Althouse: "Snowmobilers run over ducks in Fort Atkinson."

January 26, 2009

"Snowmobilers run over ducks in Fort Atkinson."

A headline from Wisconsin.

53 comments:

Crimso said...: Was this part of the Winter X Games?; 1/26/09, 8:26 PM
campy said...: The ducks forgot to duck.; 1/26/09, 8:31 PM
traditionalguy said...: Were these ducks someone's property? If not, and if no intentional torture was involved, than so what. People trump animals. That's been true since time began, indian tribal customs included. So they better make this a clear technical violation of a well written statute or apoligise to the snomobilers.; 1/26/09, 8:32 PM
Revenant said...: I was going to say something along the lines of slow news days in the flyover states, but then I remembered that here in San Diego a frequent wintertime top story of the day is "It Rained Today".

So, um, nevermind. Ducks you say? Fascinating.; 1/26/09, 9:06 PM
Donna B. said...: um... no, traditionalguy.

Why are snowmobilers running in areas of open water, no matter how small the opening, in the first place???

My first snowmobiling was in the 60s and dang it was fun!

There's no excuse for killing wildlife in this way, IMHO.

None. At. All.; 1/26/09, 9:09 PM
Tibore said...: "Snowmobilers ran over and killed 60 ducks in two incidents while racing across open water beneath a bridge on the Rock River in downtown Fort Atkinson, police said Monday.

... It's possible the killings weren't intentional because it is hard to see the ducks under the bridge at night, Davis said. Still, no one stopped to report the weekend killings, he said."

60 ducks, 2 incidents. 30 ducks per incident. That's some efficient... er... snowmobiling... yeah...; 1/26/09, 9:10 PM
BJM said...: I for one am relieved that SUV's weren't involved.; 1/26/09, 9:14 PM
MadisonMan said...: Let me preface this by saying that I think Snowmobiles are really loud and obnoxious machines. Almost as obnoxious as Jet-Skis.

Zipping over water late at night (I will guess while intoxicated) is Darwinism waiting to happen.; 1/26/09, 9:15 PM
traditionalguy said...: OK ducks are cute little creatures. I say save the ducks. But who will save the cute little creatures lost in broad daylight all year long to government funded abortions?; 1/26/09, 9:16 PM
MadisonMan said...: I have a friend who calls SUVs Suddenly Upside-down Vehicles. I told that to my 12-year-old. He thought it was hilarious.

You have to drive down a snowy interstate to appreciate the acronym, btw.; 1/26/09, 9:17 PM
TitusYouAreSoSuave said...: I snowmobiled as a youngster in Wisconsin.

My dad still has a Ski Doo and a Polaris TX.

We have three wheelers too.

I am butch.; 1/26/09, 9:22 PM
Cedarford said...: traditionalguy said...
Were these ducks someone's property? If not, and if no intentional torture was involved, than so what. People trump animals. That's been true since time began, indian tribal customs included. So they better make this a clear technical violation of a well written statute or apoligise to the snomobilers.

Apologize to the snowmobilers? They are luck they are not shot down like feral dogs caught chasing deer. No different than a sicko spotted driving and veering to kill a dog or squirrel in the road.

Apologize?

I'm a hunter and I saw someone abusing wildlife and engaging in animal cruelty just for the fun of it, I'd want them to pay a steep price.
As is, despite your libertarian fantasies, laws are on the books and woe be to the killer for fun of wildlife or pets or domesticated livestock....Because a jury will throw the book at such sickos.
A jury sentenced a young local to 6 months in jail for running over a flock of geese in the road in front of a horrified kid trying to shoo the geese back through a farm fence. The judge denied a motion to stay free on appeal and also fined the kid 4500 for the geese and punitive damages..then sent him to a medium security correctional institution.

Had the jury has the power to sentence the kid who was video'd at police HQ saying it was just "awesome fun" to what they thought was appropriate - it wouldn't have been for 6 months - but years...; 1/26/09, 9:22 PM
TosaGuy said...: -CDEDBD ducks?
----No, I don't CDEDBD ducks
-CDEDBD wings?
----ICDEDBD wings

(roar....swack)
----YIB! MR ducks!; 1/26/09, 9:26 PM
Wince said...: Two weeks ago, 57 mallard ducks were run over and killed by a snowmobiler on the Fond du Lac River near Fond du Lac in an incident of water skipping over a hole in the ice.

Three Weyauwega men were charged with animal cruelty in what the state Department of Natural Resources described as thrill killing of five whitetail deer by running over them with snowmobiles just south of Waupaca on Jan. 9.

