How about some chicken soup for the soul on a Monday?

How about some chicken soup for the soul on a Monday?

From my kitchen made with real home made chicken stock, chicken, noodles and barely cooked vegetables like zuccini, broccoli, carrots and beans.
#foodphotography   #chickensoup   #chickensoupforthesoul   #BeenaRPhotography

Some thoughts on the argument that "hunting should be done ethically"! Isn't it a joke?

I just came back from a lovely vacation to this deeply unsettling news of an american dentist killing a treasured and celebrated lion named Cecil that belongs to a nationally protected wild life park (Hwange) in Zimbabwe. 

Even more unsettling to me were the "other" facts that prevailed in this really weird case of animal cruelty for the fulfillment of weird egocentric pleasures that some humans are born with or feel privileged to indulge themselves in !

I was not sure whether to cry or laugh when I was going through the arguments that were being put forward in support of the conservation of lions, in effect the conservation of animals at large! 

Think about this argument: that hunting should be allowed so the money generated from this activity could be used to conserve and breed more animals. 
Here's an article by CNN that looks at the depths of this baloony claim: http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/30/opinions/flocken-cecil-lion-

death/ 

That is precisely what it is.. "a twisted logic that justifies these hunts as "conservation" efforts" quoting the above report!

In the incident in question, the american dentist had paid the money to the so called "professional guides" to "aid" him in hunting "a" lion (or should I say "the" lion) . 

If the money received by the professional guides would have been used for the preservation of lions, why would they be interested in helping this man at all? They very well know the rules of hunting as laid down by the government of Zimbabwe.

This is yet another topic for discussion, whether hunting should be allowed at all in any civilized country for human pleasure.

In my laywoman mind, there is no doubt that the dentist is currently rejoicing in some safe place, well protected and surrounded by many animal heads/trophies. He definitely planned this out meticulously after consultation with excellent lawyers that his money could afford. 

If he was going to pay money to the extend of 35,000/- to 50,000/- dollars for this activity, he damn well envisioned and took care of what was to follow after this passionate activity of his! 

Please note that he has apologized to his patients who are most probably the main source of his wealth, and it makes sense. Where is the money from the next hunting trip going to come from? 

His own words quoted "“I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion,” he said in the statement."

See, this is an activity that he loves, but be careful. He follows/(ed) the rules of hunting!

Think about this. You cannot bring in a half eaten banana into United States when you are arriving from a different country as per the US customs and Border protection laws. 

Read more on that and I am quoting some in italics from their web site: 

"It is illegal in the United States to import, export, distribute, transport, manufacture or sell products containing dog or cat fur in the United States." 

But a Lion's head that contains fur is okay to be shipped in! Please enlighten me if you know of a reason why a lion's fur that is attached 
to a sad dismembered head is okay to be shipped in but not a dog or cat's fur.

And found more laws that I am quoting below in italics from here: 
http://www.fws.gov/le/pdf/ImportingPersonalSporthuntedTrophiesAfrica.pdf

Stricter U.S. Wildlife Laws
• You should be aware that there are several U.S. wildlife laws that may restrict the import of your trophy. If the animal is protected by the Endangered Species Act (for example, leopard, brown hyena or bontebok), you will need to obtain an endangered species import permit before importing your trophy. 

You can find the list of endangered species at:
http://www.fws.gov/endangered/wildlife.html 

Some bird trophies (for example, hoopoe) may need permits under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. You can find the list of migratory birds at:
http://migratorybirds.fws.gov/intrnltr/mbta/mbtintro.html 

As per the above laws, it does mean that it is okay to import a trophy (read dismembered sad head of an animal) that belongs to an endangered species, provided there are some rules that are met/satisfied. I think it's all a joke. The countries that create wild life 
protection laws allow hunting the very same wild life that are some times listed as "vulnerable" (as in the case of lions in africa)! 

I really don't think that Zimbabwe has a chance in getting the US government to extradite this dentist for trial in Zimbabwe (latest news on this is that Zimbabwe has asked the US government to extradite the dentist to them). 

After all, hunting lions is allowed as per US federal laws and as per the laws of the government of Zimbabwe. It's just a matter of fine lines that may or may not have gotten crossed that an expert lawyer should be able to prove and swing it to this side or that side! 

