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Rare polar bear shot dead by police in Iceland after being thought a threat
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2024
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As unfortunate as this is, afaik, polar bears are one of the most aggressive animals around, intent on eating pretty much anything that moves. I don't doubt that it did pose a threat.
Or, you know, just the ones that are actively posing a threat. Like in all such animal situations.
So what about humans posing a threat to them? If it's so rare to have them show up in Iceland, what drove a polar bear to do this? From what I understand, with less ice at the poles it has made it harder for polar bears to hunt seals, leaving many of them starving. As we head towards winter, polar bears have to put on fat stores to survive and feed newborn cubs. It's really a shame that so many people talk about "animals" as if we aren't animals too. By your logic, there would be nothing wrong with polar bears rolling into town and eating the species threatening their survival.
I agree. We should just shoot all fossil fuel company CEOs until they appoint one that agrees to stop polluting the earth so that polar bears have more space to live in 👍🏻
Just feed them to the polar bears.
How on Earth is that my logic?
If a specific animal poses a direct threat to humans pretty much anywhere on the planet, that animal is killed. That's just how things work. I'm sorry polar bears are getting desperate for food due to our causing climate change, but that doesn't mean we should put people's lives at risk too.
The difference between the two of us is that you think humans are more important than other animals and I don't. If this polar bear killed a few humans in Iceland, I'm not saying those particular humans would deserve it, but we as a species do. This polar bear didn't do anything wrong. It has no capacity to, it was just trying to survive. Maybe instead of destroying anything that may potentially be a threat to humans, we should protect the planet we live on and the habitats of our fellow plants and animals. It's in our own best interests too. No sense arguing about it though, I doubt either of us will change our minds.
You would not care if a polar bear mauled a playground full of toddlers. Noted.
Good luck getting pretty much anyone who has any say in these matters to agree with you on that.
I never said I didn't care.
Really? Is this you? Because this sure sounds like you saying that the children's lives matter less than the bear's since this is your argument to not kill the bear:
It's either the bear or the people in a case like this. You don't wait for it to go on a killing spree at a school and then go, "oopsies!"
Do you seriously lack reading comprehension skills? The section of my comment you've pointed out says that I value them equally, not that polar bears are more valuable than humans, and not that humans are more valuable than polar bears. This is why I knew it was pointless to argue with you, because you aren't doing it in good faith. Go protect your imaginary school from the polar bears massing an imminent attack if you want to act like this.
I'm arguing in good faith. This is one polar bear vs. a lot of humans. And you are arguing not to kill the bear. So you obviously put the bear at a higher level than humans.
A rare polar bear that was spotted in a remote village in Iceland was shot by police after being considered a threat, authorities have said.
The bear was killed in the north-west tip of the country after police consulted the national environment agency, which declined to have the animal relocated, according to the Westfjords police chief, Helgi Jensson.
“It’s not something we like to do,” Jensson said. “In this case … the bear was very close to a summer house. There was an old woman in there.”
The owner, who was alone, was frightened and locked herself upstairs as the bear rummaged through her garbage, Jensson said. She contacted her daughter in Reykjavik, the capital, by satellite link, and called for help.
“She stayed there,” Jensson said, adding that other summer residents in the area had gone home. “She knew the danger.”
What's your point, that they should have waited until the bear wandered into a town?