Posted on 01/24/2012 9:27:44 PM PST by DogByte6RER
If You Spot Bigfoot, Should You Shoot Him?
In the new Animal Planet reality TV show optimistically titled "Finding Bigfoot," a team of experts examines video of an alleged Sasquatch spotted in the Canadian Rockies. The video, shot by a man named Todd Standing, shows something large and dark, standing atop a wooded ridge and then ducking back behind a bush. It could pretty much be anything, and when the experts concluded that the subject was probably not a Bigfoot, Standing expressed his frustration: "No video is ever going to be evidence, ever. It's never going to be good enough…"
Standing, like many Bigfoot researchers, misses the problem: It's not so much that any Bigfoot video is inherently worthless, it's that his video, like all that have come before it, is of such poor quality that there's no way to know what we're seeing. It could have been anything – a guy in a dark jacket (or gorilla costume), a bear or even Bigfoot. The fatal flaw in Bigfoot photos and videos is the image quality, not the image subject. If Standing, the "Finding Bigfoot" team, or anyone else shot well-lit, clear video of what was obviously a 12-foot-tall, hairy bipedal creature in the woods, that would be compelling.
But even the highest-quality photograph or video can't be considered definitive proof of Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, or any other mythical beast. Similarly, if the goal is to simply make scientists and the general public take Bigfoot seriously, then some verified remains of the creature – be they hair, teeth, blood, bones or something else – would do the trick. [Infamous 'Yeti Finger' Flunks DNA Test]
But definitive proof is a very high standard. Most Bigfoot enthusiasts — and the general public — would be satisfied with nothing less than the rock-solid definitive proof offered by a living or dead specimen.
This issue brings up a longstanding debate within the Bigfoot community: Would be ethical to shoot and kill a Bigfoot? Some say yes, because that's the only way to prove they exist, and once proof is found, funds could be made available to protect them as an endangered species. Others say no -- that because Bigfoot sightings are so rare, they must have very small populations and killing one might drive the animals to extinction. Shooting a suspected Bigfoot with tranquilizer darts is an option that has gained some steam.
Ethics and the lethal-or-nonlethal debate aside, there's a good reason aiming your gun at a Bigfoot could be a bad idea: It might be illegal. A Texas teen shot what he believed to be a Chupacabra earlier this year, and while charges were not brought against him, if the creature turned out to be someone's dog or a mangy coyote, he could potentially have faced a felony charge.
The point is, you simply can't know for sure if the mysterious, burly figure you have lined up in your sights is the real beast, or a bear or someone's pet – or, even worse, just a person in a gorilla suit.
Bad idea! She'll likely be surrounded by secret service agents......
There should probably be some regulations in place before these things start showing up at sausage processors around the country. I’m thinking they should be hunted like Leopards; over bait at close range with a 12 gauge shotgun and buckshot. A .308 at 150 yards hardly seem sporting. Then again perhaps killing them isn’t the way to go. Tranquilize them and get a good breeding stock. We could teach them to smoke and wear funny hats then harvest their organs for our use. I’d like a Bigfoot jacket myself. Heck you wouldn’t even have to do any sewing it if you did a good job with the skinning...a couple cuts around the hands, one around the neck, open the front and just peel off your stylish new jacket. You could use some finger bones as buttons. Tre Chic!
Ah, he’ll just vote Democrat.
LOL
Liked this one better. Hell, they’re all funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eotb8Dc6CBA&feature=related
Ha!
Not MY Bigfoot!
Ain’t seen no Bigfeet ‘round heah since I got muh first gun. Not that that means anything.
[shifty eyes]
Whut’s whut... oh, that?
Why, that there’s a Bigfoot carcass. Git ‘im just this mornin!
[gulp]
Lookit here, the mean bastid swallered him a man whole right afore I kiltim.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.