Trees don't weep for the death of newspapers. Or beavers, for that matter. We should read our print on hemp. But hey, we may also skip ahead to not reading at all, if you want to get all sad about it.
It would completely revitalize our economy to retool American agriculture for hemp production.* Maybe it scares Big Agriculture, but probably not. Maybe my tinfoil hat's talking, but if they can genetically modify and patent the weed seeds and corner markets for hemp products they're all for it. I'd be a little surprised and disappointed if they're not doing that already. But first, you gotta #legalize.
And then, beavers. Easy to assume they are avenging slaughter of their ancestors for early 19th century top hat fashion. But they're just being beaver - murdering huge beautiful valley cottonwoods like they've always done. On far edges of bosque places they girdle entire huge trunks in one night, inner bark for winter dinner. Cottonwoods bent by the last big valley floods a hundred years ago are doomed. Things that live in dead trees enjoy housing boom.
Painstakingly encircling the trunks with chickenwire stops their mighty teeth. That, and maybe pepperspray.** (On the tree bark, not the beaver himself.)
Mr. Coyote has no doubt made a play for Mr. Bigtooth. While contemplating a slingshot or airgun attack on this bold coyote (as an alternative to chasing him with a broom, which apparently just amuses him) I am paradoxically cheering him on in what I imagine to be his daily pursuit of that beaver, especially now that he has wiped out the neighborhood guinea fowl. I'm working on zen acceptance of his sandhill crane hunt.
That's undoubtedly the answer to the beaver question as well. Afterall, there are still many trees. Especially from the viewpoint of the one holding a roll of chickenwire.
*It would revitalize our local economies and truly revolutionalize our culture to not just retool but also rescale agricultural production for hemp. But, alas, that's perhaps too bold a dream.
**There is such a thing a Comprehensive Beaver Management Planning but I have no comment on that.
