I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but ...
... I was appalled to see kiddie insect torture kits for sale at my local grocery store. There it was -- hanging on the shelf next to the sugar structures that were supposed to pass as children's cereal choices -- a magnifying glass and tweezers combo package with the invitation to "explore nature" in the corner in an enticing font (you can see this product in the first link below).
Now for a guy who is generally of a glass-is-half-full Weltanschaung (or "world view" for you non-Deutsche readers, or for you non-Deutsche speakers in case you tried to sound out the word like a person who is jonesing for Phonics -- which, by the way, now that I'm older, seems like a system full of addiction terminology, no?), I can't quite speak as to why my mind immediately went to this dark place -- but I flashed forward to visions of the young 'uns running around outside in our triple digit heat, immolating insects like they too were possessed by the spirit of Antonia Gavilán of Logroño and all the critters were vampiric (gratuitous nod to this amazing season of True Blood for those of you in the know).
I'm not saying that curious kiddies who take the life of all those that entomologists hold dear grow up to be serial killers or that the use of the magnifying glass/tweezers combo is practically gateway-drug-like paraphernalia foreshadowing cats with tails tied together or dogs too-frequently on the business end of a boot, but it did strike me that it's a fine line between exploration and exploitation, and I hope that those who make this purchase provide it to their progeny with the precautionary messaging to respect those in the insect world.
One additional note -- while shopping today at the Sears on Lawrence Avenue (according to the Sears archives, one of the oldest in Chicago, built in 1925), I did spy the biggest cockroach I've ever seen outside of a zoo (and, with their known resilience, quite possibly the oldest cockroach I've seen, as he might have been present back when Sears and Roebuck were both regular shoppers at these locations). I didn't make a purchase (and I resisted the urge to go back to the second floor and share my experience with the couple who appeared to be about to take home their first mattress) ... but I'm just saying that there is a lesson to be learned that one doesn't always need a magnifying glass or be outside to "explore nature".
CLICK THE THUMBNAIL ON THIS PAGE TO VIEW THE "TOY":
http://www.sunshinemarkets.com.au/p/927848/nature-explorer-fun-sets---collect-them-all.html
OTHERS EXPLORE THE BURNING ANTS/SERIAL KILLER CONNECTION:
http://edisonwritingcenter.blogspot.com/2011/03/do-children-who-burn-ants-with.html
HOME TO THE OLDEST BIGGEST COCKROACH I'VE SEEN OUTSIDE OF A ZOO:
http://www.searsarchives.com/stores/history_chicago_oldest.htm
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