Patch Blog: Common Sense & Black Bears

The other day I was at the local gym waiting to take a class called, "cardio workout."  Fresh on everyone's mind was the sound of helicopters, fire engines and sheriff's vehicles racing into and around Montrose and La Crescenta. A 400-pound black into a local neighborhood and chaos had ensued.

The helicopters alone woke up our whole household and made us remember why we left Studio City as police helicopters circling not only Studio City but Los Angeles as a whole has grown exponentially the last few years.  

As the conversation between a few ladies and the instructor became more animated about the bear, I couldn't help but notice one woman in particular was speaking about the bear as a cuddly animal. I was puzzled so as I sat there and stretched I kept listening and wondering if what I was hearing was true?

It was!  This lovely woman who was in her mid 50's with a warm smile and a beautiful speaking voice continued to say if the bear had been in her backyard she'd want to go outside and look into his big, soft eyes and wrap her arms around what I could only imagine as her thinking this was the bear from Eddie Murphy's movie, "Dr Doolittle."

Something that stuck in mind was the image of her going outside and literally wrapping her arms around a black bear. I then wanted to call PETA and ask them along with U.S. Park Rangers to hold seminars on how this is not the understanding, empathetic bear from the movies but a wild beast.

I am writing this post because it reminds me of the death of common sense.

When did we as successful, educated people think a bear was something to be walked up and spoken to like your friendly pet dog?  I couldn't take it anymore and I butted into the conversation, which made me cringe. I then went on to explain that if she or anyone else encounters that bear to immediately go the other way, don't make eye contact and remember this is a 400 lb wild animal.  I then stopped talking because I wasn't winning friends or influencing people and I could tell I had annoyed them.

This is why I spoke up.  When we make such bold, uninformed choices who comes and rescues us?  Everyone else's tax dollars.  Let's say that nice lady had encountered the bear and gone up to give it a hug and look it in the eye and the bear had attacked what would've happened?  Probably no fewer than 4 or 5 government agencies would be involved, helicopters would swirl overhead, the bear would be killed and who knows what else.  In these severe budgetary times I implore each of us to think logically and not how we feel.

Our feelings betray us.  Mine do all the time as I'm constantly reminding myself to seek wisdom and not folly.  Should I have minded my own business?  Maybe.  But when it involved my tax dollars, noise intrusion and possibly more laws coming from County Commissioners or Sacramento then it becomes what I believe is all of our business and duty as citizens to speak up for the common good.

Moral of the story: The next time you think a bear is cute, a tiger is a big cat or you want to swim with the sharks, metaphorically speaking, please use common sense and make sure the taxpayers aren't on the hook for your folly.