I'm not an animal rights guy, but this kind of behavior is just mindless crap.; 1/26/09, 9:26 PM
Eli Blake said...: Haven't they been watching the news the last couple of weeks?

Serves them right if their snowmobiles quit working because their engines get full of snarge; 1/26/09, 9:31 PM
traditionalguy said...: Cedarford... I agree with your support for local community statutes restraining torture and killing of animals. I was just puling your chain to slip in an anti-abortion comment. I'm like Dr Strangelove's arm that keeps shooting up against my better judgement whenever I think about the Holocaust of the European Jews or of the unborn.And we do legally hunt and kill ducks with shot guns and retriever dogs, don't we. But these snowmobilers were clearly over some limit as set by a carefully drawn statute. Now, people intentionally hurting dogs is completely different. Take them out and shoot them.; 1/26/09, 9:40 PM
Eli Blake said...: And I'm pretty sure I can profile the culprits now:

Anglo males, likely teens or early twenties. Bored, and killing something is a way to kill an afternoon.

I know this because I've known quite a few in the places where I've lived. This is the profile of the people who like to chase and if possible run over animals with ATV's on purpose, or (when I lived in Montana) they liked to go park a little ways from a prarie dog colony and gun them down by the scores just to let them rot in the sun. The funny thing is, these folks are 'regular guys' and they probably treat their dog really good.

Let's not forget that during the colonial days the passenger pigeon was the most numerous bird in the world, and they were mass-killed to extinction, mainly for no other reason than an 'afternoon of pleasure.'

I have no problem, by the way with killing animals via legitimate hunting or food production, but I stop agreeing when it becomes wanton and pointless butchery. And it's mostly hormone-soaked teenagers (98% male) who think killing is macho.; 1/26/09, 9:50 PM
TitusYouAreSoSuave said...: My dad is a big hunter too. Ducks, geese, pheasant, partridge, deer, elk, antelope, moose, black bear.

But he respects the animal, if that makes sense, he would never deliberately do something like run over an animal.; 1/26/09, 9:50 PM
Eli Blake said...: Traditional guy:

and we do legally hunt and kill ducks with shot guns and retriever dogs, don't we. But these snowmobilers were clearly over some limit as set by a carefully drawn statute..

"shotgun" one word.

And that is completely irrelevant. The "carefully drawn statute" is based on carefully determined numbers to keep the population healthy. If you shoot ducks with a shotgun out of season or in excess of the limit they you are guilty of poaching and people go to prison for poaching. Further, these kinds of duck hunts are also food procurement. I doubt if these snowmobilers cooked and ate any of the snarge, do you?; 1/26/09, 9:54 PM
Eli Blake said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 1/26/09, 9:54 PM
KCFleming said...: Whose woods these are I think I know,
The lake is in Wisconsin though.
No ducks can see me stopping here,
To watch these woods fill up with snow.

My snowmobile must think it queer,
To stop without a farmhouse near,
Between the woods and frozen lake,
The darkest evening of the year.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And mallards to slay before I sleep,
And mallards to slay before I sleep.; 1/26/09, 10:07 PM
traditionalguy said...: I surrender. Take your northern brand of snowmobilers out and shoot them(with shotguns). I have snowmobiled once in Breckenridge Co.,and I don't know anything about nuisance snowmobiling in your neck of the woods.Our nuisance drivers in Atlanta are pretend NASCAR drivers drafting you on the interstate. Do they really run across open water like Seadoos? Alcohol and racing anything don't mix.; 1/26/09, 10:10 PM
David said...: Eli says:

And I'm pretty sure I can profile the culprits now:

Anglo males, likely teens or early twenties. Bored, and killing something is a way to kill an afternoon.

Jesus, Eli, your bigotry is really on display tonight.

You want to narrow it down to religion as well, since you are so sure.

Yeah, yeah, I know, more white males snowmobile than any other demographic group, etc. But your hatred and contempt for young white males is showing through.

Now, whoever did this, they were either stupid and negligent or cruel. And it could have been young white males. But you seem to find young white males so contemptible that it's a sure thing.; 1/26/09, 10:13 PM
TitusYouAreSoSuave said...: The coolest thing about snowmobiling was when my dad bought new snowmobiles with hand warmers and when you could see deer.

I love to see deer in the wild.

Every time I go home to Wisconsin we go on a road trip and look for deer.

I love white tailed deer. They are so beautiful. They are very inquisitive, watch your every move, pause for a few minutes and then take off with their white tail bouncing up and down.; 1/26/09, 10:21 PM
Skyler said...: Still, no one stopped to report the weekend killings, he said."

