Animal rights activists show where their hearts are (or aren't)

Germany has a beloved celebrity in the form of a polar bear cub, the first polar bear to be born at the Berlin Zoo in more than 30 years. But because his mother rejected him and he's been bottle-fed, some "animal rights" activists have been clamoring loudly for him to be killed. Because he's been tainted by human contact, or something like that. And therefore might not turn out to be a "real" polar bear, or so they say. Which is supposedly a fate worse than death, or so some of them insist. Spiegel Online International (English site) has the story. (And pictures of the cub.)

Why does the phrase "The perfect is the enemy of the good" come to mind?

In case anyone is wondering, I think Knut is adorable, I applaud the people who saved his life when his mother fell down on the job, and I think the radical activists should keep their nose out of the Berlin Zoo's business. And even if Knut were an ugly little bear (which he certainly isn't) or was crippled or something, I don't think we ought to condone the killing of any innocent animal just because some over-righteous busybodies are obsessed with stereotypes and flip out when confronted with something outside their preferred and rigid parameters. (Silly me, right?)

Luckily, the zoo officials and the general public adore the cub and will almost certainly be able to protect him from the crazies.

If you happen to be in Berlin, give a friendly hello to the little fellow for me, will you?

hat tip: Kill Knut? The Twisted Logic of Animal Rights Extremists, Albert Mohler blog, Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Update: The BBC has more on Knut, following his public debut. It's too bad so many people can't say "polar bear" without free associating it with 'global warming,' but if you can ignore the folks who can't enjoy a cub romping about without muddying the experience with wild-eyed predictions of doom, click over and enjoy the bear and his admirers.