Have you ever looked at a modern day NFL quarterback? The guy looks like a gladiator going into the arena. There is so much padding, covering every inch of their body, it looks like armor.
Wonder if we should provide the same type of protection to our poor wild life.
I drove truck for almost twenty-years, and live with the guilt of killing at least four deer. Plus the very large buck I killed with the front of my newly acquired 1998 GMC Jimmy. Never mind I was one payment out of twenty-four into it, and that the poor unsuspecting buck caved in the whole front of the truck. It died a slow painful death after this tragic collision.
Would the same type of padding you see a NFL quarterback sport save these poor creatures life?
It’s not just deer either, there is the case of the poor black bear that was killed by a motorcyclist this last weekend. The motorcyclist was wearing full protective gear, and is expected to recover. The poor bear did not have the same protection. What if it did?
We build our roads through their habitats and propel our vehicles at high speeds along them. Then we selfishly expect the process of natural selection to teach these animals to look out for us. I used to think that if enough of these dumb animals saw their own getting splattered across our asphalt killing fields, they would figure it out.
But they are just animals, living on a basic survival instinct that is not equipped to handle two ton plus guided missiles hurtling along our concrete killing zones.
How hard would it be to equip them with the equipment needed to protect them when they are unfortunate enough to not recognize the danger of a fast approaching BMW. We trap and tag deer now so we can check migration patterns and estimate their numbers. Let’s take a moment to throw some body armor on them before we let them go.
Why stop at padding to protect them in the unfortunate collision with a fast moving automobile or semi-truck. Lets equip the outside of the padding with Kevlar so they have a fighting chance against the bullet traveling at seventeen hundred feet per second. I realize that hunting is an essential part of keeping the population of deer under control. But instead of limiting the number of permits, lets armor up our wildlife, and give them a fighting chance.
Only the most skilled hunter will get his buck!
These poor creatures are just going through their simple lives and did not ask for all these intrusions on their basic survival. We created the problem, we need to fix it.
We can fund this body armor by raising the price of hunting permits. Since we will be issuing more, that will mean additional revenue to trap and clad these furry critters. If this additional revenue falls short, then we can tax hunting rifles, SUV’s, off road recreational vehicles, and anything else that is a threat to highway crossing critters.
We have insurance to protect us in these collisions, shouldn’t they?
1 comment for “Protect the Innocent!”