Animal rights can be as extreme as not riding a horse, or not

"Animal rights can be as extreme as not riding a horse, or not wearing leather, not having a pet at all. Animal welfare advocates are preventing the suffering of animals. And then there's conservation and species conservation and what conservation biologists do." Thus spoke Eric Goode, artist, filmmaker, and guardian of wild creatures. In these words, he opens before us the layered ways humanity seeks to protect the animals with whom we share this earth. His saying is not only a division of philosophies, but a reminder of the many paths of compassion, each striving toward the same end: that life should not be wasted, nor the innocent made to suffer.

The ancients themselves revered the animal world, though in different ways. The Egyptians worshiped cats as divine guardians, the Hindus honored cows as sacred, and Native peoples of the Americas saw in the eagle, the bear, and the wolf the spirits of strength, vision, and kinship. But in every culture there was tension: to use animals for survival, or to honor them as fellow beings. Goode’s words echo this ancient question, which still resounds in our age of factories, laboratories, and vanishing forests.

In his teaching, animal rights stand as the most radical call—an insistence that animals are not ours to use at all. To those who follow this path, even riding a horse or wearing leather is to transgress the sacred independence of another being. Then comes animal welfare, a gentler but no less noble path, which does not demand abstinence but insists upon kindness—that if animals must serve or live beside us, they should be spared cruelty, hunger, and pain. Beyond these lies conservation, which looks not only to the single animal but to entire species, seeking to preserve balance in the great web of life.

History shows us the fruit of these efforts. Consider the story of Jane Goodall, who lived among chimpanzees in Tanzania, not as a conqueror but as a humble student. Her work revealed the kinship between humans and apes, and her advocacy saved countless habitats from destruction. Or remember the tale of the American bison, once hunted nearly to extinction, yet brought back through the labor of conservationists who refused to let this mighty creature vanish from the plains. These are the triumphs of those who walked the paths Goode describes—rights, welfare, and conservation, each in harmony.

But his words also contain warning. For too often, men and women fight over which path is purest, while the animals continue to suffer. The warrior of rights may scorn the pragmatist of welfare; the conservationist may dismiss the activist. Yet Goode reminds us that all these paths share one root: the desire to protect, to heal, to honor life. The division is real, but the goal is shared. Wisdom lies not in tearing down another’s method, but in building together toward a world where animals no longer perish needlessly.

O children of tomorrow, take this lesson into your hearts: do not turn away from the plight of the voiceless. Choose your path—whether in defending animal rights, easing suffering through animal welfare, or preserving the sacred balance through conservation. Whatever you choose, let your action spring from compassion. For animals are not only our companions or our resources—they are fellow travelers on this earth, sharing the breath of life and the destiny of survival.

Therefore, live with awareness. Do not waste life. If you eat, eat with gratitude. If you wear, wear with conscience. Support those who protect forests, oceans, and wild places. And above all, teach others that compassion is not weakness but the highest strength. For the measure of a civilization is found not in how it builds its monuments, but in how it treats the most vulnerable under its care.

Thus the teaching of Eric Goode endures: that there are many ways to serve the creatures of the earth. Whether by abstaining, by alleviating, or by conserving, each path leads toward the same light—the defense of life itself. Walk this path, and you will not only save animals, but also redeem the humanity within your own soul.