Save the Pandas: Who Decides?
November 20, 2009 by Kathy McManus
We saved the whales and brought back the bald eagle. But are we pandering to pandas, instead of letting them go extinct?
A British wildlife expert has touched off a passionate debate about man’s responsibility to beast by declaring that the time has come to “pull the plug” on pandas. Saying that “extinction is very much a part of life on earth," naturalist Chris Packham reasoned that the millions of dollars spent annually on an endangered species that is “extraordinarily expensive to keep going,” might be better spent conserving endangered habitats. If we “just bought rainforest,” Packham said, “we might be doing a better job.”
Pandas--the cute, charismatic poster-bears of conservation fundraising—are indigenous to China, where they require enormous amounts of bamboo for sustenance. Now thought to number only 1,600, the notoriously fickle breeders' native habitat continues to shrink as China’s human population continues to expand.
“I’m not trying to play God,” Packham said. “I’m playing God’s accountant. I’m saying we won’t be able to save it all, so let’s do the best we can.”
His remarks created panda-monium. “It’s a daft thing…to say, and an irresponsible one,” declared a fellow conservationist. “How about we pull the plug on the conservationists!” one person responded online. “Use the money we are paying them to take care of the pandas.” Said another, “I’m not ready to give up on the panda…We put ourselves in a position where we can pretend to be God, and I don’t think we’re up to the task.”
Tell us what you think: Do we have a responsibility to keep all endangered species alive at any cost? If not, who chooses which survive and which do not? Should the panda be allowed to become extinct?
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131 Comments
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November 20, 2009 by jade1977
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February 7, 2010 by kailee
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March 14, 2010 by Lisa G.
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November 21, 2009 by Debra Williams
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April 1, 2010 by Brenda D Lemus
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November 22, 2009 by jc
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June 6, 2010 by sidney
pandas have been here and they should stay here but some people think otherwise and they should think about every single animal in the world then see what they say
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June 6, 2010 by sidney
animals in this world should stay and when some are extinct we should try to save them .In the medevil, colonial, cavemen times we depended on them now we should return the favor.As our cities flourished nobody knew we were destroying important lives.
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November 25, 2009 by Frances J. Jessup
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November 27, 2009 by carly jade
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December 2, 2009 by Tracy Roger
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November 27, 2009 by hannah syas
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November 28, 2009 by John Rhoades
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November 28, 2009 by hannah syas
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November 28, 2009 by Hannah Syas
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January 12, 2010 by Kennith Stasiuk
March 7, 2010 by Stephen Mechinus
December 24, 2009 by Karla Fischer
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April 20, 2010 by Angela Matkin
And how do you adapt to your surroundings? Build a big house, drive a big vehicle, shop at Wal-Mart for your produce? Panda's are much more adaptable than humans any day! You cannot begin understanding what other countries are going through for food until you have lived that life. Deforestation is ignorance on many parts not just the poor trying to feed their families but also among the companies wanting to get richer.
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April 28, 2010 by Anya Oates
So let's say we let the Panda go extinct What, then, about the tiger? The lion. The polar bears. The whales. The many, many other species that are on the brink of extinction because people think they have more of a right on this earth than any other creature. This isn't just about the Panda. it's about our responsibility as stewards of the Earth. If we let the Panda go, then we might as well let all the other endangered species go, too. Then we'd be left with noting but rodents, lizards and insects and shameful humans. We need to stop talking about one species at a time and debate their right to exist. We need to discuss the endangered animal species AS A WHOLE. Once you look at the big picture and what it means to let them all go extinct, I think people will change their minds.
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May 3, 2010 by batman
that is the most heartless inconsiderate thing i have ever heard.
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November 28, 2009 by hannah syas
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November 28, 2009 by hannah syas
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November 29, 2009 by Raeshell Birin
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November 30, 2009 by Winthrop Staples
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November 30, 2009 by Tsering Say
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