'We want this baby polar bear dead' say animal rights lobby

[RamboLiberal]

Source: Daily Mail

Tiny, fluffy and adorable, Knut the baby polar bear became an animal superstar after he was abandoned by his mother.

He rapidly became the symbol of Berlin Zoo, whose staff bottle-fed him and handed out cuddles in between

At three months old, however, the playful 19lb bundle of fur is at the centre of an impassioned debate over whether he should live or die.

Animal rights activists argue that he should be given a lethal injection rather than brought up suffering the humiliation of being treated as a domestic pet.





Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=443343&in_page_id=1811&ico=Homepage&icl=TabModule&icc=picbox&ct=5

---

Sorry, in this one I say screw you animal rights lobby. IMHO he can lead a decent life at a zoo and educate a lot of people.

[PDJane]

1. I read this earlier,

My personal opinion is that the only way we may be able to save the polar bear is through zoos and so on, and I would be loathe to destroy the animal.

To destroy him is just stupidity, IMHO.

[robinlynne]

2. I am absolutely in love with him.

[Miss Chybil]

3. Bullshit. Maybe, we should destroy all children who have to grow up in

orphanages, too. That's how ridiculous their argument is.

[blitzen]

4. by their logic, I should euthanize my autistic son, because...

he will lead a life different from the norm.


They are mighty presumptious in claiming to know what will make for the happiness of a fellow creature. And dangerously lacking in compassion.

[MADem]

5. Read all about it, minus those great pictures, here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x456133

It's a cute bear. If they want Mary Frigging Poppins to raise the doggone thing, that's fine with me!

[Skip Intro]

6. what animal rights lobby group is it, again?

seems to be missing from the article.


kinda smells to me...

[Big Pappa]

7. What the hell have they been smoking.

n/t.

[Matilda]

8. Trying to look at it objectively,

I understand where they're coming from. He would never be able to adapt to life in the wild if he's
become used to, and dependent upon, humans. But if he's going to a zoo, he should be okay and it
may be the only way in the future that the species will be preserved (although I don't really like
keeping animals in zoos). And I really don't think he'd feel humiliated - that's just too silly.

But I certainly could never kill him, and I don't know how anybody could.

[LisaL]

12. The bear is in the zoo. His mother was in the zoo. It's beyond me under which

circumstance he would have to adapt to the "life in the wild."

[MADem]

13. WHAT??? The bear was BORN in the damned ZOO!!!! He wasn't born in the wild!

This NITWIT who wants to kill a baby polar bear whose mother was apparently a bi-polar bear is the REAL crazy one, here. The mother was already a "pet" in essence. We are talking two full generations, at a minimum, removed from the "wild."

In the context of that important fact, do you still think this idiot saying "Keeel zeee beah" makes sense?

[Matilda]

20. I don't think either of you read my post carefully.

I said that THEY - the Animal Rights activists - were looking at a situation where the bear might be
returned to the wild and there would be problems, but I acknowledged that as this isn't the case, I
don't think there should be a problem.

Please read before you attack - I'm on the side of the bear being allowed to live.

[MADem]

22. That wasn't clear at all. This is a second-generation zoo bear.

The idiot who wants the bear to die was using an "IF" scenario; not talking about returning the baby to the wild.

"IF" the bear was born in the wild, THEN he would die. Thus, the zoo should KILL the bear. Because "IF" the bear had been a wild product, human intervention would have been inappropriate or unlikely.

There's no "returning to the wild" going on in this scenario at all. There's no hope of it, nor expectation of it. It's just some stupid asshole wanting the zoo to follow the "Rules of the Wild" because his disordered brain thinks that is "nature's way."

I say the guy who made that suggestion should be put down ahead of the bear, if we're meting out Live Or Die pronouncements. Hell, the bear hasn't advocated the death of anyone yet!

[IndianaGreen]

23. Even if it weren't a zoo bear, Polar Bears are an endangered species

as are other species impacted by global warming. It may well be that zoos will end up being the only place where we can preserve species such as the Polar Bear and the Bengal tiger.

[MADem]

25. Indeed. NT

[RamboLiberal]

9. Colbert doing story now in German accent

Doing his schtick of being scared of bears. But says "OMG he's so adorable, Jimmy get it off the screen!"

