I was surprised to see that mountain lion story making it all the way into the weekend. I see that there are some people that are mighty upset over the lion losing its life. It's a complicated issue and I think our general perception of certain animals makes it appear worse than it is.
My wife was at work at St. Clements when the lion went tearing through campus and brushed by the Head Master, Nick Cobos. They locked down the school and took every precaution to keep the kids safe. My wife describes a comical scene where police and the media were chasing the poor lion through the campus with the media frequently outpacing law enforcement. Things turned a lot less comical when it was decided that the lion had to die.
My wife and I disagree on how the story should have ended for the lion. I'm not happy the lion was shot and killed, but I understand the need. The lion was no more than 100 feet from a school full of children. Had they not shot the lion and she took off back to the school and hurt anyone - we'd be screaming "why didn't you kill it when you had the chance?" I tend to bend toward cautious side when it comes to wild animals with sharp claws and teeth.
My wife was hoping for the tranquilizers to work and the lion to be returned to the wild. She thinks the lion was contained and would have eventually taken a nap. Who knows?
A guy who was a big lobbyist for the horses for dinner crowd (my own moniker for them) once asked me what the difference between a cow and a horse is. Before I could get into an answer based on my few semesters participating in FFA, he told me " you see, a horse has a better PR team than the cow." He went on to compare coyotes to wolves and certain birds to other birds (dove and pigeons, for example). HIs point was that public perception has superseded the idea of "all Gods creatures." He was mangling a constitutional idea of all men being created equal and a biblical theme, but I got his point. What makes a baby roach any less precious than golden retriever puppy? Public perception, apparently.
Had the animal been a mangy coyote and not a glorious mountain line, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Because it was an animal with a mystique, it's a contentious issue.
I can only say again that I think if the police on the scene hadn't shot the animal and someone got hurt, their asses would be in a sling. After the lion went through a campus full of children the game changed significantly. These officers are her to protect us, not wildlife - and that's what they ultimately did. After the fact we can do the "woulda, coulda, shoulda," but it does no good.
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