First, if you have never watched the show Whale Wars on Animal Planet, you’re missing out. Now I know what you’re thinking, “Good lord duk! You can’t watch animal planet, if you do that the anti’s win! It just proves that stupid tool Michael Riddle was right about you all along!”
Calm down for a second, work with me here. The show is great because it captures the irrational and mentally stunted thinking of the animal rights movement. The show itself is just footage of these dorks trying to throw stink bombs onto the deck of these huge Japanese whaling boats. It rarely works, and never matters. Nothing is available in the mass media arena that makes this type of ideologue look worse.
Then, along comes South Park with their own take. It may be the funniest social commentary I’ve ever seen. I strongly suggest you take a look.
The story of the lions of Tsavo, which is loosely told in The Ghost and The Darkness, is a real one. The lions were ultimately killed by a British officer named John Henry Patterson in 1898. It turns out the remains of the lions ended up at the Field Museum in Chicago. In an effort to separate legend from fact, a handful of scientists recently studied the teeth and hair of the lions.
By analyzing samples of the hair and bone of the lions, researchers were able to estimate that one lion likely ate 11 humans and the other consumed 24 people during the animals’ final nine months. Both lions were shot and killed in December 1898 by Lt. Col. John H. Patterson, a British officer and engineer hired to restore safety in the region. For years after, Patterson, who gained great notoriety for the feat, claimed the lions had killed 135 people — far more than the Ugandan Railway Company’s estimate of 28 victims.
“This has been a historical puzzle for years, and the discrepancy is now finally being addressed,” said Nathaniel J. Dominy, an associate professor of anthropology at UCSC. “We can imagine that the railroad company might have had reasons to want to minimize the number of victims, and Patterson might have had reasons to inflate the number. So who do you trust? We’re removing all those factors and getting down to data.”
Skinny Moose has done something with my hosting such that I cannot add pictures right now. They promise me they are working on it, which is good because I have 2 half finished pieces and new baby pictures to show everyone…
For now take a gander over at this article that ran in the KC Star today about Tobias H. Cohron.
Pat over at Bowsite has done another interview with Tred Barta now 4 months after he first lost feeling in his legs. Take a look and listen here. Like before, it is candid and emotional.
I get an incredible amount of Google hits from people checking for a health update on Tred Barta. I’m not sure why because I don’t speak Google and I certainly have not gone out of my way to position myself as any kind of expert. Nonetheless, since people are checking here anyway, I’ve added today’s update from Dan Harrison:
I talked to Tred yesterday and his spirits are high. They think they have the cancer under control hopefully!! He should be heading home in about 3 weeks? not sure.
I am trying to find a utv for him to get around the ranch on. We also ordered a special needs saddle that should be done in about 8 weeks.
I’d show you pictures from my fishing adventures on Friday and Saturday but there isn’t much to show. I tried bowfishing on Truman Lake with a boat. I’ve never shot a fish from a boat, or even tried… So I had some learning to do. Unfortunately I didn’t really learn anything except where not to go when it’s windy.
I did make a few changes to the blogroll that I’d like to let you guys in on. I created two new categories of links:
1) Forums worth checking:
– Bowsite is the best place on the net to find real killers. Most boards are full of weekend warriors and internet “experts”. Not true at Bowsite. You want an idea on what to expect on a DIY bighorn bowhunt in Wyoming? They’ve got several guys that have actually done it. Plus they strictly avoid political topics which means you don’t have to wade through the countless, “They’re taking our guns away!” threads you see elsewhere.
– Graybeard Outdoors is the exact opposite of Bowsite. Most of the “hunters” there are actually shooters and gun fans who hunt about two days a year (if the weather is nice). Since they opened up a politics section this board has basically become a breeding ground for crazies. Conspiracy theories, pro-Confederacy, bigfoot hunting, you name it… I wouldn’t have included this link except that I moderate over there. The “Hunting and Shooting” section will remain as crazy-free as I can keep it until I lose it and quit.
2) Outdoor Blogs I Read:
– Rabbit Stew is written by a gentleman from the United Kingdom who makes extensive use of cartoons and pictures. It’s really worth checking out for that reason alone. I haven’t been following too long but it seems that most posts are either hunting-politics, small game hunting, or fishing.
– The Suburban Bushwacker is also written by a hunter from the UK. He has a way with words that I find appealing. His blog is billed as the journey from normal suburban man to “bow-wielding elk hunter”. What’s not to like about that idea? He has fantastic photography and fun stories.
– The Rasch Outdoor Chronicles is written by Albert. You may remember him from the whole, “We love killing restrained animals and demand that you acknowledge it as hunting!” thing. Because of that exposure I’ve become a regular reader and semi-regular correspondent of Albert’s. If you ignore his recent love fest with tame-buffalo-selling Native “Hunts” his writing is usually very good. He does nice in-depth pieces on projects like building a boat or making your own snap caps. It seems that Florida hog hunting is his wheelhouse.
Take a look at some or all of these places and let me know what you think…
If you’ve never seen it, rent it, or Red Box it, or download it, or whatever people do today. It’s absolutely fascinating.
Cliff’s Notes version: Crazy guy Timothy Treadwell goes to live with Brown Bears in Alaska. He thinks he’s protecting them and creating some body of research but it’s essentially an ego trip for him to live among the bears. I suspect you can guess how this story ends…
But the movie is wonderful in two respects:
1) You get a glimpse into the mind of the fanatical animal rights activists. There can be no doubt that they are crazy, but that’s not their real failing. The real damage they do is in perpetuating ignorance. But along with the ignorance is the realization that these people generate their self-image from their cause. It isn’t something they do, it’s who they are. For that reason, there is no reason to debate or negotiate. They won’t change their opinion because it’s who they are, and they like being that person. To me the most telling aspect of the movie is how totally out of touch with reality he is. It’s who he is, and he’s proud of it, but he is nuts.
2) The video and photography is unreal. Most of the movie is his own personal video and narration. He spent years living in costal Alaska and shot some absolutely incredible clips. He physically touches bears and other wildlife. Not a good idea, but incredible footage. The movie is also extremely well edited.
