Here's an interesting one from Wales:
The Welsh Assembly announced Tuesday it has approved the slaughter of a "sacred" bovine infected with tuberculosis, despite Hindu protests.
Shambo, a Welsh bullock kept by a Hindu temple in the Skanda Vale community in Llanpumsaint, was ordered slaughtered by the assembly to "protect animal and human health," The Times of London reported Tuesday.
This was covered this morning on Today's "Thought for the Day" (It's alright this is an Ann Atkins-free zone) spoken by Akhandadhi Das, who said:
The Skanda Vale community takes its inspiration from two principles found in the teachings of Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita - these are: service to life and devotion to God. Should the decision on Thursday go against Shambo, the monks and nuns have vowed to remain true to those convictions. They feel they cannot be expected to assist in the death of Shambo, but, in case there was worry, they have said that they will not use or allow any type of force or violence to obstruct the authorities. I support this approach. It's important, their method of campaigning for the welfare of Shambo is in keeping with their message of celebrating the sanctity and divine nature of all life.
It is a tricky one. You feel for the Hindu community involved. I have great admiration for their stated approach if the end comes for the cow. At the same time, Bovine Tuberculosis is not something to be messed with.
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While from Wales I didn't follow this story throughout. However, as someone living and working in rural Wales we have to take these issues seriously. Back in 2001 you could see 30 pyres stacked with cattle from my home and the air was acrid with smoke and a permanent darkness fell over the region as we contended with Foot and Mouth. While TB isn't as serious, the potential ramifications need to be thought about,
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