Camping season is upon us

[warpedskydiver 0]

6-Year-Old Girl Dies in Tenn. Bear Attack
By Associated Press
3 hours ago

BENTON, Tenn. - A bear attacked a family at a camp site in the Cherokee National Forest on Thursday, killing a 6-year-old girl and injuring her 2-year-old brother and mother, authorities said.

The attack took place near a pool of water on Chilhowee Mountain, said Dan Hicks, spokesman for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

Witnesses described the bear picking up the boy in its mouth while the mother and other visitors tried to fend it off with sticks and rocks, Hicks said. The mother was injured before the bear was chased away.

The girl ran away during that attack, but was found dead a short time later with the bear nearby. A park ranger fired at least one shot at the bear before it bolted off.

The woman and her son were flown by helicopter to Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga, where both were being treated for wounds consistent with a bear attack, Hicks said.

Hospital officials did not immediately return calls for comment, but Hicks said the boy was listed in critical condition. The victims' names were not released.

Forest Service employees, TWRA game agents and several hunters were searching for the bear in an area spanning several thousand acres.

The 640,000-acre park runs along the southeastern Tennessee border with North Carolina, southwest of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

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why do people refuse to carry a gun?

I mean take your vacations and everything but why bring small tasty defenseless morsels like children out to a place where bears go for lunch?

No they are not cute fuzzy dogs

I do not hunt bear but I would certainly kill one for eating a child...or most adults.

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[rehmwa 2]

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I do not hunt bear but I would certainly kill one for eating a child...or most adults.

Many species of bears normally just run away. Some don't. But, if one killed a person, then it certainly should be destroyed as it now has that experience and is more likely than normal to do it again.

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[jdfreefly 1]

"WE'RE HERE! WE'RE CLEAR! WE DON'T WANT ANY MORE BEARS!"

Methane Freefly - got stink?

[miked10270 0]

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Many species of bears normally just run away...

I believe that at this time of year, with bears just emerging from hibernation (hungry), then all bets on "normal" animal behaviour are off!

In that case, the appropriate camping tool is a firearm! A shotgun loaded with solid shot or a large calibre rifle is every bit as vital (& appropriate) as matches or a Swiss-Army-Knife.

Incidentally... Can anyone verify the rumour that bears find toothpaste irresistible? Truth...? ot "Tenderfoot-Tale"?

Mike.

Taking the piss out of the FrenchAmericans since before it was fashionable.

Prenait la pisse hors du FrançaisCanadiens méridionaux puisqu'avant lui à la mode.

[SpeedRacer 1]

Bears will eat just about anything. In fact, it would be easier & shorter to make a list of things that bears will NOT eat.

Speed Racer
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[rehmwa 2]

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"WE'RE HERE! WE'RE CLEAR! WE DON'T WANT ANY MORE BEARS!"

Look JD - I have this rock, see? You don't see any bears do you? Therefore, this rock protects us from bears.

(The other more subtle response would have been "that's specious thinking, JD")

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[Andy9o8 2]

Support the right to arm bears.

This is a public service announcement.

[Amazon 7]

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believe that at this time of year, with bears just emerging from hibernation (hungry), then all bets on "normal" animal behaviour are off!

And many of them are emerging with cubs......My mother got chrged in the Smokey Mountains in TENN during a spring break when I was just 6 years old.... she was trying to take pictures of the cute little cubs and got between them and the mother..

THAT was the fastest I ever saw my mother move in my life. Luckily the mother bear just charged and drove of my mother and then went and hurried the cubs out of the area.

[JohnRich 4]

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why do people refuse to carry a gun?

But, but, the government knows what is best for us, and they forbid firearms in National Parks and Forests. I guess they care more about the bears than about 6-year-old girls.

[miked10270 0]

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why do people refuse to carry a gun?

But ... they forbid firearms in National Parks and Forests. I guess they care more about the bears than about 6-year-old girls.

I "GUESS" that this is yet another aspect of uncontrolled & universal gun ownership! No-one cares more about a bear than a 6 year old. BUT... firearm possession in an American National Park would inevitably cover the whole spectrum from "There is a risk so I'll take the appropriate tool just in case." right the way through to "We can shoot bears? Great! T'ink me and Earl 'll jus' mosey on down to dat dere Nashnul Park, pay our 10 bucks & shoot us one of dem big bears! I want's me a Grizzly!

I guess that the National Parks Service has to take into account the "Lowest Common Denominator" of US gun ownership & use, and therefore take steps to prevent the greater risk - which would be the rapid eradication of the bear population!... Purely in self-defense of course.

Strangely enough, in Gun-Control-Crazy Europe, going out armed against the risk of bear attack is no problem. Seriously! !f you're trekking & camping in The Arctic Circle, you're EXPECTED to be armed (& competent in setting up a bear alarm)!

Once again, GUN CONTROL is in fact the answer!

Mike.

Taking the piss out of the FrenchAmericans since before it was fashionable.

Prenait la pisse hors du FrançaisCanadiens méridionaux puisqu'avant lui à la mode.

[christelsabine 1]

But, but, the government knows what is best for us, and they forbid firearms in National Parks and Forests. I guess they care more about the bears than about 6-year-old girls.

