So, as you dear readers may or may not know I live, work, breathe, laugh, cry (you get the picture) in the great burg of San Francisco. I know we've had our ups and downs, this fair city and I, but mostly I like it. I like that is pretty progressive and fairly enlightened. I like that it's surrounded by ocean and bay and trees and mountains. I like that it's 7 square miles from end to end both ways so in order to get ANYWHERE in the city it takes less than 20 minutes.
One thing that I have a problem with however is the zoo. We went fairly soon after we arrived in San Francisco and I have to say I was really unimpressed. The parking situation was ridiculous and it's so far away that it makes taking public a little difficult. It was super expensive and I'll pay good money if the zoo's worth it. I know it costs a lot to run a zoo - I've played my share of Zoo Tycoon. The habitats were pretty shabby. The animals looked bored and I'm pretty sure one of the walruses was dead.
So, then a couple Christmases ago I'm watching the news and they have a story about a tiger attack at the SF Zoo. See, I thought to myself, those animals are bored and mad and now some zoo keeper just got the worst of it. But then I found out that is was in fact some 19 year old kid and he buddies from San Jose that had been at the zoo...after hours...on Christmas night. I followed the story and the blame game that went on between the families and the zoo and even the public. It came out that the walls around the enclosure were 4 feet lower than the standard and there was some mishandling that occurred once officials learned that the tiger had escaped. There was no substantial proof that they were taunting the 350 siberian tiger before it jumped over a mote and a wall just to attack these guys, but let's be real here, we've all seen those a-holes at the zoo or Sea World or anywhere else humans and animals come together. We've all seen those people that bang on the glass, scream and yell things at the animals, further proving to all around just who should be locked in a cage. I don't believe for a second that these guys were just standing there quietly singing "Silent Night" when the tiger jumped out and made it her mission to destroy them.
I was also pissed off when following the story further I found out the the 4 cops that responded to the scene ALL emptied every bullet of their guns into the tiger after they distracted it coming out of the bushes. That's the best we could do under the circumstances? Shoot the tiger with your guns 24 times? That oughta do it boys, you think? By the way, those cops ended up getting medals for their bravery shortly after. I think we are way too fast to judge these animals after something like this happens. Maybe it's because I think it is 99.99999% always the humans fault for stuff like this (because we are supposed to be the smarter ones) but I don't think animals have to be destroyed when they do what comes natural to them. Usually when I say things like this people immediately say that I can say such things because it didn't happen to me. But I am telling you right now that if I was standing next to a bear shouting at it and throwing stuff at it and that bear knocked my goddamn head off, I would in no way expect anything to be done to the bear. Some say there is a reasonable expectation for safety when going to places like the zoo but I say fuck that. You paid your money to enter a place with confined animals. They get out, it's all creatures for themselves I say. Myself and those I care for included. Besides they were there after the zoo had already closed anyway. They were technically trespassing.
You may be thinking to yourself "what is the point of this bloggie you crazy animal activist you?" The tiger is dead. The kid is dead. The cops have been given medals and the other guys he was with have already been arrested like 8 times since then for being drunk and sending the San Jose cops on a 140 m.p.h. chase thru the city, clearly they are on the right path to early death or incarceration. Well I'll tell you! I had just let it go. Just forgotten all about the tiger attack when I casually went to sfgate.com to get my daily dose of San Franciscoy news and I saw it.
The San Francisco Zoo agreed Thursday to pay $900,000 to two brothers who survived the fatal attack by an escaped tiger on Christmas Day 2007, sources familiar with the case told The Chronicle
GodDAMMIT! I hate this city sometimes.
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