ccbarr wrote:
Here we have a young person, living in a world where they can witness humans engaging in putting animals through hellish torture and righteously justifying it on some grounds, yet no one is putting all of those people behind bars.
I agree that animals and people are egregiously used in the name of science. Poachers slaughter animals for their fur, feathers, horns, etc. Animals are butchered in inhumane manners for food. I do not see that as an excuse to do cruel acts to animals for the sake of doing them as the young man in those pictures did.
It is obvious that he knew what he was doing was not acceptable to others and he knew that he would be arrested if caught because he hid his face in the images. He very likely performed his "act" or similar ones several times before filming it or having it filmed. I did not see the actual film nor do I want to see it.
ccbarr wrote:
Do we take this opportunity to let him know that what he did was considered wrong and be a teachable moment for him? Yes. Does he receive some kind of punishment? I think the pain he is going to feel from people being angry with him over this is going to be a lot of punishment.
That depends upon the young man being teachable in matters of morality and conscience. In my opinion he is not. In my opinion he has performed other cruel acts and will continue to do so and will probably secretly smirk at any attempts to "rehabilitate" his thinking.
I personally believe he is a sadistic, sociopathic, unredeemable person who will not stop at animals. As for punishment, I sincerely doubt that it would be useful nor would it change his behavior - it may even exacerbate it. Teaching him that what he did was wrong would be fruitless, he knows it intellectually. He will have no feelings about people being angry with him and condemning him because he is conscience-free. Right and wrong do not have a place in his life; no pangs of conscience are present in his concept of "wrongfulness."
He literally lives for people being horrified and his work being publicized. Notoriety is all. He gloats with the power he has over the helpless and frightened.
I sincerely hope my grim portrayal of this person is not true but I fear that it is.