Adult Content

I FINALLY had the chance to sit down and watch the HBO special about Temple Grandin, a world famous animal handling expert renowned for her research and commitment that rapidly changed the face of the US livestock industry. Her story is inspirational and uplifting, her work is honest and beneficial, her tactics are direct and effective, and her effect on the beef industry is all-encompassing and overwhelmingly positive. It was, without a doubt, one of the greatest movies I have seen featuring one of the greatest people of our time; find it and watch it if you have not already.

As much as a liked the movie, there was an aspect of the HBO special that caught my attention and stuck with me. Oddly enough it has nothing to do with Temple or the portrayal of her life, but with a several second blurb added by the television station before the opening credits start. Those watching the film sit through a several second long warning that states 'This movie contains adult content. Viewer discretion advised.' At first glance the statement seems pretty legitimate; this is, after all, the story of a young autistic woman's life in the 60s...there could be a situation that is somewhat uncomfortable but must be explained as a key piece to the whole story. Alas, that was not the case.

The warning was added because of a scene taking place in a slaughterhouse. Viewers watch a not-so-detailed portrayal of a beef animal being herded into the "knock box", dispatched, and hung on the overhead rail that moves carcasses to be fabricated. No blood, no guts, no gory details, just a brief look at the process for those who have never been behind the scenes.

Now, I understand that the harvest floor of a slaughterhouse is not the most pleasant place in the world, but I have seen fewer warnings on movies showing senseless torture and murder of PEOPLE (yes, they are fictional, but the idea of killing humans for mass entertainment is still there). Our society has reached a point where we are actually offended by the thought of killing animals for food...people, in truth, like to pretend the chunks of meat they are rooting through at the grocery store came from a neat little plastic container. Try to discuss the rest of the process with them and you usually get the hands up, head turned away reply "oh, no, no, no, I don't want to talk about that!" Why? I am not saying you should suddenly be scrambling to tour a packing plant (wouldn't hurt if you did, though...) or that kill floors should become the next major vacation destination, but understand and appreciate the full picture for crying out loud. The shock value needs to be taken out of animal protein, and to do that we need to take the facts straight to consumers: YES, an animal was killed to provide you with this nourishment - NO, the process is not wrong or cruel or horrifying or scary or unnatural. No more beating around the bush when it comes to the animal harvest discussion, just a brief explanation of the facts, cut and dried.

I am a firm believer that basic animal handling AND processing techniques should be taught in schools to students at an early age...complete details can be left out, obviously, but students should be familiar with the fact that meat (and about a million other everyday products) comes from an animal, and that is okay. Expose them to it early on, reinforce the idea throughout their schooling, and we will eventually have a population that does not answer "the grocery store" when asked where their food comes from. What a glorious thought.