Consider this fact that I am quoting: "So far, $470,000 has been raised, enough to fund research into lion conservation in Hwange National Park for two years, WildCRU said." 

What do you think? Couldn't more money be raised killing more lions that could "effectively" be used for conservation of lions? Just that the timing should be perfect. Let the uproar and sensitivity over this latest incident die out, wait a few more months until the wild life conservation lovers and activists forget this pain and be receptive to more fresh pain, bingo.. kill a few more and generate more money. 

May be the very same dentist could cross off the next animal from his list, since this is not the first time he has done this specific activity and found himself in the middle of controversy.

Go ahead, jump in, make a huge splash and have fun !

Go ahead, jump in, make a huge splash and have fun !
Enjoy your summer and life every one :)

#foodphotography   #stilllifephotography   #BeenaRPhotography

#wordlessonwednesday

#wordlessonwednesday
#macro   #macrophotography   #dropsphotography    #BeenaRPhotography

Reflections..

Reflections..

A Mushroom uprising!

A Mushroom uprising!
They were beautiful to look at and tasted delicious too...
#CircleShapesMonday
Curated by Circle Shapes Monday ☀
#mushroomphotography   #mushrooms   #GPlus   #BeenaRPhotography   #shroomshot   #mondayblues   #macrophotography   #macro   #foodphotography

Can you think of your child in the same situation?

A working child in New Delhi, India.

His deep black eyes pierced right through my soul and disturbed me a lot. I don't think I am being very accurate in the description of my feelings. His eyes made me feel very guilty. 

I just wonder if it is because he has a pair of beautiful eyes? Or is it because of the honesty that was spilling out of his face? I was forced to analyze all these deep within me. Or I must say that his deep gaze forced me to do that. 

He looked about 12 to 13 years of age and was a grocery delivery boy who came that day to deliver some cold drinks in the peak summer heat in July at about 1 pm. I asked him if he went to school and he was very shy or reluctant in answering my question and said something like tomorrow/the next day was going to be the first day of school for him. So I asked him if he would still be working once he starts school and he told me that he would go in the morning shift to school and work in the afternoons. 

A child delivery boy in New Delhi

He was okay with me taking a couple of his photos and later on gave me a shy smile also. When my relatives saw his photo, they recognized him and they all expressed the same feelings as I, that they felt like giving him lot of money or anything that will possibly bring a smile to his face. Well, the dignity on his face told me that if I were to offer him free money he was going to refuse it since it would not fall under his work ethics.

Based on my understanding, according to the Indian laws, if a child who is under 14 was found working, then such an incident was to be considered as child labor if and only if the work/occupation is hazardous. If the law doesn't unconditionally ban any kind of occupation or labor or suspected labor, it is imperative that it could easily be manipulated or it is as good as non existent. 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/newdelhi/employing-children-below-14-to-be-an-offence/article1-849116.aspx

Yet  another news paper article I just found, says that the Indian Government has extended this law to consider who ever is under 18 to be a child and an employer has to be fined heavily and then the child has to be rescued and rehabilitated, educated etc. etc. I found it very confusing to process the facts from this article, most probably because the laws are not defined in a clear cut manner. 

Times of India Article on Child Labor Laws in India

I have witnessed seemingly educated people employing children in their kitchens or around their houses. In most cities of India, the sight of working children is interwoven into the fabric of every day life that it is not even a matter of surprise or shame. 

When ever I have questioned the parents of such children or confronted an employer who may have brought these children to the city from their native villages, I get this answer: If my child doesn't work, I won't be able to feed my family of (what ever number) with these many siblings, or the employer's answer would be, " I couldn't bear seeing the poverty in this child's house that I have given him employment so he can not only take care of himself but his family also a little bit. It is a plain fact that poverty and child labor go hand in hand. 

There needs widespread awareness and highly publicized imprisonments or punishments to take place which will send a strong message to those who are employing children, but the crux of the matter is the lack of clear definitions on what exactly is deemed punishable under the law. 

As a child, I remember seeing the government mandated family planning advertisement videos that used to play in the movie theaters before the start of a movie. I am not saying that the population of India was effectively controlled by this method. But I know for a fact that the it sent a message to the common man that it is something that needs to be considered for a better life. 

I don't see similar videos or advertisements banning child labor any where in the current times in India. There has to be a massive aggressive psychological conditioning war that needs to take place on a government level about the bad consequences of this wrong practice.