Misnamed ‘Lucky’ the elephant said to whimper ‘Namaste’

By Greg Harman
gharman@sacurrent.com

As President Obama and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visit over the next couple days, elephants likely won’t be on their list of talking points. But they should be.

The land that holds cattle sacred would perhaps also like to hold conference with the planet’s most voracious beef eaters — especially now that the habitat destruction and feedlot belches of the livestock industry are suspect in more than half of the planet’s greenhouse gas emissions.

But particular to pachyderms, India has just decreed the gentle giants shall be freed across the country.

Stating that the “housekeeping of elephants in zoos leaves a lot to be desired,” India's Central Zoo Authority — with enthusiastic endorsement of a scrolling list of animal-rights groups — has proclaimed that elephants are now banned from all zoos in that country with a requirement they be released to wildlife sanctuaries and “rehabilitation camps.”

A policy we’re sure the “Give Lucky A Break” crowd would love to import to San Antonio.