[Kurovski]

10. Kill him only if we can eat him afterwords.

What self-absorbed and clueless leftwads some activists are.

Half the world lives in abject humiliation, the bear will get over it.

[silverweb]

11. I almost see their point.

But they're wrong and, I think, seriously warped. Death rather than the "indignity" of being raised relatively tame? That's just sick.

These animals are in grave danger in the wild and zoo breeding programs may be their best hope.

Knut is adorable and will grow up to be a handsome polar bear stud. If he's acclimated to living around humans, he'll be much happier in a zoo setting than a captive wild polar bear would be, that's for sure!

The _video_ is absolutely precious.

[idgiehkt]

48. It's a shame they can't find a foster mother

What the activists are saying does seem alarming. He is being conditioned to human contact, but when he becomes larger and his predator instincts kick in that may not be possible. He may not be able to adapt to the presence of others of his species because he will be used to interaction with humans, and that is different. They may be damning him to an adult life of solitude, which is very, very sad. This is why people who do wildlife rescue don't handle certain kinds of animals very much...for instance I saw a show once where they had rescued a fawn and would hood it to bottle feed it; of course that has to do with wanting it to never lose it's fear of humans. The activists may be looking further ahead than anyone else; and I suspsect the zoo is looking at the money that having an infant bear that can be handled by people could bring in for them. It really is a very complex dilemna despite how the paper presents the views as so black and white.

[knight_of_the_star]

56. Somehow I don't think that will be an issue

Considering that the people who work at zoos and in wildlife rescue usually are well-educated on the subject I would imagine they are preparing for that possibility and looking for a way for Knut to be acclimated to his own species.

[LisaL]

57. The bear is in the zoo. His mother is in the zoo.

He is not a wildlife rescue. He is not going to be released in the wild. What life of solitude he is going to lead-he is in the freaking zoo? And even in the wild polar bears do not live in the pack, they are solitary animals, so they already lead solitary lives. This bear will probably have more interactions with other bears than he would have in the wild if the zoo puts him into exhibit with other bears.

[Kagemusha]

14. I just saw this on the Colbert Report.

Colbert was agreeing with the German rights activist (while reading the guy's writing with a disturbingly convincing German accent - kill ze bear!) until a picture of the cub came up on screen and Colbert folded like a cheap sofa. :) We know where his real sympathies lie. :)

[july302001]

15. Save him!

He's a sweet mascot for carbon-free energy!

[LisaL]

19. They won't kill that bear.

[Skip Intro]

16. This smells like bs. We have one man's name as a spokesman for an unnamed group.

A quick google didn't clear anything up, just the same accusations. What group is it? Who is the spokesman?

Sounds like some kinda "journalistic" hit job on the animal rights movement.

I got red flags going up all over about this story.

[RamboLiberal]

17. Any DU'ers in Germany can verify this story?

Another story link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=443541&in_page_id=1770

[Hav]

62. .

Omg, how adorable! So cute feet.



Apparently it wouldn't be new to kill babies in cases like this but I'm no expert and therefore can't really see the sense in that.
But I think by now, the bear is too famous and loved (almost worldwide?) and from a financial aspect alone, it would be too stupid to kill the poor thing, I guess.

[LisaL]

18. The articles do give a name of an animal right activist.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

35. This showed in the night news in Brazil, with the same dearth of information.

And, yeah, it is a case of...

[parasim]

21. Which animal rights lobby do you refer to?

Info about this "activist spokesman" Frank Albrecht who apparently wants this cub put to death is pretty scarce on the web, but the paper in which he supposedly made these remarks, the German tabloid Bild looks to be a German version of Fox News or something, so... what gives? In not one article I could find was there any mention of any animal rights lobby, group or organization. Just referance to the Bild. of course, and this Frank "The Animal Rights Activist" Albrecht.

I mean, do none of the reporters reporting on this story anywhere have the gumption to check on the validity of this guys credentials?


I do agree with Andrew Sullivan who said that Stephen Colbert's booking department should get this guy on...

[Robbien]

36. No lobby, just one man who is complaining. This is his first complaint.

The group Frank Albrecht belongs to consists of just one member, him. It doesn't even have a name.

