this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2024
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Wolves have adapted swiftly and surely to human-dominated landscapes. But people are struggling to adjust to the wolves. The concentration of packs, von der Leyen declared when announcing the commission’s review of wolf protection laws, “has become a real danger for livestock and potentially also for humans”.

In December, the commission proposed to reduce the wolf’s status under the Bern Convention from “strictly protected” to “protected” in order to introduce “further flexibility” – potentially enabling wolves to be hunted and populations reduced across the EU.

Many populist politicians across Europe hope that talking up the threat of the wolf – alongside tough measures to tackle it – will win support ahead of next summer’s elections to the European parliament.

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[–] shapesandstuff@feddit.de 79 points 10 months ago

Oh yeah lets fuck up the wolf population again, now that they are finally returning to Germany after over a CENTURY.

Fuck vdL and fuck this sort of human-centric view of controlling local fauna.

Everytime it has been done so far - either by hunting or introducing a new species, it had unforseen consequences.

[–] essellburns@beehaw.org 55 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Probably shouldn't have left the pony lying about where a wolf can find it then.

"Humans are struggling to adjust" is not a good reason to shoot wolves.

It's a good reason for humans to do better at adjusting.

[–] Zoboomafoo@slrpnk.net 13 points 10 months ago (1 children)

"Humans are struggling to adjust"

Skill issue

[–] Meruten@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)
[–] anachronist@midwest.social 3 points 10 months ago

Very similar to the "Problem Bear" who had to be put down due to a "Failure to integrate into German society"

https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-problem-bear-bruno-is-dead/a-2068219

[–] Vegoon@feddit.de 40 points 10 months ago

Humans, killing Billions of animals every year: It's nature, I'm a lion.

Nature kills animals: Nuke it from orbit!

[–] Zacryon@feddit.de 31 points 10 months ago (1 children)

and potentially also for humans

Conservative politicians talking about stuff they don't understand. Again. A story as old as politics.

Let's continue to vote people into positions with power who lack the necessary brain cells to make informed and scientifically founded decisions. It has been working great so far as well. Didn't it?

[–] Ooops@kbin.social 9 points 10 months ago

Zensursuala/Flinten-Uschi/Ursula von der Leyarbeit performs exactly as expected in every job she gets. The she's promoted away to the next post... I'm really eager to know what her next position will be.

[–] Marsupial@quokk.au 16 points 10 months ago (2 children)

I have no idea who this person is but they look straight up like a young adult movie villain.

[–] onion@feddit.de 37 points 10 months ago (1 children)

EU commission president, former german minister of defence, conservative party. Advocate for strong internet censorship

[–] Tarogar@feddit.de 20 points 10 months ago (1 children)

All you really need to know is that said person failed upwards and then got into it's current position by a backroom deal that ignored the EU election results.

IMHO very questionable at least, at best not good in that position either.

[–] roguetrick@kbin.social 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I have yet to really wrap my head around the Commission, as a dumb American. It seems worse than our electoral college system, which is impressive.

[–] Tarogar@feddit.de 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I can't really tell about that either since I have not read up about the electoral college yet. It's certainly different. What does grind my gears however is when democratic results get ignored no matter where they happen because reasons. She was not even up for debate for that position when we got our chance to vote and then ended up in that position after the fact.

[–] Sodis@feddit.de 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I think, that the phrase "ignoring the election results" is too harsh. You vote for parties, not persons. Of course, they usually nominate their frontrunners for the election campaign, but if they can't ensure a majority in the elected parliament, what else should they do?
VdL definitely was a sketchy back room deal, I am talking more about the general principle here.

[–] Tarogar@feddit.de 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Where I live (at least when it comes to the EU) We do in fact vote for people over a party. At least that is the understanding on how it works here. As for what can be done: do the vote again for one thing. I am sure that there are other options too. The last thing that should happen is that someone who wasn't even up for debate at the time to get the job. That was the worst outcome in all regards because now I don't trust the democratic process there that much anymore knowing that at any moment practically anyone can get that position regardless of any result from the people that make up the EU.

