Randy Cassingham's Blog

Posted by Jerry, California on August 24, 2009:

I can tell it was uncomfortable for you to write the first entry, knowing that the family would surely see it (and they did!) And I can tell it was uncomfortable for you to reject the heart-tugging plea to remember the survivors in her family. But you're right: no one really wanted to say what needed to be said, and your part of the world is significantly worse off because of that. Kudos to you for saying what truly did need to be said, even though you know the family is reading.

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I'm not exactly rejecting her plea: I did and do remember the family, and feel for their loss. But one can do that and remind them of their part in the story. -rc

Posted by Deby, Colorado on August 24, 2009:

You did the right thing Randy, and it is a shame that EVERYONE who KNEW about this for the last TEN YEARS, chose to ignore "hurting her feelings" by maintaining their silence. They can now assume a bit of the guilt for her and the bears deaths and the ones yet to come until the ones used to humans are either dead or moved out... I find it funny (in a sad way) how those living so close to this could be so unconcerned at the disaster that was in the making! This whole tragedy could have been avoided had a few bothered to offend feelings and gone to the authorities as witnesses to get this stopped. I would much rather offend a neighbor, than bear the burden of knowing my silence cost them their life, and could be the cost of others as well. People really need to think about this sort of thing when dealing with wildlife. Bears are WAY too quick to habituate to us humans, and they will opt for the easiest grocery store Look what Yellowstone CAUSED, and the trouble they had re-training those bears to forage....This was a VERY avoidable tragedy....and hopefully no one will be so foolish to do anything like this again.

Posted by Harmon, Houston, TX on August 24, 2009:

All that is necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing. - Edmund Burke

Posted by Lynne, Portland Oregon on August 24, 2009:

A Big Step? Ursine Terrorists? Blame It On The Lawyers.

It's a big step indeed to have someone declared incompetent: it involves lawyers, meaning it's time-consuming and expensive.

The family was caught between the bears and the "sharks," so to speak. Perhaps they played possum hoping the threat would go away. Or stuck their heads in the sand...

Once feeding those bears became an obvious public safety hazard, Donna's actions became criminal, like the guy who lets an aggressive dog off leash at the park. Law enforcement should have ensured the safety of the community at that point, measly fine or not. Maybe the teenager who inadvertently played Goldilocks should get her own lawyer...?

And who speaks for the bears?

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DOW is supposed to speak for the bears, of course. But yeah, you're right: I was definitely acknowledging the difficulty in getting someone declared incompetent. It does involve lawyers, it does cost money, it is a hard job -- but it is sometimes vital to do it anyway. And when it's not done, yeah: it becomes an obvious public safety hazard, and yet no one wants to take point and do it. And we all suffer because of it. -rc

Posted by Bob, Ohio on August 24, 2009:

Hard for me to have sympathy for someone who caused their own demise. If her family really wants something good to come of this, they should do exactly what Randy is doing: talk about the dangers of what she did.

While I can sympathize with the family to some extent, isn't this an occasion where the greater good outweighs personal pain?

Posted by Stan, California on August 24, 2009:

You are ex-act-ly correct, Randy. The feeding of wild animals directly contributes to a shorter life expectancy of said animal. Your story demonstrates that very clearly. Thank you for speaking the truth and sticking with it.

Posted by Melanie, Canberra (Australia) on August 25, 2009:

*sigh* I can understand the thinking behind what this woman did - my mother did something similar, though thankfully far less dangerous!

Here in Australia, possums (not much like your opossums except in superficial looks, I think) are cute, fuzzy... and easily tamed and tempted by food. My mother, who is normally fairly stern on the whole "wild animals are meant to be wild, you shouldn't do anything to change that" thing and frequently tells me off for owning (aviary-bred) cage birds, had a possum move into a tree in her yard and started feeding it. At first she was being at least somewhat 'responsible', feeding it fruit and other things that approximated a natural diet... but possums LOVE bread and honey. And it's so cute when the possum gets used to the idea that humans = food and starts coming down the tree to meet you. And it's even cuter when the possum gets so tame and unafraid that it will eat the bread and honey out of your hand...

I did point out that (1) bread and honey is NOT healthy as a large percentage of a possum's diet, (2) she was teaching it to be unafraid of humans and not all humans are as 'safe' to approach as she is, (3) she was - by association - teaching it to be unafraid of her cats, and (4) what happened to letting wild animals be wild? She sort of hemmed and hawed and then came out with "Well, if he dies early but happy I guess that's OK".

Way to stick to your principles Mum. My cage birds should be out flying free (and starving, and falling to the first predator to spot them, because they have never had a life outside an aviary and have no idea whatsoever how to forage for themselves), but 'your' possum is **cute** so taming it is A-OK. Suuuuure...

*ahem* anyway. My mother discovered her mistake when she went out one evening to give the possum his bread and honey, looked up in the tree making kissy noises to call him - and her leg was grabbed from behind, because the possum was down on the ground, about to climb her to get to his honey. Please note: possums, while far smaller and less dangerous than bears, have very impressive sharp claws that do an excellent job of digging into wood. They do an even better job of digging into people.

Mum was sensible enough to just drop the bread and honey, so the possum lost all interest in climbing her and let go. She escaped with a few scratches and a scare - and the possum isn't getting fed any more. I guess Donna's rude awakening, unlike my Mum's, didn't come with a second chance to change her ways.

Posted by Neil, Cheshire, UK on August 25, 2009:

I think it's a bit unfair to say that the family did nothing. They didn't do enough, certainly, for the reasons you give. In the first post, you said that she "kept promising to friends and family that she would stop", which implies that the matter had been raised many times, although I'm not sure whether she believed that she was doing harm, or whether she just said that so that people would leave her alone to "help".

Then again, she may have been like the burro feeders encountered by John in Winfield, considering people who object to be "do-gooders". Accusing people who object of being sanctimonious amounts to an admission to being selfish, and having no regard for the consequences.

Posted by Carmine, Pennsylvania on August 25, 2009:

My compliments. No one ever wants to reduce these kinds of things to the real issues because they are painful and even if it means concealing the problem to avoid the pain we'll do it.

Some years ago in State College a young college student stepped of a curb into the side of a turning school bus, was struck, knocked down under the bus, run over, and killed. There was clear evidence that she was listening to music through headphones, did not look up, and stepped right into the bus. Regardless, there were calls to investigate the bus driver, redesign the intersection, make some new turning rules, but no one wanted to say that she was the author of her own destruction. A fact that would have hopefully illustrated the consequences of inattention.

Posted by Mary, Chicago on August 25, 2009:

This whole story is very sobering...if only enough people read it and understood the implications of their actions. Just the other day, I saw a couple feed the seagulls at the beach with something out of a plastic grocery bag. One would feed the gulls while the other took photos. Then they would switch places, smiling the whole time. We've had frequent beach closings in Chicago due to unsafe levels of E-coli and other substances in the water. Seagull waste is believed to be a big contributor. Canadian geese flocks have taken up residence in some places because of plentiful food (provided by humans) and few predators. On hiking vacations, I'm always stunned at the photo-ops people create with food and wild animals. I suppose in some ways I contribute to the problem by not speaking up if the opportunity presents itself. Thank you, Randy, for speaking up.