I'm not sure why anyone would expect people to stop and report running over small animals, especially when the assumption is that they didn't even see them.

But say they did see them, why should they bother to tell anyone? I imagine it would only result in nothing good.; 1/26/09, 10:25 PM
TitusYouAreSoSuave said...: I love northern Wisconsin too although I haven't been up there in years.

My father has a hunting camp north of Ladysmith. In the winter the road stops half way to the camp and you have to snowmobile the rest of the way.

The camp has an outdoor toilet, a wood burning stove, water you pump and a generator for light. The entire camp has 1970 Playboy calendars all over the walls. It is 500 acres and beautiful. Right on the mighty Chippewa River. Maybe I will move up there someday.; 1/26/09, 10:26 PM
Eli Blake said...: David:

I've seen it with my own eyes, living in rural areas of several states. There's not much for the kids to do here, and going out and running or gunning down 'varmints' is considered an OK way to kill an afternoon. But what do I know? I guess you'd rather be 'politically correct' than acknowlege reality.

OK. Fine. Maybe it was a group of old black women. Happy?; 1/26/09, 10:37 PM
John Burgess said...: My God! What is it with the cruelty of the commenters at this place?!

Obviously, the snowmobilers were badly affected by the economic downturn. They are reduced to running over wildlife in order to put food on the table for their families. In snowy weather, the plowed interstates and country roads cut down on roadkill, condemning them to starvation unless they show some initiative and American ingenuity.

This is part of the economic malaise from which we need be saved. It justifies the bailout--all bailouts--in and of itself.

Is there no compassion here?; 1/26/09, 10:46 PM
Revenant said...: thrill killing of five whitetail deer by running over them with snowmobiles

How the hell do you run over a deer in a snowmobile? People die hitting deer with CARS. Did they strap the deer to the ground first or something?; 1/26/09, 10:50 PM
Revenant said...: I doubt if these snowmobilers cooked and ate any of the snarge, do you?

Is pate popular in rural Wisconsin?; 1/26/09, 10:53 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: Paybacks for US Airways Flight 1549.; 1/26/09, 11:13 PM
traditionalguy said...: Can you see Fort Atkinson on Google Earth? I want to do a crime scene analysis. Also my client will demand State Crime Lab blood alcohol screens run on the lead ducks of this covey. If not done, we want to know what the State is hiding. And what was the emotional state of these ducks who did not duck? It could have been a case of duckacide by unhappy honkers. Also we demand a state paid expert to study incident of dangerous duck flocking in this area. We demand to know if any of these disguised ducks were recent fly-ins from known terrorist duck training camps. Our client has rights even if she is a famous Chinese restauranteur.; 1/26/09, 11:33 PM
Stephanie said...: They are not snowmobiles...

They are snow machines.

And the First Dude never hits wildlife when he is racing...; 1/26/09, 11:48 PM
AlphaLiberal said...: I remember when I was a kid and one of my brother's friends was snowmobiling at night and hit an open spot.

The sled plunged into the water and his chest hit the ice on the opposite side of the hole and was crushed.

So that's as far as he got in life.

Sounds like these guys are candidates for Darwin awards.; 1/26/09, 11:55 PM
DaLawGiver said...: My dog killed a pair of bunny rabbits just for the fun of it. She snapped their little necks seconds before I could restrain her. The bunnies were in my back yard without permission but I hadn't posted any no trespassing signs. Since I didn't report it am I an accessory to the murders?; 1/27/09, 12:07 AM
Fred4Pres said...: I feel bad for the ducks, but we don't blink an eye with all the road kill on the highways. An occasional duck from a snow mobile...it happens. Unless it was intentional or reckless, drive more carefully in the future.; 1/27/09, 12:13 AM
Fred4Pres said...: I was driving a pick up truck and hit a flock of wild ringneck doves in Egypt. After they struck the windsheild, they neatly fell into the bed of the truck. Six of them.

So I took them to the rotissary chicken place and had them for lunch that day. They were delicous. Plus I got to treat my friends. Waste not, want not.; 1/27/09, 12:16 AM
Anonymous said...: An event promoter was killed during a monster truck rally in Madison, Wis; 1/27/09, 12:42 AM
Ralph L said...: Were the ducks deaf--or passed-out drunk?

I snatched a baby bunny from the jaws of the neighbor's cat some years ago, and the damn thing shat wetly down my shirt. Put the gratuitous in gratitude.; 1/27/09, 12:53 AM
Product Person said...: This is why Christians should have nothing to do with SnowMobiles - as I blog about here:
http://tinyurl.com/xiansnowmobiles; 1/27/09, 2:32 AM
Anonymous said...: It looks like the addition of estrogen to the water supply in Wisconsin hasn't really been the best idea.; 1/27/09, 5:46 AM
Michael Haz said...: Arrest Barack Obama. This crime against ducks happened during his administration.