[–] Sodis@feddit.de 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Really? What's on the ballot in your country? If it is the party, then you vote for the party and with this you vote parliamentarians on the list into the european parliament. I get that the media reporting muddled this process, because frontrunners make for a more interesting coverage, but that is not how it works at all.

[–] Tarogar@feddit.de 2 points 10 months ago

As far as I can remember the ballot states people first and foremost, only stating party as a somewhat small addition below that person's name. So it looks a lot like you are voting for individuals rather than the party. Media coverage also didn't help and they mentioned how it is perceived differently in all other EU countries that got to vote as well.

[–] kokesh@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Someone should start hunting people. We're the fucking pest here.

[–] Akasazh@feddit.nl 11 points 10 months ago

The germans did try that once. It was not considered a great succes.

[–] bedrooms@kbin.social 9 points 10 months ago

This is close to a nothing burger.

DNA evidence harvested from the pony’s carcass revealed that the wolf was an individual known as GW950m. This mature male wolf, which heads a pack (a wolf family usually numbering eight to 10) living around the von der Leyen residence, appears to have developed a taste for livestock. DNA tests on other carcasses implicates him in the deaths of about 70 sheep, horses, cattle and goats.

That's the norm for bears that learned eating humans, for example. These animals, once they learned there are free vitamins, will continue to penetrate into human neighborhoods, eat humans, or ponies in this case.

[–] Lath@kbin.social 8 points 10 months ago (3 children)

Any animal that eats and breeds without something to keep it in check will become a pest for its environment. We see this at every stage.

[–] misk@sopuli.xyz 35 points 10 months ago (3 children)

That's an unusually tough stance on ponies.

[–] Lath@kbin.social 7 points 10 months ago

Ponies will knock you down and eat your face! ...Demonic little gremlins!

[–] Municipal0379@lemmy.world 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

lil Sebastian enters the chat

[–] Killing_Spark@feddit.de 3 points 10 months ago

HE IS A HORSE NOT A PONY

[–] trollercoaster@feddit.de 3 points 10 months ago

Not really, Horses are actually becoming a pest in some places.

[–] Tarogar@feddit.de 25 points 10 months ago

Indeed, I recently had a discussion about just that with a family relative who is very adamant against wolves but then started complaining about all those beavers and deer over population. You can't make it up. Is it a good idea to control that wolf population? Probably yes, can that wolf population help with solving other issues? Probably yes.

[–] Thymos@lemm.ee 18 points 10 months ago

Yeah, human population levels have really gone out of control. Maybe the wolves can finally restore some balance.

[–] yournamehere@lemm.ee 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

fuck crooked ursula. she gave contracts state to ey! and kpmg when her stupid kids were interns there.

[–] trollercoaster@feddit.de 5 points 10 months ago

fuck crooked ursula. she gave contracts state to ey! and kpmg when her stupid kids were interns there.

That's what she meant by "think of the children". Can't say she was insincere about that, then.

obvious /s is obvious

[–] autotldr@lemmings.world 3 points 10 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:


It was a mild, windless night, sometime before dawn on 1 September 2022, when a large grey wolf trotted out of the woods beside Beinhorn, a hamlet of old barns and graceful wooden houses in the German state of Lower Saxony.

Many populist politicians across Europe hope that talking up the threat of the wolf – alongside tough measures to tackle it – will win support ahead of next summer’s elections to the European parliament.

On the other side, wolf-haters claim that this ruthless carnivore’s return has been naively championed by the tofu-munching wokerati who know nothing of the countryside, elevate the welfare of animals above people, and inflict misery upon farmers, hunters and country folk.

For all the wolf’s wild symbolism, it is thriving in human-dominated landscapes: the intensively farmed countryside and even suburban areas of eastern Germany with human population densities higher than the city of Newcastle.

According to Raoul Reding, the association’s biologist who oversees the meticulous recording of populations, we are witnessing an unprecedented experiment: “It’s never happened before, anywhere in the world, that such large carnivores would settle such densely inhabited human areas as we have here in Germany.”

Vice-president Jörn Ehlers hands me two stickers: one depicts a vicious-looking wolf with a sheep in its mouth barred with a red line; the other reads: IF YOU DON’T LIKE FARMING, STOP EATING.


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