Moloch, Baal, Xipe Totec

Something weird is happening in Mother Africa, cradle of life: first, a baby is thrown away like garbage, only to be rescued and protected by a stray Kenyan dog. Now comes a story from Ethiopia of a young girl rescued by lions:

"A 12-year-old girl who was abducted and beaten by men trying to force her into a marriage was found being guarded by three lions who apparently had chased off her captors, a policeman said Tuesday...
She was beaten repeatedly before she was found June 9 by police and relatives on the outskirts of Bita Genet, Wondimu said. She had been guarded by the lions for about half a day, he said.
"They stood guard until we found her and then they just left her like a gift and went back into the forest," Wondimu said.
"If the lions had not come to her rescue, then it could have been much worse. Often these young girls are raped and severely beaten to force them to accept the marriage," he said."

A local wet blanket had this explanation:

"Stuart Williams, a wildlife expert with the rural development ministry, said the girl may have survived because she was crying from the trauma of her attack.
"A young girl whimpering could be mistaken for the mewing sound from a lion cub, which in turn could explain why they didn't eat her," Williams said."

Yes, I'm sure the look and smell of her gave off no clues. Regardless, these stories touch the romantic in me, and I can't help think how much alike they are in the message they send...that as the humanity leaches out of our miserable race, the animals around us seem to be developing their own, and like dutiful grandparents picking up the pieces of their grandchildren's broken lives when their kids abandon them, animals are beginning to shoulder the responsiblities we are no longer human enough to carry.

And for this we murder them into extinction, torture them in labs, and torment them in pits for our amusement. We are indeed made in the image of our gods.