Alaska's Grizzly Man and New Jersey bear hunt

Last night I saw a screening of "Grizzly Man," the new film about Timothy Treadwell, who lived with wild bears in Alaska for eight summers and was killed by one in 2003. In winter, Timothy would visit classrooms and share with children his love for his bear friends, and the importance of conservation and the need to protect animals. He shot over 100 hours of glorious footage of the animals, and of himself talking to the camera about his adventures. Tim was an extraordinarily charismatic and warm person. I had hoped that the gift of his footage would form the basis of a documentary as beautiful and uplifting as "March of the Penguins" about the wonderful bears of Alaska, and about a man who devoted his life to something greater than himself, who died doing what he loved. I am therefore disappointed that Timothy's extraordinary footage went to Werner Herzog, who is not particularly sympathetic to Tim's work or to the bears. The movie is tender in parts but mean-spirited in pla ces, including a rant by Timothy in one of his darkest moments, which might be interesting but is a downer, and that Timothy never would have wanted shown to the public. Since the footage was Timothy's, I think the choice to show it was disrespectful and unfair. However, despite my disappointments, I would not discourage anybody from seeing Grizzly Man. The reviews are superb; it is a good film. Both Timothy and his footage are so captivating it would have been hard to make a bad film out of them. You can find out more about it at: http://www.GrizzlyMan.com

This morning I felt glad the film is in theatres (though sorry it is unlikely to do for bears what "March of the Penguins" is doing for penguins) when I awoke to news that New Jersey is planning another bear hunt. I can't imagine any member of the public who sees Grizzly Man not being upset to learn of the impending hunt.

The story is on the front page of the Metro section (B1) in the Wednesday, August 10, New York Times and Philadelphia Inquirer and on the front page of Bergen's "The Record."

The Record's August 10 front page story is headed, "A heads-up for bears: The hunters are coming; Increase in complaints triggers council's vote."

It opens:
"New Jersey's black bears moved out of the political crossfire and back into the hunter's crosshairs on Tuesday, as the state Fish and Game Council voted unanimously to allow a six-day bear hunt this December."

We read:
"There have been 677 reports of bear-related property damage injury or nuisance between Jan. 1 and July 8 of this year, according to statistics compiled by the state Division of Fish and Wildlife. There were 424 incidents during the same period last year.
And with the increase in bear activity has come several encounters with humans that have increased worries."

We learn that last year Environmental Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell "opposed the bear hunt, saying the state should experiment with non-lethal means of population control. The Fish and Game Council ignored him and authorized the bear hunt anyway. Campbell then threatened to close state lands to bear hunters, touching off a legal battle to decide who had the power to regulate hunting in New Jersey. The fight went all the way to the state Supreme Court, which reasoned that Campbell, as the environmental commissioner, had the power over the Fish and Game Council."

However, "Several months ago, Campbell informed the council that he would not oppose this year's hunt, given the rise in bear complaints."

We learn that the "updated bear management strategy," which includes the hunt, will be released soon, and a pubic hearing and period of public comment will follow.

You can read the whole Record article on line at:
http://tinyurl.com/d22fz

The New York Times piece (Pg B1) is headed "A Ruling of Import to Hunters, and Bears." It includes a quote from Jeff Tittle, the executive director of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club, which opposes the hunt: ''I think there is too much knee-jerk reaction and not enough real work on what has to get done. The state is just not doing enough. There needs to be better plans in place.''

You can read the New York Times article on line at: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/10/nyregion/10bear.html

The Philadelphia Inquirer article (pg B1) is headed, "Bear hunt is set, pending DEP approval; The Fish and Game Council voted for a Dec. 5 start, but Commissioner Bradley Campbell has final say. Supporters of alternative strategies vowed a fight." It includes a quote from former council member George Howard, who was not reappointed to the council after clashing with Campbell last year: "Sport hunting is the only way to control the population. Only then can you try garbage management and education. New York and Pennsylvania do it that way, and so should we."

You can read the Inquirer article on line at: http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/12345246.htm

The stories reveal, without specifically pointing out, that though human/bear encounters are up this year in New Jersey, no person has been seriously injured, let alone killed, by a bear. Yet the state is planning on allowing hunters to kill hundreds of bears.

Politicians look to letters to the editor pages as barometers of public opinion. Let's get the public comment period started! Those in New York and Pennsylvania might want to share how they feel about the bear hunts in their own states.

The New York Times (a nationally distributed paper and therefore open to letters from anywhere) takes letters at letters [at] nytimes.com The Record takes letters at letterstotheeditor [at] northjersey.com
The Philadelphia Inquirer takes letters at Inquirer.Letters [at] phillynews.com

Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.


(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. If you forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts, please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)