First Pakistanis. Then Ducks. Pretty soon our own Cockroach will be a target of this administration's illegal war against living stuff.; 1/27/09, 6:47 AM
rhhardin said...: Snowmobiles ought to stay on the road and hit deer like everybody else.; 1/27/09, 8:10 AM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Revenant asked:
"How the hell do you run over a deer in a snowmobile? People die hitting deer with CARS. Did they strap the deer to the ground first or something?"

Maybe it is a Suburban Legend?; 1/27/09, 8:15 AM
Richard Fagin said...: Without making any excuse for the snowmobile operator(s), Texas has this to say about running over ducks in its Penal Code:

Sec. 42.092. CRUELTY TO NONLIVESTOCK ANIMALS. (a) In this section: (2) "Animal" means a domesticated living creature, including any stray or feral cat or dog, and a wild living creature previously captured. The term does not include an uncaptured wild living creature or a livestock animal.

I guess it's legal to run over wild ducks with a snowmobile. If you can find any snow, that is. Wisconsin, fortunately, seems to have a broader definition of "animal" for its abuse statute.; 1/27/09, 8:31 AM
kjbe said...: What's wrong with some people - a couple weeks ago a bunch of yahoo's run over and brutalize a few deer (the yahoo's have since been arrested)- and now 60 ducks? 60 ducks?; 1/27/09, 8:46 AM
MadisonMan said...: David, this is rural Wisconsin we're talking about. The likelihood that it's white males is really pretty high. Second most likely: Hispanic males. I don't think there are a lot of Hmong in Jefferson Co. And I'd also guess teenaged or low 20s.

So you can dial down your histrionics.; 1/27/09, 9:16 AM
George M. Spencer said...: Deliberate duck crushing aside, someone above used the word "varmints."

There really are such things, though I wouldn't include ducks in that category.

I recently saw not one but two groundhogs (woodchucks) in my suburban area. Beautiful creatures. Imagine a waddling oven mitt with thick, mink-like fur. Lovely. Charming. Beatrice Potter cute.

I told my country cousin about this. She sneered and replied "We kill them all the time."

I was astonished.

Of course, it turns out there's a good reason.

The woodchucks like to burrow.
They like to burrow in pastures where cattle graze.
The cattle trip in the holes, break legs, must be destroyed.

Money down the drain.

Solution: Shoot the varmints.; 1/27/09, 9:16 AM
MadisonMan said...: When we lived out east, we'd walk our dog past a house a couple doors down, and a groundhog had taken root in their backyard. We'd always tell the dog to go get the groundhog, and she'd take off (the back yard was about 50 yards away from the front walk -- a nice sprint for our Golden/Chow mix) and the groundhog would always zip into its burrow.

Until one day. We noticed the groundhog not really moving, just sitting in the Sun. With a growing sense of doom, we realized that the dog would overtake the groundhog. And she did. She grabbed it in her teeth, shook it back and forth, and then dropped it. It was unmoving on the ground -- it stayed there for a couple days then it vanished. We called the dog back, not really knowing what else to do. And then we continued our walk, mostly shamefacedly.

I wonder what the people who lived in the house thought.; 1/27/09, 9:51 AM
KCFleming said...: "I wonder what the people who lived in the house thought."

"Hey Madge, are groundhogs good eatin'?"; 1/27/09, 10:36 AM
TosaGuy said...: These kids were obviously desensitized to killing ducks by playing too much Duck Hunt on nintendo. They didn't want the dog to laughing at them when if they missed. That would have hurt their self esteem.

but seriously, this guys are clowns and deserve what they get. It was not sporting and not for a purpose. However, this worshipping of animals by some people to the point of their being superior to humans has to stop. It is not healthy.; 1/27/09, 10:43 AM
Anonymous said...: "hormone-soaked teenagers (98% male) who think killing is macho"

Spoken like a true castrato. I particularly loved the little PC "Anglo" jab. You must have learned that in your metrosexual studies class.; 1/27/09, 2:37 PM
TaylorBaynton said...: Breckenridge snowmobiling provides an innovative escape to the Rocky Mountain wilderness, the angle of admirable and tireless opportunity to play in the centre of the region's most powder-filled bowls and top of the meadow of the air ease guests a like.

Breckenridge snowmobiling; 12/12/11, 1:50 PM