New York Bear attack

[Paul]

   I just saw this story from yesterday. Tragically, a black bear killed an infant yesterday in New York. The bear took the child from its stroller.

   Here is the story as told by USA TODAY originally from the AP.

      Paul

[Logan]

I saw this on the Today show this morning........it worries me. I hope that people won't become overly zealous and start shooting Black Bears for no reason. This was a tragic, tragic situation, and a very unusual one. I'm so sorry for that child's family.

[mugsy]

Yes, the bear is, of course, the bad guy in this. Bears don't attack unless provoked in some way. My question is...why did the mother take the other 2 kids in the house and leave the baby outside?? I'm also afraid that people are going to start shooting bears just because they're there. It's truly tragic.

[lynnestankard]

my heart goes out to the family - it must be so traumatic losing a baby in these circumstances.

hopefully because the bear was shot - the rest of the population wont be running around with rifles trying to shoot any bear they see.

lynne

[Former User]

I saw this in the news too, and I feel so sorry for the family too. But I also feel sorry because the bear had to be killed... Funny how fast people act when it's an animal doing this. Had it been a human being who did this, there would have been billion trials first... (sorry, I feel so frustrated because 2 10 year old girls were killed in UK and the killer isn't fit enough to stand trial yet, ).

I must agree to Niina !! Why are kids-killers treated so gently by offering them a de-luxe-cell and an endless trial which costs so much to the community ? And why are animal who do a similar thing being shot immediately ??? I know , people say "it's only an animal" ... . This sentence makes me so furious !!

[lovemymaltese]

That is so terrible, I couldn't imagine how that parent(s) must eb feeling right now.

[SugarGirl]

I find it really offensive that people on this board are willing to accuse and shame a mother who has just lost a child in a horrific way. No one knows the exact details of what happened that day, and so no one is fit to tell a pair of grieving parents that they should have known better. What will that achieve? That's the same mentality people use on rape victims and it's shameful.

We are human beings, and while we benefit from treating animals kindly, our first allegiance is to the human race. It is ridiculous to demand that if a bear is shot for attacking people that human beings should be killed on site with no trial or basic humane accomodation for similar crimes. Where are your priorities?!!

[SugarGirl]

I'd like to see you say those things to that mother's face. "Gee...I'm sorry for your loss and all. Even though I wasn't there and didn't witness this undoubtedly confusing and terrifying event, in the end it's still your fault and you should take responsibility for your actions." How very nice of you. You can claim to be on the side of the child, but all you're doing is judging a person based on a very sparse AP article. The magnititude of your judgments would require more involvement than that. I doubt her other "helpless" children would like to know that members of the public are villainising their mother. Also, why would you respond to me without reading the article first? Talk about an informed opinion. While I was mainly referring to your post, I was also noting that there are many people on this forum who believe in wild west vigilante justice, that post was not only for you.

[SugarGirl]

I'm just wondering where in the article does it state that this woman left her baby sleeping in a stroller located in the middle of the woods. I just reread it a couple of times and couldn't find that part. The truth is, we don't really know the details. They were at a campground, not in the middle of a deserted forest. Seeing as she had two other young children to look after, I think it's fair to say that most people have spent more than a split second away from their baby. THese things usually happen so fast, and no one can really be held accountable.

[mugsy]

From the news report that I heard, someone yelled "Bear!" and she grabbed the 2 older kids and took them to the cabin and left the baby outside and when she came back the bear had taken the baby.

It's my opinion that the bear should not have been destroyed, but relocated, but of course, react first and think later is always the way it works. Unfortunately, people are going to run scared now and if a bear moves wrong then it's a maneater and will be killed. Sugarbear, I don't know how it works in New Zealand, but that is how it works in the States. And as for the parents, I feel sorry for them, but I don't feel that there is a villian in all of this...just a tragic accident that cost two innocent lives.

I do not feel any compulsion to put the human race first, but again, that is my opinion and that's all. It's neither right nor wrong, just an opinion.

[SugarGirl]

There are no bears or predators on New Zealand soil, so that's not an issue that concerns us. At any rate, my only issue with this thread was that someone was viciously judging someone about a situation that they knew next to nothing about. That was my main beef. I don't really care what happens to the bear. I think either course of action would be fair and I can see the reasons for both sides, my comment about vigilante justice was in reference to the hypocrisy I see about the way people here want to treat humans vs. the way they treat animals. My question to you is, if you don't differentiate between humans and people, why? How can that be? I imagine you eat animals (as do I), and that is a pretty big differentiation right there.

P.S. My name is Sugargirl on here, but perhaps all the bear talk just had you slightly confused.

[mugsy]

OOPS!!! I'm sorry, I'm still getting in the swing of things at school and my brain is fried. I teach 6 straight classes and it's taking some getting used to.

As for differentiation, I feel that every living thing on earth deserves equal treatment. Yes, I do eat meat, and I struggle with that conflict A LOT. I have considered converting to vegetarian, but with a husband who likes his meat and potatoes, it makes it difficult. I just think that most humans have this high and mighty, holier than thou opinions of themselves, making humans better and more worthy of life than anything else, and I just have a problem with that. I know that makes me hypocritical since I eat meat, but, I guess that hypocracy is something I'll have to live with. My feelings are that animals were getting along just fine in this world before the humans appeared and when humans showed up, it started the downfall of the environment and everything else because humans think/thought they could play God.

Oh, well, I'm off my soapbox, yet again. I'm sorry if I offended anyone with my views, but, alas, that's all they are...my views...no more or no less important than anyone else's.

[SugarGirl]

We probably agree on more than we disagree with. Don't get me wrong, I fully believe in animal welfare. I don't believe in animal rights groups, people like PETA, who put animals above people. They are dangerous. That's a fact, not an opinion. Any group of people who are willing to unleash sick and infected animals onto the public as well as other animals, is completely ineffectual. My point was that no matter how much we care and love for animals, we definitely differentiate between animals and humans. Especially if we eat meat, wear leather, etc. That doesn't mean that we can't do the utmost to protect them and see that they're treated humanely. It just means that things need to be contextualised, and ultimately human rights are above animal rights. My problem was that people were saying "if they shoot a bear for killing, why don't we just shoot criminals". That's just poor logic to me. We are not equals. But that does not mean we should not protect animals, just that we need to be able to look at all the world humanely.

[mugsy]

Fair enough. I guess, we'll just have to agree to disagree on some points, which is no problem. I agree that PETA does some pretty off the wall stuff to get their point across, but, I do believe that their hearts are in the right place. Some of the things they do are great, but you're right, they can definitely cross the line.

To put it succinctly, if my dogs were in a burning building and the only way to get them out was for me to go in and probably die, I would go in to save them...and I wouldn't think twice. I just believe that they are more helpless than I am, so I will do everything I can to look out for their well being.