Please Pardon me, or not

Now the head line is passive aggressive, a state of mind I find has gone viral and that I abhor, but to which I have succumbed to within the past decade. Cultural warfare.
My rant differs from that subject. I need a release.
Why do people move to pristine natural environments? To escape the superficial?
I have found that most of these "nature" lovers spend most of their energy fighting nature.
They don't have a clue, they have viewed the environment from a screen on National Geographic or poured over lovely Walt Disney shows.
They don't know wood peckers, peck, the wind actually knocks down trees and houses, that mice and bugs are survivalists. OMG.
They don't have a clue that the plants we propagate are food for the very animals we have enjoyed as "Bambi and Stomper". And then they get all upset.
The bear that stalks you and eats your garbage, the wolf that eats the calf, the coyote that devours your dog, the weasel that preys on your chicken, the hawk that hunts your pretty little birds, the deer that eats your ever so precious plants, the mosquitoes that haunt you, the lightning that strikes you down: are the very essence of wild.
Of wild that you want to suppress into cute fragrant images in your, detached from life imaginations.
Go home to your structured city. Go home to where all the lines are straight and clean. Where the grass is cut and no life can exist.
And then come "out in to the wild" on your vacation. Catch a fish and go home and show "them" a picture.
But for Pete's sake stop complaining about the out doors. Where ever that place may be, go home.
Or accept you aren't the dictator of the world we live in.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

haha sounds like country guy got himself some new city neighbors.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

I love your rant. I think I could bear all those things though, better than mosquitoes. Well, not bears. And I don't want things eating my dogs either. Coyotes can be fierce too. And Wolves. I've never met a weasel but I'm not sure I want too.

Sigh. I guess I better stay home.

a reply to: angeldoll

u havent met any weasels on ats?

a reply to: angeldoll
Thank you for your reply, but the point is we are the intruders with our so called domesticated manners and infringement on the environment. Oh and the weasel family is fierce, badgers, the fisher, wolverines, minks etc. Look up "Weasel rides woodpecker".

Perhaps it all comes down to who is the top predator? Even if we kill them all off we have lost. Wewill only have our sorry selves to observe.

I should add this.
People could put Huge Walls around there property and have enormous wide screen TV's or Holograms depict their favorite cute scenario. Actually they should just live in climate controlled domes.
"OH look a deer. How sweet." They wouldn't have to deal with scat or trails through their precious flower beds.
And then the rest of us, 2%, could commit our time to interact with what "they" didn't manage to eradicate.

Hm. I guess I can relate a bit. When our neighbor moved in, a young very left wing school teacher, we kinda giggled at his expectations and plans. When he announced his plan to get some goats, that he would keep in a small enclosure, with a fence maybe a meter high, the other neighbors and I looked at each other and tried not to crack up.

Then he got a big rabbit that he would just keep outside, unprotected and free 'as most animals should be', it became obvious he was not only going to go through some disillusionment, but our property was going to suffer as well. Sure enough, those goats end up in my garden, and on my roof breaking the tiles. The rabbit kept hiding under my car, though I haven't seen it in a while... probably the eagles or vultures got him. Or maybe the badgers. Or the foxes. God knows they like to eat up my cats.

And then he started in the terrible hunters who should be ashamed. That was a while ago... I wonder if he has figured out what has been tearing up his vegetable garden he keeps trying to plant? Did he ever get a dog and have it gutted by these boars? I don't know, we haven't been around home much lately, but I am sure he is having a surprising experience out here.

originally posted by: WalkInSilence
a reply to: angeldoll
Thank you for your reply, but the point is we are the intruders with our so called domesticated manners and infringement on the environment. Oh and the weasel family is fierce, badgers, the fisher, wolverines, minks etc. Look up "Weasel rides woodpecker".

Perhaps it all comes down to who is the top predator? Even if we kill them all off we have lost. Wewill only have our sorry selves to observe.

Ya. Gotcha. I lived on 80 acres in the woods once, with a creek running through it. It was so nice, but I never knew what was going to show up in my attic. The critters were quite abundant. I had a vegetable garden, but mostly for a hobby, so I let them eat whatever they wanted.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

I had a similar rant in my own mind today while picking up some groceries.

There are so many hippie nature type folks who want to be one with nature yet they have no idea how cruel and unforgiving nature really is.
After they get eaten by an animal while meditating,they will be one with nature after that animal goes to the bathroom and is done with them.
So many naive people.

I urge those types to stay a few nights in the woods with nothing,for a reality check.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

Sounds like a case of average intolerance.

I live in a rural environment. If I went to a big city like NYC or London I would be very naive in that environment. It is about what environment we are used to. You know, like "Midnight Cowboy" kind of naive in the city.

