"Cecil the Lion" 2002-2015
Editorials
By Charles Elias Disney
We must surely believe this:
"Just because something might be legal, that never means you should simply always act upon it! Cecil the Lion was named for the British businessman Cecil Rhodes as was Rhodesia in East Africa, before it was named Zimbabwe! Rhodes was Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896.
There always remains the moral, the good, and the virtuous standards we should do our best to live by at all times and in all circumstances! The killing of Cecil the Lion was not the right standard as exercised by the hunter who took it upon himself to break existing South African laws and the standards long in place in Zimbabwe in East Africa. He intentionally poached this protected magnificent lion. Period!
Cecil the Lion was illegally lured away from the refuge where he was protected and then short with a powerful bow and arrow and seriously injured. Cecil ran back into the wild and was hunted down after 40 hours of horrible suffering and was finally shot to death with a high-powered rifle. He was beheaded and skinned and his remains were left to deteriorate. The illegal killing/poaching of Cecil the Lion was accomplished because certain individuals completely lack the moral, the good, and the virtuous standards most good and noble people strive to always live by!
My comments are not about hunting. My comments are my personal opinions and I am strongly opposed to so-called "trophy hunting." "Trophy hunting is the selective hunting of wild animals exclusively for the sake of displaying the remains of the animal." Trophy hunters are a leading reason so many magnificent animals are endangered and will eventually completely disappear; perhaps many in my own lifetime!
The government in Africa is coming to grips with what this poacher accomplished in his desire to illegally 'trophy hunt' a most beloved and revered Lion known as 'Cecil the Lion!' I am an advocate for Lions, Tigers, Elephants, and so many other wildlife and believe anyone who poaches any wild animal in Africa should be punished to the fullest extent of the laws in place in Africa. This hunter/poacher was fully aware/conscious of what he was doing! For him to state otherwise is, simply put, 'completely untruthful and disingenuous!'
Cecil the Lion was so absolutely magnificent and he had obtained a very iconic stature in Zimbabwe. His hunters knew all about Cecil's history and were fully aware of the highly visible GPS tracking collar around his neck and this illegal killing of Cecil must be immediately addressed by the African authorities! I was, along with my brother Daniel H. Disney, fortunate enough and blessed to have personally interacted (albeit from a distance) with Cecil the Lion from the time he was but a cub and throughout his life and each time we visited Zimbabwe in East Africa! The American man who killed/poached him very likely lacks much, if any, real self-esteem or a sense of personal shame and this is very sad! One can never reverse the act of this illegal killing of Cecil the Lion! Someone must speak up for Cecil the Lion! We are gladly willing to fulfill this duty and obligation for everything this continent has taught us, and across so many years!
I am, by no means, considered some sort of a 'radical' animal activist! What I am is a man who strongly believes that if illegal hunting and poaching of African animals continues at the present pace, within a very few years, many, many animal species will be endangered and to the point of complete extinction! And this would be tragic. The African Continent is absolutely one of the most spectacular regions on earth! The natural beauty is of classic proportions and the many wild Creatures/Animals are absolutely stunning and I believe each were always created and intended to remain intact in this Continent! Human contact with these magnificent Creatures remains one of the great earthly wonders. When I say 'contact' I explicitly mean through the lens of a camera and on some non-safari hunting expeditions. There are many ways to view these Creatures and the most spectacular scenery anywhere and in the safety of special vehicles and viewing stations! There are many 'Safari Tours' for viewing the many magnificent Creatures and the scenery...!"
Charles Elias Disney
Personal Encounters with Magnificent Creatures...
On a personal note, Charles Elias Disney has actually engaged with wild animals in that he sustained serious injuries on three separate occasions. In 1961, he was assisting a close friend who was a wild animal trainer named Evelyn Currie with the Hamid-Morton Circus. In Wichita, Kansas in the Forum arena, Charles Elias assisted Evelyn as a Tiglon (a cross between a lion and a tigress) was being treated for an abscessed tooth. While calming this particular Tiglon named Roberto, the animal closed his jaw very hard on his left buttocks wherein he sustained injuries resulting in over 85 stitches. In another encounter in 1978 Charles Elias was attacked in East Africa by a male lion and he lost a part of his right foot and a massive amount of blood! And his third encounter was also in Africa when a female lioness grabbed him by his left shoulder and brought him to the ground. He sustained very serious injuries to his shoulder and arm and he lost a considerable amount of blood and tissue. In all three instances, he admits his full responsibility for these individual encounters and as he states: "In each case, these magnificent animals were responding to me in the manner each creature knows to engage with a human being. To me, I was easy prey and probably looked like a very large two-legged critter and the lions primary and natural instinct is to attack perceived prey and provide food for itself or other members in its lair!" In each instance, Charles Elias Disney insisted no animal was to be harmed in any manner and even if it meant serious injuries to himself! Charles Elias said: "After all, I was invading their territory!"