Per Google, before this Frank Albrecht has had no prior activist activity.

[Karenina]

43. It's BILD!

It's all BULLSHIT. If the Berlin Zoo DARED to even think of euthanizing that cub, they'd be tarred and feathered. Tempest in a teapot for someone seeking publicity, I'd conjecture.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

24. I hardly think he'll be a domestic pet...

They get pretty big. And they get very hungry.

[Eugene]

26. Here are two less sensational articles about Knut.

Berlin rallies behind baby bear - BBC News
Please look after this bear - Guardian news blog

The Daily Mail article cites Albrecht and other "animal rights activists,"
but it omits the fact that some zoologists concur. What the Berlin Zoo
is trying carries risks. I hope they succeed but the Daily Mail article
is misleading.

[Triana]

27. Bullsh*t! The "Animal Rights" folks are WRONG on this one...

...There is NO reason to kill this bear. Particularly since his Mom was also in the zoo! Heck, he may be one of the only polar bears LEFT - he needs to LIVE! He'll have a wonderful life there. There's just no SENSE in killing him.

:wtf:

[w4rma]

28. Which "animal rights activists"? They likely aren't a majority of "animal rights activists". (nt)

[Robbien]

38. No animal rights activists. There is just one guy Frank Albrecht

Frank Albrecht belongs to no organized group per Google and this is the first time he is in an activist news story as far as I can see.

[Gormy Cuss]

41. In the two GD threads, flvegan posted the name of a German group

that he thinks is the one translated as Foundation for Bears in the article. In German, it "Stiftung für Bären" Note that Albrecht is called a spokesman without an affiliation but two paragraphs later a second animal rights person is quoted as head of a group. By context it suggests that Albrecht belongs to the same group.

[NashVegas]

55. That No One's Ever Heard Of

And has no other references anywhere in Google except for this one story.

[Gormy Cuss]

58. Huh? A Google search of the German name returns many hits

and a web page (www.baer.de)

I can't read German but not all hits seem to be related to this story.

[NashVegas]

63. Can't Connect to the Page

and it doesn't show up in the whois databases I can access.

[Gormy Cuss]

65. The hyperlink worked for me.

try it this way:

http://www.baer.de

[NashVegas]

68. Got It

I still think they're whacked and don't speak for the majority of animal rights activists.

[gorbal]

29. Whats the point of zoos at all then?

This animal can be used to educated children about the plight of the polar bear for years to com, just like many animals born in captivity have done before; I don't see the difference.

[Springster]

30. I understand, but disagree with their point. The cub can be perfectly

happy in a zoo. After weaning from milk, a steady diet of animal rights activists (bits and pieces) should ensure a long productive life.

If they REALLY care about the cub, they would be lining up to sacrifice themselves.

[Ian David]

34. They can keep him in a cage and teach him to have sex with animal rights activists...

and then poke him with a stick when he loses interest.

It would give Scooter Libby something to do while he's in prison.

[silverweb]

64. LOL

Good one! :D

[bklyncowgirl]

31. So let's kill all the animals in zoos then.

None of them are going to adapt to life in the wild either--and while we're at it we should destroy everybody's pet dogs and cats since they are unable to life the free life that nature intended for them to lead.

What a nutcase.

[JNelson6563]

32. Awww! Could he be any cuter???

:loveya:

[Ian David]

33. I think we should give him hormone injections to keep him small and cuddly forever!

Okay, maybe not.

But come on.

Killing the polar bear in order to save him?

[kwyjibo]

37. Check out this Video of Knut

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZLKb_5S21E&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fmfrost%2Etypepad%2Ecom%2Fcute%5Foverload%2F2007%2F03%2Flets%5Fcheck%5Fin%5Fo%2Ehtml

found on http://www.cuteoverload.com



he looks pretty happy to me :)

[brentspeak]

39. So far, only a few people on this thread have noticed the blatantly poor reporting

The article says that a "spokesman" for an unnamed group is advocating for the polar bear to be put to sleep -- an unnamed group. But regardless, several posters are quick to pull out the pitchforks and the outrage as if this was a legitimate report.

[0rganism]

47. Since the group is unnamed, how do we know that it's even a legit animal rights lobby

it could easily be a front for some rightwing org seeking to discredit animal rights activists. :shrug:

[Nihil]

70. Doubt it matters to most readers here but anyway ...

The Daily Mail is a renowned right-wing rag in the UK.

