A serious debate about wolves

The Wolves and Humans Foundation (formerly the Wolf Society) has called for a serious debate about the possibility of reintroducing wolves into North Scotland citing the vast amount earned by Yellowstone National Park.

Admittedly, "There have been problems, such as what to do when they stray outside the boundaries, but a key issue is the $3m a year it gets from people coming to see the wolves," they said.

As far as I am concerned, nothing should distract from the pursuit of the tourist dollar, Euro, Rouble or Albanian Lek.

Those who are concerned about such trivial matters such as attacks on humans and the slaughter of livestock are clearly unable to see the wood for the trees. Such purblindness would be a bit of a problem if you had a ravenous wolf pack on your tail. It is clear to me and the proposers of this idea that the opportunities here are enormous and must be embraced to show just what a magnificent hunting and killing machine the wolf actually is.

As the Wolves and Humans website clearly states, Join us today, and help to meet the challenge of conservation and co-existence. As the only charity in the UK dedicated to helping wolves in the wild - I know, you thought there were bloody dozens of them competing for your donations - W&H have decided to meet the challenge of co-existence with wolves in the wild by moving their operational HQ from Somerset to the proposed site for wild wolves, where the members will meet the challenge of co-existence by walking to and from meetings in the pitch dark as the packs circle them.

But, after careful consideration, I think that W&H have shown just what could be achieved for the tourist industry in the Western Isles.

Let's declare the entire island a 'wild zone' and bring tiger, lions, wolves, T Rex, elephants, coyotes and other assorted animals here and let them run wild, slaughtering sheep, deer, mink, seagulls and those cutting peat whilst rich hunters are helicoptered in to stay in expensive private hotels guarded by 20ft of razor wire and big guys with automatic rifles.

They can peg out pupils in the rural primary schools to attract the predators - which would guarantee the survival of the schools, if not all the pupils - and then secure the local economy by paying for each animal they kill. Just imagine being able to pander to each and every whim of these ultra-rich elite before they pay us just a few pounds for driving the Wolves and Human Foundation to their AGM in the main killing zone.

Ever seen the movie "The Running Man"? We could ensure the financial security of an extended family on the islands by dropping the lucky winner on the top of the Clisham at sunset, armed only with a peat-iron, and have a live broadcast as they try to survive and make their way back to the Clachan Bar by opening time.

Imagine the ratings if a Councillor was drawn from the lottery......

Having had a serious debate about the idea, I think that the relentless pursuit of the tourism industry without any consideration of reality, might just be a bad idea. In this and other cases.