What was she thinking?
The woman who stopped to pet a cat on the wall, strokes it and then picks it up by the scruff and deftly dumps it in the wheelie bin.
It appears to be the most gobsmacking, astounding, deeply shocking act of random cruelty since … OK, there are lots of acts of random cruelty involving humans on humans every day, but this was somebody's pet, for Pete's sake. Who would do such a thing?
A quick disclaimer here: I have no special qualification to pronounce on this topic. I am a cat-owner, and though not an especially doting or committed one, never a cruel one. I also have a daughter named Lola, which name happens to be shared by this cat, belonging to a couple in Coventry. Otherwise, I have no special interest, connection or expertise to comment on this story. But just like a lot of other people – judging from reactions this morning – I am appalled and fascinated in equal measure.
Debate is raging, centring on speculation about the woman's motives and intentions. Does she have a particular grudge against this cat, or cats in general? Are those gloves she's wearing – and does that mean that this was premeditated behaviour? Does she have some reason to want to eliminate this cat? Do the neighbourhood cats pee in her garden and kill the birds? Does she, in other words, have some warped but rational reason for hating cats that would explain, if not excuse her behaviour?
Or is there a more sinister motive? I have already started to imagine a whole backstory that would provide some kind of morally redemptive account for what I've witnessed on the CCTV footage. Maybe I might end up having to come to terms with the fact that sometimes people commit mindless acts of meaningless malice.
We may never know the answer. The women in the white shirt may never be traced – but the RSPCA and West Midlands police are investigating. If she is identified and presumably questioned by police, she may choose to provide no satisfactory or satisfying answer to these questions. Then we will just be left to reflect on what we think she was thinking – and what that says about us and our need for a narrative that explains what we've seen.
So, please, you tell me: what was she thinking, do you think?
