Mahatma Gandhi acutely observed that "the greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
To seek to reduce the suffering of those who are completely under one's domination, and unable to fight back, is truly a mark of a civilized society. Charting the progress of animal-welfare legislation around the world is therefore an indication of moral progress more generally.
Last month, parallel developments on opposite sides of the world gave us grounds for thinking that the world may, slowly and haltingly, be becoming a little more civilized. First, the British House of Commons passed a motion directing the government to impose a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses. The motion followed the release of undercover footage, obtained by Animal Defenders International, of a circus worker repeatedly beating Anne, an elephant.