After bicyclists were mauled and killed in Orange County last week, Fish and Game’s answer was “your chances of being hit by lightening are greater than being eaten by a mountain lion.” Wrong. If the government is protecting lions in our mountains, your chances of being attacked by a mountain lion are a hundred times higher than being struck by lightening.
The intention of the agencies propagating lions behind Serra Retreat, Malibu and in many other neighborhoods is not just to keep their numbers neutral, but also to increase the number of lions. Lions are overstocked in our mountains and don’t have an adequate food supply. If we don’t start asking hard questions now about these lion protection programs, our children and our hikers will be next. Environmentalists have gone too far when the government is wasting tax money the state doesn’t have putting mountain lions in our city parks so the lions can have a steady supply of human food.
Who is next to meet their fate in the jaws of a lion? You won’t know until it’s your turn because the cougar taggers keep the location of each lion secret from the public. What about our safety? The government is not doing its job and it is outrageous that they are spending our money forcing us to live in fear for ourselves and our kids. It is time to call State Parks and the state wildlife agencies and hold them accountable.
Doug O’Brien