bring myself to read more let alone investigate the You Tube video clip and photos.  My God what have we come to?

The attacker, shot dead by police, was apparently high on "bath salts" - sold in head shops as a new high.  Individuals who actually bother to snort this nasty chemical combination experience a high that can end in fits of extreme paranoia and violence.

I recall reading an article a year or so ago about two brothers on a boat in Florida who came across a plastic wrapped package of white powder floating on the lake.  The one brother thought perhaps he had hit the mother load and snorted what he hoped was cocaine up his nose.  Before long he was out of control, ripping the boat apart.  He died a few hours later at the hospital.

What does it say about these individuals that they would knowingly ingest chemical compounds into their bodies for the sake of some delirium? What does it say about us as a species?

From what I understand, it is not uncommon to seek out "out of body" experiences - even in the animal kingdom.  Little kids will spin in circles around and around just to experience the dizziness.  Older children will climb onto amusement park rides that spin their bodies round and round and turn them upside down.  Even older kids will drink alcohol or smoke marijuana, among other substances.

In the animal world, birds and beasts of a variety of species will gorge themselves on fermenting berries and fruit, simply for the intoxicating qualities they possess.

In the case of the "bath salts" or crystal meth - where chemical compounds are poisoning our bodies for the sake of a high - that is where I am baffled.  If one was raised in most Christian denominations you were taught that the human body is a temple.  Whether or not you believe in the Resurrection or life hereafter, you would have to agree that our bodies are very essential to life.  Yet in so many ways we ransack that temple without a second thought to what we are destroying.

Isn't this also how we treat the planet?

For the sake of our highs (economic, comfort, excitement) we pollute and devastate the planet.

One wonders if there is simply something wrong in our DNA.  After all, is their really that much difference between one man high on bath salts, ripping the face off of another human with his teeth and a corporation high on profits, ripping apart the mountains of West Virginia for the sake of cheaper coal?

Peace.