Sadly the prevailing attitude among many US/European environmentalists seems to be "big predators are great and they should totally be protected and restored wherever possible.....so long as they're not near me."
Only in Berkeley (a city I hold dear in my heart). A Memorial has been set-up for the Puma: http://www.berkeleyside.com/2010/09/03/in-memorium-the-mountain-lion/
This horrible shooting happened a block from my house (I woke up the next day wondering why there were news vans parked outside). It is a pretty busy area, but it also backs up right onto the hills. There are deer in this are frequently, so shouldn't we expect mountain lions as well. It seemed like a case where the Police department had no training on how to deal with this situation (they could have for example shot bean bags at it like in the South Bay, or watched it go back into the hills like they did in Santa Cruz). They need to have the proper training so not more cats get shot. One positive note, the memorial is still maintained, people are still reading the letters there, and people are still talking about it.
Sadly the prevailing attitude among many US/European environmentalists seems to be "big predators are great and they should totally be protected and restored wherever possible.....so long as they're not near me."
ReplyDeleteAlso seems odd they used a shotgun?
Ugh. I mean, I see the angle and concerns, but still. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteOnly in Berkeley (a city I hold dear in my heart). A Memorial has been set-up for the Puma: http://www.berkeleyside.com/2010/09/03/in-memorium-the-mountain-lion/
ReplyDeleteThis horrible shooting happened a block from my house (I woke up the next day wondering why there were news vans parked outside). It is a pretty busy area, but it also backs up right onto the hills. There are deer in this are frequently, so shouldn't we expect mountain lions as well. It seemed like a case where the Police department had no training on how to deal with this situation (they could have for example shot bean bags at it like in the South Bay, or watched it go back into the hills like they did in Santa Cruz). They need to have the proper training so not more cats get shot. One positive note, the memorial is still maintained, people are still reading the letters there, and people are still talking about it.
ReplyDelete