Is freedom worth any price? The death of a Eurasian owl who embodied the ethos of “live fast, die young” has some wondering if we have really understood what life is all about.
Heartbreak as Flaco the owl dies in New York
Is freedom worth any price? The death of a Eurasian owl who embodied the ethos of "live fast, die young" has some wondering if we have really understood what life is all about.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper"><strong>Live free and die</strong></h2>
Farewell then, Flaco. In his short 14 years on Earth he captured the hearts of a whole city. Now, in death, he is making them reflect on their own lives.
Flaco was once an exhibit in New York's Central ParkAn iconic large park in the heart of New York City. Zoo. But last year a vandal slashed open the mesh on his enclosure, letting the owl free into the night.
Immediately, there began a frenzied hunt to bring him home. The Wall Street Journal demanded that he be recaptured.1
But Flaco had other ideas. He never returned to the zoo and he thwartedStopped a plan from happening. every effort to bring him home.2
For many who feel their own lives have been a little too comfortable, a little without risk, perhaps a little unfree, Flaco offers a lesson in how to live.
Many philosophers have tried to teach us the same lesson. Friedrich NietzscheA German classical scholar, philosopher, and critic of culture (1844 - 1900), who became one of the most influential of all modern thinkers. asked his readers to imagine how they would respond if they were condemned to repeat the life they had already lived for all eternity.3
He bet that almost everyone would be horrified, and punish themselves for disdaining the greatest gift of all, a human life.
But others are not so convinced. They point to the example of Homer's AchillesThe Greeks' greatest hero. The only vulnerable part of his body was his heel - hence the expression "an Achilles heel", meaning a weak spot., whose ghost told OdysseusThe most cunning of the Greek leaders. The Odyssey, an epic poem about the 10 years he spent trying to return home after the Trojan War, is also attributed to Homer. that glory is no consolationA comforting fact after being disappointed. to the dead.4
Still others say Flaco did not have to choose between his freedom and his life. It was human choices that cut his life short. He died after flying into a building.
Up to 250,000 birds die in New York CityA city in the US. It is the biggest city in New York state. every year from collisions with buildings.5 This is because artificial lights in urban areas disrupt their navigation. They are drawn like moths towards the light sources, which are often behind hard glass surfaces.
This is made even worse by other human interference. Owls can end up absorbing rat poison and lead from the animals they eat.6
Freedom is a fine thing, they say. But it has to mean freedom to live, and not just freedom to die.
Is freedom worth any price?
Yes: If life means anything, it is the ability to make our own way. A life without freedom is not really lived at all. Most of us have no idea what it means to live.
No: The thought that you died free is little consolation when you are dead. For as long as you are alive you can hope for better things. To die is always to die for nothing.
Or... We are free as individuals only insofar as we are free as a society. If you want freedom, do not dream of giving up your cage and returning to the wild. Think of how to free the people around you.
Central Park - An iconic large park in the heart of New York City.
Thwarted - Stopped a plan from happening.
Friedrich Nietzsche - A German classical scholar, philosopher, and critic of culture (1844 - 1900), who became one of the most influential of all modern thinkers.
Achilles - The Greeks' greatest hero. The only vulnerable part of his body was his heel - hence the expression "an Achilles heel", meaning a weak spot.
Odysseus - The most cunning of the Greek leaders. The Odyssey, an epic poem about the 10 years he spent trying to return home after the Trojan War, is also attributed to Homer.
Consolation - A comforting fact after being disappointed.
New York City - A city in the US. It is the biggest city in New York state.
Heartbreak as Flaco the owl dies in New York
![](https://theday.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/GettyImages-1068312824.jpg)
Glossary
Central Park - An iconic large park in the heart of New York City.
Thwarted - Stopped a plan from happening.
Friedrich Nietzsche - A German classical scholar, philosopher, and critic of culture (1844 – 1900), who became one of the most influential of all modern thinkers.
Achilles - The Greeks' greatest hero. The only vulnerable part of his body was his heel - hence the expression "an Achilles heel", meaning a weak spot.
Odysseus - The most cunning of the Greek leaders. The Odyssey, an epic poem about the 10 years he spent trying to return home after the Trojan War, is also attributed to Homer.
Consolation - A comforting fact after being disappointed.
New York City - A city in the US. It is the biggest city in New York state.