To mark the 50th anniversary of the Jaws movie, here is a piece I wrote about the book's author, Peter Benchley, and other lightweight commentators in 2018. It's more relevant than ever.
I kill every creepy crawly that comes my way. Sharks are different, I don't go in the ocean except perhaps in a boat, and that is on the ocean, preferably not in the ocean. Having been bitten and survived by a Sydney Funnel Web spider, I am no fan of things that hide in the dark then attack. I even had one follow me out of bed as a child so, no thank you
I had a greenie threaten to report me because I told the story of how, a few years ago, I bashed an eastern brown to death with a broom that was lounging right outside the back door of the farmhouse I was housesitting, right near the bed of the owners' dogs. It was in a rural area where that species is prolific. Now I live where jumping ants are prolific and their nests get the petrol treatment. And I'm a gardener who likes making wildlife habitat with local native plants.
As for surfers, I have as much sympathy for them as I have for other shallow thrillseekers, such as rock climbers and freefallers.
I forgot about the snake I killed with an axe some years ago. Living in a rural area and this brown snake was under the highset house slithering near me, so I grabbed an axe and started after it. It slithered up the outside stairs and I was hacking away and missing until eventually I got it on about the 4th riser. There were hack marks all over those steps, but I did get it! Then just a few years ago in far North Qld, I walked less than a foot away from an Eastern Brown that was curled up near where I was walking. I didn't notice it until I passed it. Fortunately, it was sick and didn't move until I found someone to kill it. The best snake is a dead one!
Sounds like you went as berserk with the axe as I did with the broom.
It's only the very poisonous ones I don't like close to dwellings. Pythons, keelbacks (I've seen one eating a cane toad) and many others I like to have around.
This statement is an observable fact. And leading the pack of these dangerous animals are the pseudo-intellectual parasites of the press who effectively are advocating for feeding innocent bathers to the sharks so that their pretentious postulations can then be cited to ennoble themselves amongst their peers to gain fake media kudos by posing as protectors of the supposedly pristine world that is the hunting ground of vicious seafaring predators. These press people do this because it is the current fashionable herd mentality adopted by the bovine dimwits of the corporate media - an intellectually incestuous species that can sometimes be observed in real life at their phoney TV presentations at the National Press Club in Canberra.
The point is - sharks have a whole ocean in which to predate, therefore it is not unreasonable that they be kept away from the tiny littoral margins which we claim for the use of our species. So, bugger Charles Wooley and his fellow boofheads of the Fake News press.
While the Australian white ibis is celebrated in picturesque settings like Kakadu, its urban presence tells a different story. In cities like Sydney, these birds have adapted to scavenge in parks and landfills, leading to significant population increases. Notably, in 2003, Bankstown Council initiated a cull of white ibis at Lake Gillawarna due to environmental concerns . Despite such measures, the ibis remains a protected species under the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974, making management efforts complex.
It’s perplexing that while we cull millions of chickens in controlled environments to prevent diseases like bird flu, we continue to protect urban-dwelling ibises that freely roam, scavenge and probably spread said disease. This contrast raises questions about our wildlife management priorities and the balance between conservation and public health.
I kill every creepy crawly that comes my way. Sharks are different, I don't go in the ocean except perhaps in a boat, and that is on the ocean, preferably not in the ocean. Having been bitten and survived by a Sydney Funnel Web spider, I am no fan of things that hide in the dark then attack. I even had one follow me out of bed as a child so, no thank you
I had a greenie threaten to report me because I told the story of how, a few years ago, I bashed an eastern brown to death with a broom that was lounging right outside the back door of the farmhouse I was housesitting, right near the bed of the owners' dogs. It was in a rural area where that species is prolific. Now I live where jumping ants are prolific and their nests get the petrol treatment. And I'm a gardener who likes making wildlife habitat with local native plants.
As for surfers, I have as much sympathy for them as I have for other shallow thrillseekers, such as rock climbers and freefallers.
I forgot about the snake I killed with an axe some years ago. Living in a rural area and this brown snake was under the highset house slithering near me, so I grabbed an axe and started after it. It slithered up the outside stairs and I was hacking away and missing until eventually I got it on about the 4th riser. There were hack marks all over those steps, but I did get it! Then just a few years ago in far North Qld, I walked less than a foot away from an Eastern Brown that was curled up near where I was walking. I didn't notice it until I passed it. Fortunately, it was sick and didn't move until I found someone to kill it. The best snake is a dead one!
Sounds like you went as berserk with the axe as I did with the broom.
It's only the very poisonous ones I don't like close to dwellings. Pythons, keelbacks (I've seen one eating a cane toad) and many others I like to have around.
I can’t tell the difference, a snake is a snake
Quoting:
“The animal truly most dangerous to man is man”.
This statement is an observable fact. And leading the pack of these dangerous animals are the pseudo-intellectual parasites of the press who effectively are advocating for feeding innocent bathers to the sharks so that their pretentious postulations can then be cited to ennoble themselves amongst their peers to gain fake media kudos by posing as protectors of the supposedly pristine world that is the hunting ground of vicious seafaring predators. These press people do this because it is the current fashionable herd mentality adopted by the bovine dimwits of the corporate media - an intellectually incestuous species that can sometimes be observed in real life at their phoney TV presentations at the National Press Club in Canberra.
The point is - sharks have a whole ocean in which to predate, therefore it is not unreasonable that they be kept away from the tiny littoral margins which we claim for the use of our species. So, bugger Charles Wooley and his fellow boofheads of the Fake News press.
Lapun, everything you say is 100% correct.
While the Australian white ibis is celebrated in picturesque settings like Kakadu, its urban presence tells a different story. In cities like Sydney, these birds have adapted to scavenge in parks and landfills, leading to significant population increases. Notably, in 2003, Bankstown Council initiated a cull of white ibis at Lake Gillawarna due to environmental concerns . Despite such measures, the ibis remains a protected species under the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974, making management efforts complex.
It’s perplexing that while we cull millions of chickens in controlled environments to prevent diseases like bird flu, we continue to protect urban-dwelling ibises that freely roam, scavenge and probably spread said disease. This contrast raises questions about our wildlife management priorities and the balance between conservation and public health.
Just been battling a copperhead out here at Emu Swamp.
Middle of winter.
8 degrees outside.
Would Charles Wooley suggest I just let him bite me?