AGGRESSIVE PREY. A recent study conducted in the waters off Australia suggests that in the absence of natural predators, prey species not only populated beyond sustainable levels, they also behave in a manner inconsistent with nature's balance. The study found that "Little fish are cautious and timid around big, hungry fish, and rightly so. But when populations of predators like tuna and shark shrink because of human fishing, small prey become more adventurous", overgrazing seaweed and venturing farther and for longer periods of time in search of mates.
These observations are consistent with our experience with many land species. Name any habitat, and you'll find that where human interference has removed predators (wolves, mountain lions, coyotes, rattlesnakes, raptors), their prey species (deer, elk, rabbits, rodents) have increased in numbers to the point of becoming a peril on highways, but a pestilence in urban and suburban parks and neighborhoods.
The take-home lesson? Allow nature to reach her own dynamic balance. Do not interfere.
LONG HAIR. 55-year old Dominique Browning takes up the cause of growing one's hair as one pleases, independent of fashion or societal expectations, in Why Can't Middle-Aged Women Have Long Hair? Her responses to various huffy objections are lucid and resonant. Among the objections --
- You're acting out.
- You're still living in the '70s.
- Long hair is high maintenance.
- Men like long hair.
Hedonists and nonconformists of the world, take note.
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