I’m listening to *This American Life* as I clean. I like the show, really I do, but there’s a tendency to a certain… shall I say *citified* view of the world that occasionally just torques me — see here for an example:
http://www.punkgardener.com/archives/118
& they’ve done it to me again with the Halloween 08 show which has an interview with a woman attacked by a rabid coon.
I feel for the woman & I think she handled it pretty well over all, but I just had to sigh when she said she suddenly felt at risk in what had been her bucolic idyllic home that she bought to escape city life, that she felt “betrayed by nature”.
Betrayed by nature?
Ok– all feelings are valid in the realm of emotion, but seriously- no one is betrayed by nature.
For betrayal, one would have to have a personal relationship with nature, some agreement of mutual concern- capice?
Let me put it plain:
Nature does not give two shakes about us.
Now it’s in our best interest to care about nature, because y’know, as the Tick says “that’s where we keep all our stuff” & because it is actually good for our hearts & minds to engage with nature.
But seriously– joggers in the CA mountains get attacked by pumas, people in P-ville have coyotes snatch their cats, & rabid raccoons charge weekend woods strollers.
Also–people die slipping in the shower & every time you get on I35 you are taking a hell of a risk.
Life is dangerous.
Hope for the best , be prepared for the worst & be grateful for what you get.
(& on the issue of being prepared– sure carry a cell in the woods, but better yet carry a walking stick. Rabid animals will often attack on sight & viciously, pain does not deter them & being critters they can often outrun & outclimb you.)
November 3rd, 2008 at 11:59 pm
Good post on nature. I might also add to the part about people/human problems. The people always say to the news guy “somebody has to do something about this”. It’s a problem but they can’t take care of it them selves. They need somebody else[government agency]to handle it as they are too stupid, too clean or pansy assed to take care of it them selves.
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November 4th, 2008 at 12:07 am
I apologize for double posting, but I just thought of something. On the news the other night was a segment about wild hogs tearing up some peoples carpet grass lawn in Georgetown. Of course the ladies remark was, yeah, you guessed it “somebodies got to do something about this”. She wants to have a water sucking, pristine lawn and natures supposed to stay out of it. Her other comment was “I didn’t move out here for this kind of treatment”. As if nature has a choice.
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Some people seem to think that their encounters with animals should be zoo-like– they can watch & appreciate but they will be kept safe. The childlike egotism of some humans– their belief that the world exists to amuse or please them, stuns me.
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