Posted by:
natsamjosh
at Wed Aug 18 13:52:42 2010 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by natsamjosh ]
"The hypothetically ideal does not exist and never will."
John,
I agree, that is really my point. Yes, we all *should* be responsible owners, and yes, we *should* all do educational presentations. I do them at my kids' schools and museums, and I do informal demonstrations in my neighborhood all the time. Educating people is probably the number one priority for us. But this vague concept of "self-regulation", what exactly is it? How will it be enforced? Why would every herp owner adhere to or agree with the as-of-yet-undefined "regulations?" I've been reading about "self-regulation" for years, but so far it seems to fall under the category of "nebulous wishful thinking, feel good type stuff" with no substance or realistic implementation. And like you said, "The hypothetically ideal does not exist and never will." There will always be a small percentage of irresponsible owners, and there will always be an occasional accident or negligent behavior where an animal gets loose. Do I like that? Of course not, but it's reality. If we allow the enemy to make a huge, hysterical mountain out of the occasional 1 in a million accident or every occasional case of an owner being irresponsible, we will lose, regardless of any "self regulation."
On the other side of things, would we be in this predicament if
junk science weren't so easy to disseminate, or if the media were held accountable for perpetuating misinformation and hysteria? In this day and age, it's downright unacceptable that the majority of Americans are so phobic and uneducated when it comes to snakes and reptiles in general. Assuming "self regulation" can be achieved, imo it's orders of magnitude more important that gov't employed/funded scientists and the media be "self regulated", as opposed to a small group like reptile owners.
Ok, enough venting for the day. 
Thanks,
Ed
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RE: Anaconda?...What!? - natsamjosh, Wed Aug 18 13:52:42 2010