Good for the Wildlife Trusts!

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This new e-petition is trending at over 1000 signatures an hour at the moment.  I signed it when it was at about 1500 signatures but it is flying.

Now, it is a very sensible e-petition, but interestingly its proposer is Simon King, the Wildlife Trusts’ President Emeritus (!) and is supported by the Wildlife Trusts.

It is just possible that the Wildlife Trusts have found their campaigning zeal again – other NGOs please take note.  I guess it’s too early to say, except also on the front page of the Wildlife Trust website is another plea to sign another e-petition.  

Maybe things are stirring in the sleepy world of the Wildlife Trusts – I hope so.  And I hope that the momentum drags even more cautious wildlife NGOs to get their memberships moving to create change. Can you imagine the impact if the National Trust supported the badger e-petition or any others. And they should.

I wonder to what extent the Wildlife Trust movement as a whole will get behind the badger e-petition. How many individual trusts will be tweeting and retweeting and how many will feature it on their websites?

Well done Simon King and well done Wildlife Trusts!

As you can see, in the time it took me to take two screenshots for this blog, the e-petition had added over 20 signatures.

 

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17 Replies to “Good for the Wildlife Trusts!”

  1. Where are they finding all of these “expert marksmen” to shoot free running badgers? I know in Wiltshire there is difficulty in getting enough to cull deer, so adding badgers into the mix they must be using just any psycho who can pick up a gun and wants to kill an animal.

    No wonder it is completely inhumane. That it flies in the face of the science and the scientific community just shows how debased government decision making has become.

    1. Simon – it only flies in the face of science if you think the cull’s purpose is to solve the TB problem. It isn’t. It’s there to placate the NFU, whilst giving the illusion to the wider farming community that something is being done. That’s all.

      1. “We must do something”
        “This is something”
        “Ergo we must do this”.

        Classic government idiocy. If in doubt at least give the illusion of action. Especially if it allows the Daily Mail to print another article about (who they bill as) dirty hippies getting a kicking (metaphorical and, sadly, literal).

  2. Shouldn’t Simon also be sacked though, along with Chris, Iolo, Michaela, Bill and everyone else who has fronted a wildlife programme but has voiced an opinion?

  3. Have signed but had to go via Wildlife Trusts’ Website to get there – was unable to open your link.
    No matter now it is done and I have found a link I did not know existed.
    Thank you.
    I would agree with you Mark, it appears the WTs have found their campaigning hats again, and about time too.

  4. One thing I noticed was that at the time I checked, it was the areas either in or adjacent to existing cull areas that were way ahead of anywhere else in piling on the signatures. Then other rural areas, and the towns and urban seats bringing up the arse end of the cow again. If anyone tries to frame this as townies versus countryfolk then they are right. But it is the clueless townies that seem to be in favour (or at least not actively against) the cull and the actual countryfolk who are opposing it.

    1. Spot on. The clueless townies are the ones that believe the crap about ‘custodians of the countryside’.

  5. The wonderful, inspiring wildlife campaigner, Tim Birch (of Derbyshire WT and speaker at HHD in the PDNP 2016) did an good interview about the badger cull issue on BBC Radio Derby last week. And I’m sure the piece must have been initiated by the WT, because as of yet, Derbyshire isn’t in a cull zone.

  6. Signed, number 9,001 so with luck it will be to the 10k mark by later tonight.

    Well done and thank you Simon!

    As for WTs campaigning or RSPB, I’m still an agnostic. Will they (47 trusts) encourage all their 850k members, will the RSPB do likewise with their 1m? If so then it would be the quickest petition ever to attain the 100k ….

    HHs and Badgers, this is getting wildlife in the media (maybe) and rightly so. You can almost predict the accusations of ‘animal activists’ and ‘extremists’ being bandied about ….

  7. Today’s word: brief!
    Dashing off for, what is something of a rare treat these days, a spot of twitching! However the barebones are;

    The day finished on: 118,665

    The day’s signatures: 150

    Ribble Valley came in tops again (and passed the 400 line), with North Norfolk and Ochil and South Perthshire both close behind.

    1. over 15000 on badger cull petition now.

      What irks most is the poor science behind this, the lack of any obvious evidence that removing a percentage of the badgers in an area will improve toe TB situation, for I am not against culling of something if there is a good solid evidence base that it would be effective.
      this badger-cull to placate farmers is not in that category.

      1. Remember all, that it was the restocking of cattle post foot and mouth (with many animals from the south west), WITHOUT bTB testing which re-ignited the spread of bTB …. it was the Govt of the day alongside the NFU who pushed for the industry to get back on its feet quickly. Act in haste repent at leisure as they say?

        Read “Badgered to Death” by Dominic Dyer, it is to the badger cull what “Inglorious” is to Hen Harriers and upland moor management!

  8. I think I might give up farming and become an environmental campaigner. Loads of advantages such as being apply to troll people on social media, not having to worry about making any money or the practicalities of actually doing something, actually the more I think about it the better it sounds. Just like having grandchildren, all the fun and none of the responsibilities. Any advice on how I apply ?

  9. Yes I think you’re on the right track with this one. I’m particularly excited about being able to now use “science” as I haven’t been getting on very well with it’s poor relation “experience ” recently as it’s proved quite expensive with several costly mistakes. No the way forward is definitely Google based science. I’m very excited by this.

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