I'm not sure if this will make sense, but i will try the best I can to convey what I am thinking....

As we have been told by our fellow large and small reptile breeders, USARK etc.....we are at a crossroads again and will be for sometime with our hobby/business depending on who you are. We will come across tragic situations as above where politicians use the incident as a soap box to preach/scare/inform as many as they can to get something done they see fit.

This is government, our issue hits home the hardest but there are hundreds of examples of legislation that gets passed every year do to someones perception/motivation being conveyed to his peers in the governnment. Although it is difficult for us to watch, and therapuetic for us to vent on their stupidity the fact of the matter is we need to channel that feeling into doing what we can together to show and educate others the reality of or hobby/business of reptiles....in this case snakes.

As I mentioned before 100's of useless bills get passed because of the same situation we have been in and are currently fighting because a perception of an issue......
1. Pythons will ruin the everglades
2. Pythons live to kill kids
3. Pythons will live in Alaska by the year 2030
4. Exotic animals in general if not banned will run the US and take over North Korea by 2040.

The list could go on and on.......

So it comes down to this........Politicians have perceptions/agendas/motivation for their actions.......Politicians usually talk based on their perception and will use whatever statistic founded or unfounded, incident.....to convey their perception to the masses.

Perception vs. Reality

As I have learned many times the truth/reality of a situation really doesnt matter when decisions are made.........It is Perception of others that makes the decisions. With that in mind we need to follow the advice of USARK, Adam W., BHB, RDR, Justin K., and the great leaders of this site. Come together when called to convey reality......change uneducated perception of reptiles to those around us, use our energy to voice the truth to our governmental leaders.


The leaders of legislation to get these animals banned, put restrictions of exotic animal trade are gonna be the way they are. That is how they work. I challenge us all to do whatever we can to make sure we continue to focus our energy not on frustration of their agenda's, how they use words, how they are politicians. But rather use that energy on a simple idea but huge task.

Make the Reality of the issue the true perception. This will be difficult, some will say it cant be done, but I would argue energy spent conveying realtiy where we can will do more then trying to change certain politicians?.?.?

Anyways, even though we know the reality of what is being said...be sure to do what you can to fight the Perception of the issue that is being told.
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