For what its worth, killing an animal for being a danger to people, however justified it might be, is NOT euthanasia. Let's stop misusing the word to mask the reality of the situation.
For what its worth, killing an animal for being a danger to people, however justified it might be, is NOT euthanasia. Let's stop misusing the word to mask the reality of the situation.
"It's fun to have fun, but you have to know how." ---Dr. Seuss
Animal euthanasia has its own definition and usage. Perhaps the term IS used to psychologically soften the impact of putting animals down (theres another term), but it is a commonly used phrase.
Does common usage define whats correct? Or a narrow definition from websters?
If only websters did, language would not evolve. Hence, websters does not.
Last edited by MuddyWaters; 09-14-2018 at 20:03.
Here is a number and email for the Public Information Officer.
https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/news/...licaffairs.htm
"I wonder if anyone else has an ear so tuned and sharpened as I have, to detect the music, not of the spheres, but of earth, subtleties of major and minor chord that the wind strikes upon the tree branches. Have you ever heard the earth breathe... ?"
- Kate Chopin
Euthanasia is about humanly killing someone to relieve them of some sort of suffering.
Euthanasia has nothing to do with this news story as the bear is going to be "euthanized". Look up the definition of the word and you'll see the word means to kill an animal humanly... That's all it means. The word has no meaning as to WHY the animal is being killed, only the manner in which it is to take place.
If it's incorrect, then it's fake. The reason, explanation, intention, source, etc., of the incorrect facts are irrelevant. It's fake. Your logic would imply that identical content can be either "news" or "fake news" depending on the identity of the creator of the content. 1+1=2 exactly 100% of the time and does not depend on the identity of who reveals the equation.
I'm going to assume the park service announced something like "the decision was made to euthanize the bear", and the new service relayed this message as "the bear has been euthanized"... and we're trying to call this "fake news"? Come on!!! This is NOT fake news... It is nothing more than the common miscommunication that occurs everyday as the media tries to move information from its source to the public.
Let's save the term "fake news" for the lies people put out there on the internet.
Here is the press release the Park sent out....
it's this quote that implies the Park put the bear down---“While the cause of Mr. Hill’s death is unknown at this time, after gathering initial evidence, consulting with other wildlife professionals and careful consideration, we made the difficult decision to euthanize this bear out of concern for the safety of park visitors and local residents,” said Superintendent Cash
Great Smoky Mountains National Park News Release
Release: September 12, 2018
Contact: Julena Campbell,[email protected], 865-436-1207
Jamie Sanders,[email protected], 865-436-1203
Park Conducts Two Day Search, Finds Body of Missing Man
Searchers in Great Smoky Mountain National Parkfound the body of William Lee Hill, Jr., 30, of Louisville, Tennessee yesterday afternoon around 1 pm, off Rich Mountain Road, approximately two miles north of Cades Cove. Park officials were notified on Sunday, September 9, that Hill and a companion, Joshua Morgan, came to the park on Friday to look for ginseng. The two separated during the day and Hill had not been heard from since. Park rangers began searching immediately and worked until after dark Sunday night.
The search continued throughout Monday, focusing on high probability areas such as drainages in the area where Hill was last seen. Hill’s body was found on Tuesday, off-trail, approximately .5 miles from the gravel Rich Mountain Road and less than a mile from a residential area outside the park. “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mr. Hill during such a difficult time,” said park Superintendent Cassius Cash.
Evidence of wildlife scavenging of the remains over the last several days was visible and an adult male bear remained in the area, showing aggressive behaviors, for many hours, even as rangers worked to recover Hill’s body throughout the evening hours. Wildlife biologists responded to the area, trapped the bear, and recovered human DNA from it. Out of concern for public safety, park officials determined the best course of action would be to humanely euthanize the bear.
“While the cause of Mr. Hill’s death is unknown at this time, after gathering initial evidence, consulting with other wildlife professionals and careful consideration, we made the difficult decision to euthanize this bear out of concern for the safety of park visitors and local residents,” said Superintendent Cash. “This is always one of the hardest decisions a wildlife manager has to make, and is one that we did not take lightly. Over 2 million visitors come to the Cades Cove area annually and there are several residential areas very close to where we found Mr. Hill’s body. We could not take the risk of allowing this bear to approach or show aggression towards other people.”
The incident remains under investigation. No additional details are available at this time.
Over the last 12 years over 100,000 have been killed by hunters in PA, NY, VA, NC, SC,& WV. They were not euthanized nor were they "harvested". Most were treed/cornered by dogs then the hunter shot them as trophies. Just the facts.
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Travel not for the destination, but for the joy of the journey.
I agree with you and did not bring up the "fake news" label for this story. My comment pointed out the absurdity of labeling it "fake news" based on something other than whether or not it was true.
More importantly, I learned from this story that black bears sometimes like to eat people and behave agreessively when doing so. But like most of us, I have chosen to believe bears are not an issue when we sleep in the woods with our food hung properly. But I still worry and that is why this story is interesting.
I not a hunter, so I don't have a dog in this race, however, I'm thankful that bear hunting is popular where hike (NW Wisconsin and Northern Minnesota). Every bear I have encountered hauled-ass as soon as he saw me. That's the way it should be. GSMNP is Disneyland with trees, I'll pass and hike in a more natural environment. Sent from my PH-1 using Tapatalk
You are proving my point.
If you CAREFULLY read that press release, the park service never said the bear was dead. They only said they made the DECISION to euthanize the bear. However, the media headlines reporting on this press release used the word "Bear Euthanized", a statement indicating the bear is dead.
THAT was the source of this misunderstanding... why it was being reported the bear was dead when in fact he was not.
Please don't get me wrong, I'm not faulting the journalists. I must admit that if the only thing I ever read about this story was the press release put out by the NPS, I too would have assumed the bear had been euthanized.
But there is truth in the statement
and that truth comes from the fact that language is complex and people are imperfect.
In this case, we simply have the typical miscommunications that typically occurs as people try to relay information from one to another. You could argue the NPS should have issued a statement that made it plainly obvious the bear had not yet been killed. You could argue the press should have asked more questions before they published the headline "Bear Euthanized" when the words "Euthanized" didn't appear in the press release.
But for someone to characterize this as "fake news" is just ridiculous. Fake news requires that someone misrepresent the information provided to them. The journalists are NOT misrepresenting the information being given to them, they are simply misreporting the information... information that will actually become 100% correct as soon as the NPS completes there their intent to euthanize the bear.
If you CAREFULLY read that press release, the park service never said the bear was dead. They only said they made the DECISION to euthanize the bear.
yes.....
however you are forgetting one thing---we also had in person and phone call conversations with the Park about this in incident...
i will ask the reporter who worked the story about what was said on record to him about it...
The bear is almost certainly dead
the bear is dead once they find it and can get off a clean shot.....
there is no going back on this bear...
must admit that if the only thing I ever read about this story was the press release put out by the NPS, I too would have assumed the bear had been euthanized.
the Park really should have worded it better to be honest....
they know that a story involving putting down a bear is going to create a poop storm and better to get things right in the beginning....