Confronting the unfathomable…

Have you ever taken a walk somewhere and seen a large, powerful looking dog wearing a muzzle while being held back by its owner? Have you ever turned on the TV and seen a news report showing a prisoner being escorted to (or from) a court restrained not only in handcuffs, but also in leg irons? No doubt you’ve probably been to a zoo or wildlife park where animals, especially those that are known to be dangerous, are separated from you by moats, bars, fences and cages. What thoughts would go thru your mind upon seeing the first two examples? Would you wonder if the dog had ever bitten (or tried to bite) anyone, or perhaps had attacked another dog or animal? Would you feel just a bit unnerved if you were in “striking” range of this dog, even though you are protected from its lethal weapons? What about the prisoner? Would not some of the first questions in your mind be what sort of horrible crime(s) was this person accused of committing? Rape, attempted murder, a brutal slaying or likely a combination of those sorts of violent crimes? Surely both the dog and the prisoner are, by the way they are handled, presumed to be vicious monsters. Apparently they have done (or presumed to have done) that which is utterly unacceptable in a civilized society.  As for the denizens of the zoo, the question is not what they have done, nor what they have been assumed to have done. But rather, it would be what they are capable of doing, should they have the chance. The keepers of the zoo have built and designed the facility to (hopefully) properly house the animal residents all while keeping human visitors (and workers) safe.

In the way I see it, the sense of greatest unease comes not from that which is known to be hazardous, but rather from the extraordinary measures taken to prevent catastrophe in places where it is not expected. To see evidence of such measures in said places can have the effect of forcing one to acknowledge and possibly confront that which is often unfathomable…