I’d like to make people in Enumclaw aware of the spring bear hunt. Unfortunately, politics is involved, more so than science.

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve dealt with whom I call “dippy hippies.” They are not willing to look at hunting rationally and logically. They mostly try to appeal to peoples’ emotions rather than look at it rationally and scientifically. Most of what these people are involved in is anti-hunting environmentalism. I believe in conservationism, the two philosophies being quite different. I won’t go into technical details at this time. But I believe in rational, scientific method. By the same token, bears are mammals with a pain-sensing nervous system. The mother bears hibernate in the winter and emerge in the spring with their babies. If the mother is killed in spring, when the babies are young, they could starve or be eaten by a male bear. That’s because the mother bear teaches the cubs to fend for themselves and protect themselves. I think it’s cruel and sadistic to kill the mother bear in spring when the babies are too young to take care of themselves. I think the whole bear-hunting mentality is due more to male macho-ness than a need to fill their freezer with meat. Besides, wild game meat tastes gross.

A solution would be to change the hunting season to fall or winter, so the youngest cubs will not be left without a mother.

Also, overpopulation that results in scarce food supplies must be prevented. But, however controlled, it is my belief that it should be done as humanely, non-cruel, non-sadistic as possible. Also, dangerous, aggressive bears have to be dealt with, or course. Relocation, extermination, again, I don’t know.

Brian Blake

Enumclaw