man vs. bug

On my way to work on Muni this morning, I saw a moth that was fluttering around in the car. It wasn't trying to get out through the glass as they usually do, but fluttering around freely. This was distracting many of the riders. Interesting how people will shift their attention to something unexpected even if it's just a common moth.

This one guy, who looked like any business-casual commuter (slacks, dress shirt, iPod, etc.), started swatting at it. Maybe the moth was getting in his "space" but he was swatting it out of his way. Then the moth lands on the floor between me and him and without hesitation this guy stomps on it and flattens it.

I was shocked and outraged. I felt like the moth was a nuisance at best, clearly not a threat to anyone. Then I thought how I would kill a mosquito or a spider. A mosquito bite is an annoyance, it's not going to hurt me... I think it was the careless way he killed it that got to me.