Just because I live rurally does not mean I am super nature guy. I spend all my time nearly with technology. I don't do a lot of hands on nature stuff.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

Don't you love city folk who decide to build a McMansion in the middle of farmland and then want to farmers to stop typical farming practices like spreading maure (cause it stinks up their showpiece of a house).

Did they think that all the cows and sheep wear diapers as they gamble playfully on grassland?

I've often enjoyed looking at pictures of the wilder parts of the world and thinking how much I'd enjoy being there - for about five minutes.

If there's no supermarket or bathroom within easy reach I can't pretend I'd go there

WalkInSilence

I don't know..maybe it is best to let them come visit for a bit. A study was done in regards to the urban environment and mental health. The results showed that nature was the best cure for city people who had anxiety/stress/depression issues. We've reached a point where over 50% of the population live in cities. Do we really want those people to be all stressed out, all the time?

According to the projections of the United Nations Population Division, by 2030, more people in the developing world will live in urban than rural areas; by 2050, two-thirds of its population is likely to be urban. Urbanization brings with it a unique set of advantages and disadvantages. This demographic transition is accompanied by economic growth and industrialization, and by profound changes in social organization and in the pattern of family life. Urbanization affects mental health through the influence of increased stressors and factors such as overcrowded and polluted environment, high levels of violence, and reduced social support.

urbanization and mental health

At the same time urban living was found to raise the risk of anxiety disorders and mood disorders by 21% and 39% respectively. Interestingly, however, a person's risk of addiction disorders seemed not to be affected by where they live.

Many other possible impacts of city living on brain function are also being investigated. Aircraft noise might inhibit children's learning, according to a recent study from Queen Mary University in London. (Although traffic noise, perversely, might help it.) Researchers in the US and elsewhere have also found that exposure to nature seems to offer a variety of beneficial effects to city dwellers, from improving mood and memory, to alleviating ADHD in children. Much of this research considers the question of "cognitive load", the wearying of a person's brain by too much stimulation, which is thought to weaken some functions such as self-control, and perhaps even contribute to higher rates of violence. In terms of its impact on public health, Adli believes that urbanisation may even be comparable to climate change.

Sick Cities

All of these studies are not conclusive...so take them with a grain of salt. But, maybe it is a good thing that they are seeking out nature. Now,we just got to teach them how to respect and interact with it.

Thanks,
blend57

Oh Dear. Before I respond to any response I must say I naively assumed I could just rant and no one would respond.
No one would even notice. I could yell into the sky, knowing thunder wouldn't strike.
I would just hear a faint echo of my voice, have a cathartic release and feel better for being outrageously assertive opposed to narcissistically passive aggressive. I am scared to read the responses.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

Tee Hee - if you rant in BTS you have to be prepared for us bears and weasels

originally posted by: Revolution9

Sounds like a case of average intolerance.

This is a most interesting conclusion. And rather on point. I proudly consider my self intolerant, prejudice and belligerent when it concerns the conservation of the environment we inhabit.

If I went to a big city like NYC or London I would be very naive in that environment

My experience is, contrary to this assumption, is that solid knowledge of nature prepares you for any "foreign hostile city" environment.

It is about what environment we are used to.

Urban environment does not prepare you for the skills you need to manage in nature.

Just because I live rurally does not mean I am super nature guy. I don't do a lot of hands on nature stuff.

This was my point. Why do people even live in rural areas, when they are oblivious to the beauty and fierceness of our world and fight every natural approach.

Yes I know but I hate to get my fangs out.
a reply to: berenike
You had me laughing, with that pretty Pit face and a wee bit of sarcasm.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

Everything is gross. Everything is fine.

a reply to: WalkInSilence

Hope you worked out whatever you needed to. It's healthy

a reply to: blend57
Thank you Blend, a most thoughtful reply I must say. I have pondered how to respond.
The research is intriguing and encouraging for those who are in need of consolation. I condone the concept. It is wonderful that that people find healing in "nature".
But (did any one hear the "but" coming?)

I have found, this is a personal observation, mind you, that "most" people even those living in a rural environment, have zero tolerance of nature. "We" have become so conditioned so a groomed Waltish/ Holly society that "we" are blind to reality.
I will take people for a walk and they are paranoid about "bugs" falling from the trees, or they can't sit on the ground when we need a rest.
On longer walks they ask for a "rest room".
The very environment that supports us has become "alien"

I haven't even touched on "food sources". I encounter small live stock farmers all the time who will argue they could never partake in slaughtering their own beasts.
Where I was "raised' we nourished and cared for every animal until its time came to nourish us. It was done with compassion. I have held many a cow, pig, chicken etc.
Am I off topic?
I just think we are removed so far from "natural". That concept is misunderstood.