Milu (Pere David's Deer)

This is a semi-aquatic deer found in China. Between its description and its origin story, it's rather interesting.

Cultural Description

Milu are referred to as '' meaning 'four not-alike'. That is, they have features similar to, but not the same as, four animals. These are ox hooves, deer antlers, a donkey tail, and a horse head (although this is sometimes listed as a camel neck).

Anatomical Features

So what does it actually look like? 

          The tines of its antlers point backwards. Their coat is red by summer and grey by winter. Turning woolly when cold, its coat has wavy guard hairs. 

          A long tail (that ends with a dark tuft) is connected to the mane on its neck by a black dorsal stripe. Lastly, its spreading hooves are large.

Origin Story

A horse, donkey, ox and deer meditate in a forest cave. Awaking in the form of humans, they learnt thst the King had executed Bigan. 

          The four animals, wanting justice, decided to seek help. They became one being, the milu, having the strength of an ox, the agility of a deer, the direction of a donkey and the speed of a horse. 

          The Jade Pure One/Primordial Celestial agreed with their quest and sent them to Jiang Ziya. This nobleman rode the milu and defeated the King to start the Zhou Dynasty.

          The milu settled along the Yangtze River to bring good fortune to future emperors.

Horse verses Camel

So, horse or camel? 

          When looking at a milu, its neck is instantly similar to that of a camel. Plus, milu heads are the same shape and proportion as other deer and nothing like a horse. 

          Yet within the story, a camel taking the role and qualities of the horse (the same qualities essential to the story) makes no sense. I suppose one could say horses have manes, but horse manes are different to the camel-like manes that milu sport.

          But hey, these animals could not only join into one being but they could also transform into humans. So why wouldn't the horse be able to shapeshift into a camel?

Critique: Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (Film)

*****SPOILERS*****

The animation was fantastic. The feathers behaved and looked like they should in flight, when groomed, when in the rain. The way that the beaks moved made convincing shapes for words.

 

It felt like it should have been two, maybe three films. It didn’t feel overly crowded or rushed and the characters were developed fully. But its timeframe spanned over years and there were distinct story arcs within the plot. More films wouldn’t have gone amiss.

 

Many owls gathered from, presumably (if the different habitats and species are to go by) the whole world. Yet they all spoke the same language. A language they shared with the nurse-snake. Unless they all learn it as a lingua franca I don’t find that believable. Humans are the same species and even people from the same part of the world speak completely different languages. There’s no reason why the rules of linguistics wouldn’t play out in owl society, too.

 

Why judges shouldn't use emotive language in their judgements

A judge's job is to objectively interpret the law. Being swayed by subjective emotions and opinions is bad practice. These things have nothing to do with the law so they should have nothing to do with interpreting the law. 

Yet when judges give their judgements, they often use emotive language. Yes, some cases are highly emotional, but that's about people's reaction to the facts of the case. A judge's ruling should be about the law's application to the facts of the case. 

Emotions cloud objectivity. It's unnecessary, unprofessional and puts their objectivity in doubt. Using emotive language is no way to build confidence in the judiciary; instead it can only lower the public's trust in the justice system.