Posted by: JBV
no doubt. a few weeks ago here i posted a comment about 'wolf wacking' contests and how disturbing it is. my natural inclination is very emotional conservationist, bordering on reactionary. when i first moved to BC i was extremely taken by every far left ideal about wildlife and conservation. i learned hard and fast how complicated it is and how my perspectives were so ignorant.
the first time in the interior excited beyond belief at the vastness, i asked a local about the elk population. he said they were all killed by the local native band, run down and shot from sleds, no local herd anymore. this did not jive with my understanding of the world in any way.
back to wolf wacking. i've been reading and following a guide hunter who is very well spoken and has a huge hatred for predators (and most people), especially southern city people. as dark and disturbing as his perspectives are, if you try hard you can see how and why this perspective exists, without hating the people who hold it. the wolf population has exploded and decimated many ungulate pops due to extensive remote road building. we fucked up the remote north and have caused huge imbalances. whether i like it or not, it may be natural and human, all too human to feel competition and dislike for other animals. my perspective is young, modern and possibly naive. humans have always seen themselves as competing for game with other animals. who's right? i don't know. do we let the cycle run its natural course. decades for wildlife populations to repopulate and rebalance? do we let the remaining woodland cariboo to just go? do we let live stock get predated on without trying to stop it? i don't know the answers.
That is funny because when you posted that my gut reaction was "It is probably some inflammatory hit piece from environmentalists" but then I realized I don't know nearly enough about this to even make a brief comment, nevermind any reason for a strong opinion. The question is much bigger than wolves as you say. Humans have had such a massive impact on wildlife, do we try and make it right or let it run its course. Ya, I have no clue either, although if they are wacking wolves for no reason it should stop now.