The Black Web Is Spun

I subbed for a middle school science class at Honey Creek today. Aside from the obvious problem children (i.e. the ones who don't care about anything) the day went well. We watched a piece of Planet Earth in all four of the hours. I now feel I've memorized the 35 minute section we watched. This, however, was not a problem. The episode was about conservation of both animals and the planet's resources.

It was a nice change from the overzealous the-world-will-end-tomorrow-if-we-don't-change- now attitude of Al Gore and his followers. All of the people interviewed were extremely positive about the earth's chances while still extolling the mantra of change. Almost all of the people saw hunting as a viable means of making areas safe for humans and animals. Some of the people were fully immersed in the areas they were speaking of, lending credibility to what they were saying. They weren't simply talking heads from some university.

Another issue posed by the episode was: How can some countries still advance without encroaching on wildlife and destroying ecosystems? Once again, most of the people were very optimistic about the possibilities of achieving this sometimes contradictory level of stability. New technologies and advances in science have helped to make the possibility of human advancement and a much more healthy environment possible.

One conservationist was visibly annoyed with the many people around the world who simply see wildlife as something "cute and cuddly. Something they only see in magazines while sitting in their armchairs in their comfortable houses. While here, in Africa, people have to live next to these wild beasts who use them as food." Lions in Africa have learned to hunt humans as food, he said. The only way to protect the people and the lions, without fencing them into a designated area, is to hunt them. Hunting creates some sort of revenue for these developing countries while also helping to stave off the attacks on humans. These people are not encroaching on the lions' habitat, they are simply living where they've lived for centuries. The conservationist then said, "These people need to speak with their money or shut up. Because all they're doing is wasting a lot of people's time."

A professional hunter was also interviewed. He made some surprisingly valid points. He asked, "Why would hunters want to lessen the number of animals? We wouldn't have a job if we did that." These big game hunters are not trying to kill as many animals as they can. They are simply trying to feel the excitement of the hunt and make some money while they do it. Most of the money finds its way back to the local economy, helping to provide money for the economic advancement of the country. I'm not saying there aren't some people out there killing as many as they can, but some, if not most, are doing it responsibly.

I would assume that those man-eating lions are not eating humans just for the sake of eating humans. Either there is an overpopulation problem (which means not enough food) or humans are encroaching. Seeing as how these tribes haven't moved for centuries, I would go with the first option.

Another conservationist spoke on this problem. He admitted, though, that he did not know the right solution, whether it is right to hunt the animals or if they should be left to their own devices in terms of survival. He did say, however, that he's happy it's being talked about. He said that without a meaningful discourse on the subject nothing would ever be solved. I fully agree with this sentiment.

There was this business first douche they interviewed. Everything he said was about the bottom line. Even if any of it was intelligent or valid, I still wouldn't have been able to take him seriously. Oh, how I loathe these bottom-line, corporate hacks.

I'm not sure where I stand on all of this yet. I'll need some more time to think about it, but the information I gathered from this DVD has gotten me interested in what can be done about conservation, animal and environmental. It's been a productive day of subbing.