Banner Forest Heritage Park
In the above park in Washington last month, nature and humans collided yet again. A man out hiking with his dog was attacked by a black bear. The man said his faithful companion tried to warn him with a few loud barks but it was too late.
The man, according to the newspaper, suffered grievous wounds at the claws of the bear. They say he almost didn’t survive. Of course rangers are out now trying to capture the renegade bear to kill it for violating a cardinal sin.
The demise of any animal who, in it’s own habitat, attacked a human is repugnant to me. We go out into their domain and expect them to stay away from us…or, worse yet, pose for our pictures. We know the areas are potentially dangerous and yet seemed surprised by the occasional attack.
Saying once a wild animal tastes human flesh it will always crave it is asinine at best. A wild animal will prey on the weakest animal – whether it is deer, rabbits, or man. We are responsible for our own safety in those situations.
How do we know that this man didn’t violate one of the basic rules about not carrying food on his person? How do we know that the bear wasn’t trying to get to the dog and the man simply got in his way?
There has to be an alternative to killing these animals. That we can be so cavalier about killing off the things that bother us speaks volumes about society in general.