Daniel H. Disney
Shown below (left) a male Panthera leo (Lion) (center) a female Lioness and (right) a male Tiglon or the offspring of a Lion and a Tigress. Three ABSOLUTELY & COMPLETELY MAGNIFICENT Creatures! INDESCRIBABLE!
Sadly, a Young Girl "Enjoys" Killing Wild African Creatures...
And now comes this: A young preteen girl from Utah actually "enjoys" killing African Creatures and the nonsensical statements she and others are stating surrounding her illogical and fallacious reasoning for these killings is very sad and pathetic, to say the least!
A young preteen girl stated how much she enjoys stalking and killing many wild African Creatures! And she has the unmitigated audacity to say: "I kill these Creatures to provide food for orphanages and villages in the area!" Since when does an American hunter slaughtering a Giraffe save a village or orphanage from starvation? This is absolute absurdity! Again, pathetic! After investigating this very false claim we must conclude, sadly, this is perhaps the epitome of narcissism and perhaps even a real psychological sickness and disorder that deserves the intervention of a psychiatrist treating a diagnosed psychosomatic mental order!
We must conclude that such nonsense and absurdity and ridiculous ideas are leading to the complete extinction and even annihilation of so many magnificent African Creatures!! And unfortunately very often Africa is doing little to prevent these legal and illegal hunts and as a result the once magnificent and immense population of so many countless African Creatures are actually disappearing from this very splendid continent!
What are we teaching our children when they decide they have the desire to kill wild Creatures in Africa? This particular incident isn't the only example. Among others there is also the young girl in Texas who is also excited about killing wild Creatures so "she can have a trophy for her dad's office!" Are we actually now losing a generation of children who are being taught and affirmed with the notion that killing wild Creatures for the sake of "displaying their kill" is proper and acceptable?
I am very sad at these revelations and I do pray that all of these young people and their mentors and parents will have an immediate change of heart! I believe our future looks quite dim and blurred if these young people do continue to believe their desire to hunt and kill these African Wild Creatures is appropriate. Especially if their actions are affirmed by people who should know better...! My question: Where are her parents?
In the Book of Genesis in The Old Testament, when God gives man dominion over all that He Created, this is saying: "To care for!" Dominations, Theology "One of the nine orders of celestial attendants of God..."
Charles Elias Disney
Experience of a Lifetime...Being in Africa!
Come to Africa! Enjoy seeing the magnificent landscape of this truly inspiring continent and these many wonderful and breath-taking Creatures/Animals--you won't be disappointed! Your entire experience can truly be such a solemn wonder for you! Bring your cameras! Of course, remember, some of these animals are some of the world's most dangerous animals, some are even called "Man-eaters" and with good reason!
Zimbabwe in East Africa is one of the most spectacular regions on Earth! And to be able to view some of the magnificent Creatures/Animals on this continent is quite astonishing and an experience you will revere for the rest of your life...! Africa is the second-largest continent. Its landmass borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north and extends 4,500 miles south to the Cape of Good Hope... Africa's major river systems include the Nile, the Niger, the Congo and the Zambezi. The Nile is formed by two tributaries: the Blue Nile that is sourced by Lake Tana in the Ethiopian highlands and the White Nile that originates from the headwaters of Lake Victoria. The Nile flows over 4,000 miles from the equator to the Mediterranean, making it the longest river in the world.
Africa's three largest freshwater lakes are Lake Victoria, Lake Tanganyika and Lake Malawi. In terms of mountain ranges, the Atlas mountains run through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia in northwest Africa. The Tibesti mountains are located along the border of Libya and Chad. In East Africa, volcanic peaks line the contour of the Great Rift Valley, a gigantic fault line extending north from Mozambique through Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia.
Africa's highest peak, Mt. Kilimanjaro, stands at 19, 340 feet and is located in Tanzania. Victoria Falls is located near the middle of the Zambezi, the fourth largest river in Africa. This river traverses six countries including Botswana, Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. At 5,577 feet wide and between 262 and 304 feet tall depending on flow rate, Victoria Falls is the largest waterfall in the world.
This continent reveals where the source of time and life truly finds their historical origins! "In the beginning...God"
Charles Elias Disney
Victoria Falls is the largest waterfall in the World!
|
ZIMBABWE! The origins of Time & Life on Earth...!
|
African Zebras
African Hippopotamuses
African Lionesses
Victoria Falls, HONESTLY, Simply Spectacularly Breath-taking!
Female African Leopard
Male African Leopard
|
African Giraffes
African Elephant with Calf
Mount Kilimanjaro, North-eastern part of Tanzania 5,895 meters above sea level Highest Mountain in the African Continent!
African Python Snake
African Leopard drinking water
|
African Rhinoceros
|
African Bush Elephant
|
African Cheetah
|
African Hoopoe Bird
|
And of course, African Male Lions! WOW! Truly, the Kings of the Jungle! Simply beautiful and breath-taking!
Creatures/Animals of Africa! Like this poster shows...so many to come and see and enjoy...from a distance!