Re: “Saving bears from themselves” (News, March 27)
Bears need to be saved from humans, not themselves!
Human-wildlife conflicts definitely need attention - and the destruction of bears in Whitehorse last year has proven this.
But when I read that Ken Knutson, manager of field operations for the Department of Environment, finds it “tragic” to kill so many bears, I can’t
help think of how hypocritical this sounds, because the department Mr. Knutson works for issues permits for the legal destruction of bears both in the spring and fall every year. Bears that do not bother anyone - and yet they are killed because the department sees them as resources and not for who they truly are: sentient beings that deserve to have their own lives to themselves.
Do any so-called conservation officers take advantage of the spring or fall bear hunt? Is it ethical to do so?
End the hypocrisy, ban the legal destruction of bears too!
Mike Grieco
Whitehorse