The elephant vanishes: how a circus family went on the run

The unwritten theme throughout this article, is the unwillingness of onlookers to see or seek out the nuance and grey of the world. No doubt played out through social media where the premise of "circus elephant" can't possibly leave any room for anything less than pure condemnation on these platforms.

It was interesting talking to my Indian wife about elephants, for her, growing up on a farm, elephants were primarily a dangerous hazard, not necessarily to life, but they could certainly destroy her father's crops.

It was an interesting perspective since India as a country has some pride in elephants, and Indian Americans such as myself are very proud of India being the land of the elephants, but Indians who live in proximity to wild elephants tend to have a more pragmatic view of them.

I think the world has changed faster than those in certain occupations can accept. We don't see linotype operators and ice cutters anymore, and it is unfortunate for them that there is no public nostalgia for them, such as there is for ranchers, for instance. Ranchers insist on being able to continue their occupation even though the market and changes in diet have massively shrunk the demand for beef. Ranchers somehow have tied themselves to the American identity to hang on, and there exists a sympathy for them, even if red meat literally kills people. The circus is something that the modern world has outgrown. IMO, every elephant the world over that is still in captivity should be confiscated and set into a suitable sanctuary environment, as well as any large animal that is still used and bred for entertainment, such as the large cats. The cruelty of animal captivity should be made extinct. We can retrain circus workers and zoo keepers to be web developers and help desk technicians.