Tuesday, September 02, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

EDITORIAL: Mink stolen

Two weeks ago, radical left-wing environmentalists committed an act of terror, torching an L.A.-area car dealership to protest the prevalence of sport utility vehicles on the nation's roads.

Last week radical left-wing animal rights proponents with the Animal Liberation Front committed an act of stupidity, releasing 10,000 mink from a Washington state fur farm into the wild to fend for themselves.

Sort of reminds us of the episode from "WKRP in Cincinnati" in which station manager Arthur Carlson arranges to have live turkeys dropped from a helicopter as part of a Thanksgiving advertising promotion. Hapless radio reporter Les Nessman is on hand to describe the ensuing carnage.

"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly," Mr. Carlson, played by Gordon Jump, says later.

Earth to the Animal Liberation Front: Minks raised on a farm for their fur are domesticated. Survival in the wild would be dicey, at best.

"It'd be like a house cat being turned loose," one official with Washington's Department of Fish and Wildlife told The Associated Press. "Will it be able to find food? Good question." Said another state wildlife manager: "I wouldn't expect any to persist for very long."

All but 1,000 of the animals had been rounded up by Tuesday, but a handful were found dead. An e-mail from ALF claiming responsibility for the release also maintained that "farm raised mink can survive and flourish in the wild."

Yes, and turn a cow loose in Yellowstone and she'll do just fine.