Once upon a time some concerned citizens became very offended by slavery. They thought it was disgusting. Not just because it made humans into commodities, but also because it made some people very rich and that meant they were allowed to buy pews in the best churches and lounge around in smoking jackets in the best clubs with the respectable arms merchants, tobacco executives, whale oil
purveyors, and coal mining magnates. Something simply had to be done
about this. And, ultimately, it were. Then someone thought it might be
disgusting that womens, including the womens of the former slaves and
the womens of the arms, tobacco, oil and coal fellows, should have a
bit of say in what goes on in their lives. Something simply had to be
done about that. So a series of committees were formed. The results
will be in some time next decade. Then someone decided that all the
work horses that were plying the streets and getting abused and hit
and starved were disgusting and that their owners really should be
more careful with their four-legged cash cows. Besides, it didn't make
sense to have beautifully designed city centers and pretty houses and
sidewalks and trees and flowers and eletric lighting in the streets at
night if inhumane louts were going to be displaying barbaric behavior
in the midst of all that wonderful sedateness. So the wives of the
aforementioned merchants, pretty sure that they weren't going to be
treated better than horses any time soon, settled for pressuring their
hubbies to pass legislature to protect the horsies and various
societies and charities were formed to protect said dignified animals.
Then someone thought it might be almost disgusting that children were
being used as dray animals, also, and grease monkeys in mills and
factories, and decided that since their mothers wouldn't be free from
any social or economic burdens any time soon, it would be nice to
clean up the urchins and feed them and get them out of the workforce
and into some nice clean and caring schools so that they could learn
about their rights, well, the boys, and have a sense of place in time
and space commensurate with their inherent dignity as human beings.
So, once again, laws were passed and charities formed. Many things
have been found disgusting, from obscenity to pornography to
pedaphilia... and they have been outlawed. When will homelessness be
found disgusting enough to be outlawed?

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