[JohnRich 4]

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I guess that the National Parks Service has to take into account the "Lowest Common Denominator" of US gun ownership & use.

And there's the rub. Most of us do not represent the lowest common denominator, and resent being treated as such. It's the equivalent of the USPA saying: "Because some skydivers hurt themselves jumping high wing loadings, we therefore decree that no one will be allowed to jump a wing loading greater than 1.0." I suppose that would irk a lot of skydivers, and would cause a revolt. But somehow it's okay to do that kind of thing with gun owners though...

[billvon 3,120]

> "Because some skydivers hurt themselves jumping high wing
>loadings, we therefore decree that no one will be allowed to jump a
> wing loading greater than 1.0."

"Because some skydivers are not careful packers, everyone must use a reserve."

"Because skydivers have slow reaction times, no one can pull below 2000 feet."

"Because skydivers can't police themselves, only people with C licenses or greater can do demos."

No revolts yet. A few rules on what you can and can't do in skydiving allows people to skydive while keeping them a bit safer, eh?

[miked10270 0]

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And there's the rub. Most of us do not represent the lowest common denominator, and resent being treated as such... But somehow it's okay to do that kind of thing with gun owners though...

The difference is "positive vetting". right through your skydiving career, from turning up at the DZ on day one, right through to the jump you did yesterday, you have been assessed by instructors & your peers. Had you not proved your competence & responsibility in skydiving then you'd still be jumping student kit, or not invited onto a jump, or even told to "TUG" (Take Up Golf)! You're "vetted" in almost all aspects of your life: Skydiving; Promotion at work; Driving; Credit applications... And you've repeatedly proven that you're NOT the lowest common denominator entirely through these vetting procedures.

But until there's some similar vetting on gun ownership to weed out the stupid & irresponsible - some way for you as an individual to prove your sense, intelligence & competence with a firearm, then there'd be no option other than to treat the overwhelming majority of gun owners the same as the idiots!

Perhaps an answer would be for The National Parks Service to vet campers and be prepared to issue a very limited number of firearms carry permits for defense only.

Mike.

Taking the piss out of the FrenchAmericans since before it was fashionable.

Prenait la pisse hors du FrançaisCanadiens méridionaux puisqu'avant lui à la mode.

[warpedskydiver 0]

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And there's the rub. Most of us do not represent the lowest common denominator, and resent being treated as such... But somehow it's okay to do that kind of thing with gun owners though...

The difference is "positive vetting". right through your skydiving career, from turning up at the DZ on day one, right through to the jump you did yesterday, you have been assessed by instructors & your peers. Had you not proved your competence & responsibility in skydiving then you'd still be jumping student kit, or not invited onto a jump, or even told to "TUG" (Take Up Golf)! You're "vetted" in almost all aspects of your life: Skydiving; Promotion at work; Driving; Credit applications... And you've repeatedly proven that you're NOT the lowest common denominator entirely through these vetting procedures.

But until there's some similar vetting on gun ownership to weed out the stupid & irresponsible - some way for you as an individual to prove your sense, intelligence & competence with a firearm, then there'd be no option other than to treat the overwhelming majority of gun owners the same as the idiots!

Perhaps an answer would be for The National Parks Service to vet campers and be prepared to issue a very limited number of firearms carry permits for defense only.

Mike.

those words I higlighted in BOLD type are not RIGHTS under the US Constitution...nice try to blur the issue though.

I understand what you are saying but that is not the LAW of the land... and should not be

[Richards 0]

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why do people refuse to carry a gun?

I mean take your vacations and everything but why bring small tasty defenseless morsels like children out to a place where bears go for lunch?

No they are not cute fuzzy dogs

I do not hunt bear but I would certainly kill one for eating a child...or most adults.

[steve1 5]

Some people carry bear spray. I have my doubts on how effective it could be in stopping a charge. Maybe it would work, maybe not. I'd rather have a big gun. In most Parks you can't take one though.

Personally, when I travel through Canada or Alaska, I have a short barrelled shot gun loaded with slugs. In Montana I sometimes pack a 357 revolver, but I'd sure hate to try stopping a grizzly with one. It just isn't big enough. I read a story once of a bowhunter who killed a grizzly with an arrow by repeatedly stabbing the bear with the arrow as he was being mauled. I've read other stories of hunters trying to fight off a bear with a knife, without success. Maybe a 357 would work better than that.

Black bear are usually timid, but not always. They are very protective of cubs. I had a friend who was mauled by a black bear because he was messing with a cub.

There's been other cases where black bears have killed and eaten people just because they were near starvation. But as a rule they will run away. Black Bear do kill more people each year than Grizzlies though. Probably due to the fact that people come into contact with a lot more black bear than Grizzly.

I've heard that Polar Bear kill and eat about anything that moves out on the ice pack. So they might be more dangerous than all the other bears.

The good news is that a bear will often chew you up without killing you. This isn't true with some of the big cats in Africa. Usually the first thing they do is bite you in the head and that's the end of you.

