The fate of the stray dogs roaming near the Sochi Olympics is horrifying. They’ve been threatened with “extermination” — and the situation serves to illuminate the bizarre contrast between games that celebrate human achievement and the potential for cooperation with the real world conditions of many of the people and animals who live near the Olympic site. How can we hold these two disparate things in our hearts at the same time? Tillie and I watched the Olympic coverage which, at one point, broadcast the beautiful song Nothing More, by Alternate Routes. We were so moved by the lyrics:
“We are love, we are one, we are how we treat each other when the day is done.”
Still, how could we listen to this song — when dogs were threatened with “extermination” because they were an embarrassment to the public relations face of the games? Is that how we treat the dogs when the day is done, and what does it say about us?
Now someone is trying frantically to save some of the poor souls. Read the story. And, if you are able, please raise your voice.