I don't think the organisation is a front or anything but I
*do* think it's a RW smoke-screen by the media keen to get
people worked up about something trivial (and inaccurately
reported). No change there then.

Whilst I'm usually reluctant to recommend anything from the
Sky empire, it has to be admitted that MurdochInc have actually
done the right thing here and printed the whole story ...

> Mr Albrecht has claimed he was quoted out of context.
>
> He explained that although he thought it was wrong of the zoo
> to have saved the cub's life, now that the bear can live on his
> own, it would be equally wrong to kill him.
>
> "If a polar bear mother rejected the baby, then I believe the
> zoo must follow the instincts of nature," Mr Albrecht said.
> "In the wild, it would have been left to die."

... which is a mile away from the Daily Mail, the headline
and the hysteria seen on this thread.

(http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1256586,00.html)

(FWIW, I agree with the earlier posters who said that a zoo may
soon be the only place to see a polar bear ... sad but very likely.)

[Seldona]

40. That is messed up.

What animal rights activist in their right mind wants to kill an animal for any reason other than threatening human life? How does this protect his 'rights?' I would think his first right is to LIFE.

Sounds like total BS to me as well.

[PittPoliSci]

42. do animals know humiliation?

[tazkcmo]

44. Sure they do

You should see how humiliated our dog gets when we catch her eating poop!

[Ninja Jordan]

45. I don't know how anybody would want to kill this lil' booger

[TheWraith]

46. Perhaps we should give these activists a lethal injection, to spare them the humiliation

Of remaining fucking assholes for the rest of their lives.

[IronScorpio5]

52. BWAHAHAHA...Great post. n/t

.

[UnyieldingHierophant]

49. baby polar bear...it what's for dinner

[Odin2005]

50. More proof that "animal rights" activists are morons.

[Strathos]

51. These "animal rights" people seem to always GO TOO FAR

WTF!?

I hope a zoo can keep that baby and raise him.

Sometimes the Animal Rights people just need to STFU!!

[TheWraith]

54. And in the process, damage everyone else associated with them.

Every time that PETA, ALF, or people like this group in Germany does or says something totally insane like this, they might as well slash and burn anybody who's just trying to keep the wolves in Yellowstone from being shot by some rancher, or protecting eagle nests.

[Vinca]

53. Give the lethal injection to the animal rights activists.

Knut's going to grow up to be a beautiful bear. He'll probably fare better than the poor bears losing their habitat to global warming.

[MasonJar]

59. This is inscrutable. How could it be worse for Knut to live his life

in a zoo, than not to live his life at all? I usually support animal rights groups but not this time.

[Sapere aude]

60. Well because this group wants to kill this bear all animal rights people are kooks.

If I want to save some dogs because I am an amimal rights person I am a kook because some animal rights people want to kill a bear.

[IronScorpio5]

61. uh-oh...........KNUT could be toast.....

He's not alone. Wolfram Graf-Rudolf, director of the Aachen Zoo, told the newspaper, "I don't consider it appropriate for the species that the little polar bear is being raised on a bottle." The animal will be fixated on his keeper and not be a "real" polar bear, he says. However he feels it is now too late to put Knut out of his supposed misery. "The mistake has been made. One should have had the courage to put him to sleep much earlier."


Some are concerned that Knut has had too much human contact in his young life.
The idea isn't as outlandish as it may at first seem. Although giving Knut a death sentence would likely bring his many fans out on to the streets, baby zoo animals have been killed for the same reason in the past. Two-day-old baby sloth Hugo was put down by lethal injection in Leipzig Zoo at the end of last year, sparking emotional protests.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,472480,00.html

[juno jones]

66. Had to laugh...

The other day a PETA activist was handing out 'fashion police tickets' in Seattle to protest people wearing leather. Funny thing was she was dressed in some kind of 'pleather' get-up. I think I would have challenged her about her wearing petroleum-based products. I don't think they really think these things thru before they speak. Cute bear, tho....

[truthisfreedom]

67. Ridiculous.

[IronScorpio5]

69. Dont dismiss it....

theyve done it before.