An Austrian circus company has responded to a general outcry against animal cruelty by replacing its performing animals with larger-than-life holograms. They're stunning and hugely innovative while preserving much of the wonder and spectacle of traditional circuses.
Still, here's the thing. All the well-meaning people that cry "Animal cruelty!" at circuses and "Don't cage animals!" at zoos aren't wrong but are also missing the big picture. The more we sanitize and distance ourselves from nature, the fewer people will give a damn. If your children never see the charm, mystery and grandeur of animals up close and only see animals as timeless, invincible characters in HDTV, holograms, or CGI then it won't be long before the actual existence of the real things won't matter anymore.
In short, let's stamp out cruelty wherever we can but not whitewash or hide our utter dominion over these creatures. Keeping them out of circuses and zoos doesn't somehow erase or negate our absolute power over them away from the spotlight and our responsibility to not exploit them out of sight or wipe them out entirely. In the end, every species is precious but if a few ambassadors of their kind have to suffer the most humane treatment we can provide in order to leave an indelible impression on the hearts and minds of human adults and children, then that's a price well worth paying.
