Through the Eyes of the Beholder

Afternoons by the Matterhorn ..

Starting in the mid-seventh century, the Japanese government placed a ban on eating meat which lasted on and off for over 1,200 years. Probably influenced by the Buddhist precept that forbids the taking of life, Emperor Tenmu issued an edict in 675 CE that banned the eating of beef, monkeys, and domestic animals under penalty of death. (Side note: monkey must have been very popular to be named specifically in the law!) Emperor Tenmu’s original law was only meant to be observed between April and September. But later laws and religious practices essentially made eating most meat, especially beef, illegal or taboo.

Submission Friday:

President Trump recently described Frederick Douglass as “an example of somebody who’s done an amazing job and is being recognized more and more, I notice.” The president’s muddled tense – it came out sounding as if the 19th-century abolitionist were alive with a galloping Twitter following – provoked some mirth on social media. But the spotlight on one of America’s great moral heroes is a welcome one.

Frederick Douglass On How Slave Owners Used Food As A Weapon Of Control

Submission Friday: