Editorial: Now our river has feelings, too ...

It's our fault ...

We insisted on giving the Whanganui River legal individual status and the same rights as a human being; now it seems to be flexing its newly-acquired muscles and letting us know where we fit into the hierarchy of things.

To be human is to exercise those emotions that make us a sentient being, and the river is doing just that. The trouble is, we haven't learned to recognise the emotions on display.

When the river rises, is it threatening, angry, sad, jealous, disappointed ... or just full?
Could its abundance of water be an exhibition of happiness and joy, perhaps?

Are we somehow missing the point, or does our newly-recognised human colleague need lessons in social skills?

It's all very well accepting the rights of humanhood and joining the ranks of the dominant mammal, but the niceties also have to be observed if the river is to fit into society without being regarded as odd or unfriendly.

True, it's big, wet and forever on the move, which inhibits certain social mores and makes it tough to invite to indoor parties, but it still has to learn to behave or risk being ostracised.

After all, outside the emotional constraints of narcissism, a legal entity should learn things like concern for others and a few basic words like "please" and "thank you".

To therefore flood without due care and consideration is to show no regard for the legal contract carefully drawn up by well-meaning people, in which equality must come with conditions.

After all, we don't enter people's houses uninvited and proceed to wet the carpet, or leave a layer of smelly silt all over the geraniums.

I foresee a period of education for our new comrade and possibly the employment of an interpreter, if we can find someone who speaks River.

In the meantime, a period of adjustment, house training and growing up could test the stopbanks.