BBC Expert Wants Us to Let the Pandas Die
by E. Christopher Clark | Thursday, September 24, 2009
PHOTO: Relaxing on a sunny fall day on Flickr by The Brit_2 CC BY-NC-ND
My wife kinda-sorta loves panda bears. She doesn’t love ‘em in a nutso way, and she might not even be what you’d call a panda-geek, but we do have a couple of panda ornaments and a panda pillow. So, I feel safe in saying that she’d be mortified—okay, who wouldn’t?—at the idea proposed by BBC expert Chris Packham that “we should pull the plug” on the species.
“Here is a species that, of its own accord, has gone down an evolutionary cul-de-sac. It’s not a strong species,” he said.
“Unfortunately, it’s big and cute and a symbol of the World Wide Fund for Nature and we pour millions of pounds into into panda conservation
“I reckon we should pull the plug. Let them go, with a degree of dignity.”
Buzzfeed has predictably amusing and tongue-in-cheek coverage, and I’m torn between following in their footsteps and creating my own “Pandas Must Die” sign and finding a way to contribute to the WWF just to prove a point.
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Comments
E. Christopher Clark says:
I’m thinking that maybe we shouldn’t spend as much as we do, and that we should find smarter ways to get things done with the money we do spend. For instance, if we know that they don’t breed well in captivity (which seems to be the prevailing notion, I think), then let’s find them a wide-open preserve and let nature take its course.
Shawn says:
I think that BBC fellow has a good point. Why should we waste money trying to save a species that’s going down the toilet just because it’s cuddly and cute?