But then again bears like to bite people in the head also. It's a good idea to protect your head and neck if you are ever mauled by a bear. Ever seen the picture of the guy who markets bear spray with blood running down his head? In that scenario his head was actually in the bears mouth more than once. Each time the bear clamped down he passed out. They were bow hunting at the time and had no firearms, only bear spray. I'm not saying that a gun is a panacea either though. Many hunters are mauled each year before they can even get a shot off. A charging bear moves very quickly.

I don't know about bears liking tooth paste, but women in their menstrual cycle seem to attract bears. One night many years ago two women were killed by grizzlies in different locations in Montana. They were both menstrating, so this very likely was a factor. I've heard bear experts say the same thing.

Usually, there is little to fear, when camping, but things can happen. My dad once had his camp raided by a Grizzly in the Bob Marshal, while he was out fishing. They were forced to live on fish for several days after that, because they were out of grub and much of their gear was chewed up. It's important to keep a clean camp or this can happen. Bears can sniff out food a long ways away.

I had my camp robbed once by a wolverine. Never had any trouble with bears or Mtn. Lions.

Mtn. Lions are becoming problems in some places. There's just so many people now days, that this is bound to happen. They are usually nocturnal, but there's been cases where they will stalk and kill people. I've only seen one in my life. It put a deer down for us, that a friend had wounded. It ran off, and the deer got back up, so we had to finish off the deer. A wierd occurance.

I've known a couple hunters who said they were bow hunting and they were forced to kill a lion with their bows, as the cougar stalked up on them. One was in Montana, and the other in Colorado.

I've got a lot more stories. All are good reasons to pack a big enough gun while in bear country....Steve1

[SpeedRacer 1]

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I think in many state/provincial parks guns are banned for good reason. If people were allowed to carry guns they could simply hunt bear and cry self defence when they bag one.

IT'S HEADIN' RIGHT FOR US!!

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[Richards 0]

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why do people refuse to carry a gun?

But, but, the government knows what is best for us, and they forbid firearms in National Parks and Forests. I guess they care more about the bears than about 6-year-old girls.

I am generally pretty pro-gun (particularly when dealing with street thugs) however, the risk of having people shooting in the bush when children are there might concern me more than bears being in the same bush as kids.

Richards

Richards

My biggest handicap is that sometimes the hole in the front of my head operates a tad bit faster than the grey matter contained within.

[Richards 0]

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***I think in many state/provincial parks guns are banned for good reason. If people were allowed to carry guns they could simply hunt bear and cry self defence when they bag one.

IT'S HEADIN' RIGHT FOR US!!

I'm sorry but I do not follow. Would you mind elaborating.

Thanks,

Richards

My biggest handicap is that sometimes the hole in the front of my head operates a tad bit faster than the grey matter contained within.

[kelel01 1]

That was on South Park, and it was how they got away with shooting things they weren't supposed to . . . when the animal would just be sitting there, or it might just be a rabbit or something. It was a joke.

[Richards 0]

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That was on South Park, and it was how they got away with shooting things they weren't supposed to . . . when the animal would just be sitting there, or it might just be a rabbit or something. It was a joke.

Oh. I did not see that episode. However that scenario is very possible. There are plenty of people who just get their jollies shooting animals regardless of the neccessity or lack thereof (this is not a shot at hunters who obey the laws).

Richards

My biggest handicap is that sometimes the hole in the front of my head operates a tad bit faster than the grey matter contained within.

[JohnRich 4]

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> "Because some skydivers hurt themselves jumping high wing
> loadings, we therefore decree that no one will be allowed to jump a
> wing loading greater than 1.0."

...No revolts yet. A few rules on what you can and can't do in skydiving allows people to skydive while keeping them a bit safer, eh?

So you would have no objection to a rule mandating no wing loadings greater than 1.0?

[miked10270 0]

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> "Because some skydivers hurt themselves jumping high wing
> loadings, we therefore decree that no one will be allowed to jump a
> wing loading greater than 1.0."

...No revolts yet. A few rules on what you can and can't do in skydiving allows people to skydive while keeping them a bit safer, eh?

So you would have no objection to a rule mandating no wing loadings greater than 1.0?

I think that there is just such a rule! It's applied to students so they only get to jump nice soft, docile canopies... Despite the giggles that could be had putting first jump students under a Velocity 97!

It's only as you prove your ability that restrictions are gradually lifted as you progress & prove your responsibility & competence via your logbook & licenses. That's why you don't see the "10-Jump-Wonder" on a 20-way dive (unless the dive is done specifically to carry him).

Folding this into the US Gun laws (or relative lack thereof...) The REAL problem with a registration & licensing system is were such a system to be set up, no matter how reasonable it was in it's original form, Politicians and other "instant-experts" wouldn't be able to resist trying to bugger about with it to follow their own agenda (make noise = get elected = power).

Apart from that, something like the UK's Firearms act 1963 or 1968 was great.

Mike.

Taking the piss out of the FrenchAmericans since before it was fashionable.

Prenait la pisse hors du FrançaisCanadiens méridionaux puisqu'avant lui à la mode.

[airtwardo 7]

Let's go to national parks....

***

Stock up on the way!

This place has EVERYTHING a fun weekend camping requires!!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~