No matter how close our DNA, they are not we, and we are not they..... -Nadia Moore I
have not yet had a chance to watch this film in it's entirety myself,
but from everything I have read, viewed and discussed with those who
have, I think it serves as a chilling example of the arrogance of humankind when it comes to the other creatures sharing our planet. Yes we
are all fascinated by finding out what Sasquatch are, how they think,
how they are like us and how they are different, but I hope no one's
curiosity, especially in the name of science, puts a Bigfoot in this
kind of situation, ever, even with the best of intentions. This failed
attempt at raising an infant Chimpanzee as a human proved that he was incapable of adapting to the ways of the humans around him, and subjected him to years of physical and psychological mistreatment.
"From
the Oscar-winning team behind MAN ON WIRE comes the story of Nim, the
chimpanzee who in the 1970s became the focus of a landmark experiment
which aimed to show that an ape could learn to communicate with language
if raised and nurtured like a human
child. Following Nim's extraordinary journey through human society, and
the enduring impact he makes on the people he meets along the way, the
film is an unflinching and unsentimental biography of an animal we tried
to make human. What we learn about his true nature - and indeed our own
- is comic, revealing and profoundly unsettling."
"The premise of the experiment was to treat him as much like a human
child as possible and to give him the nurturing of a human child in
order [to see if] he would behave like one," Marsh says. "And it was
quite striking that there wasn't an investigation into what chimpanzees
actually were or what they're like. And the wild animal comes out in him
very quickly, and [no one] was prepared for that."
"Watching, I couldn't help but think of HBO's "Cinema Verite," a
scripted drama about public television's 1970s "reality" series "An
American Family." Like that film, "Project Nim" is as much a story
about the times in which Nim and his keepers lived as it is about the
chimp they used to ask questions whose answers were probably always
going to be more about themselves than they were about Nim." - Ellen Gray'Project Nim': Bad experiment goes awry
"Nim is as unforgettable as the treatment of him is unspeakable."
AND SOME GREAT NEWS TODAY: "Chimp Haven stands ready to discuss the possibility of retiring hundreds
of federally-owned chimpanzees with the National Institutes of Health,
following expert recommendations yesterday by the agency’s Council of
Councils Working Group. The Council unanimously voted on limiting the
future use of chimpanzees in biomedical and behavioral research and
placing hundreds of chimpanzees in The National Chimpanzee Sanctuary-
known as Chimp Haven." You
can sponsor a Chimp for as little as $25.00. They will need donations
to help house the hundreds of new residents coming their way: You Can Donate to Chimp Haven Here And another way you can help out our Chimpanzee Cousins is by supporting the great work being done by the Jane Goodall Institute!
I have been trying to ignore this story until more was known since it
first broke at the end of December, because it arrived shortly on the heals of the recent "Ed Smith / Confirm or Deny"
incident and it involvesthe same people, giving it numerous red flags of invalidity waving freely in the wind. And
because I was hoping it would just fade away like so many other tales of
glory with no verifiable evidence to garner them believable. This was
my immediate reaction: "The pre-announcement of the possible
announcement by a team that cannot be confirmed or denied to actually
exist has been confirmed to not be the responsibility of the person
making the announcement. I mean the pre-announcement....." But
the latest news today by the "Daisy" camp has taken a disturbing turn to
me as a Zoologist and advocate for all fellow members of the Animal
Kingdom. First If you are not familiar with the history of the
"Daisy" event, Jeffrey Kelley has done a great job recapping the
timeline here on the Bigfoot Evidence Blog in: As The Squatch Turns. Some
of my original questions and concerns with the "Daisy is in the box"
claim, beyond the fact that it again involved the mysterious Mr.
"Smith", started out with the fact that "Ed" as the spokesperson for this just does not make sense. "Ed"
supposedly received the news of Daisy's capture as an accidental email,
since his "Original-6" Group no longer existed, having been sold to the
now in charge "Quantra" Group. So even if "Ed" did receive this
unverified message in error why on earth would Quantra continue to feed
him so much non-information and allow him to act as their spokesperson
without making their own announcement to either confirm or refute what
he was implying. "Ed" by his own admission had signed an extensive
non-disclosure and non-competition agreement upon turning over the
research to Quantra, so why is he now acting on their behalf? He also
stated that he is not allowed to even conduct his own, private
research for the extensive period of seven years. The idea that Ed is prevented from his own personal research is
ludicrous. What are they going to do, haul him to court if they
catch him walking in the woods? And wouldn't his mere participation in
the MABRC Forum be breaking that commitment,
let alone blabbing about all this publicly in the first place? This sounded
like a lot of overgrown little boys playing
commando in the woods, and creating dramatic scenarios to act out, a
Dungeons and Dragons for the "Camo crowd". If this is a real operation
being carried out in a planned and
methodical manner by serious researchers following a detailed protocol,
then why on earth would they continue to let this be handled by Mr.
"Smith", and why are they allowing him to now name members of a
"Conference" who are going to convene on the matter, and why was Dr.
Meldrum's name mentioned before he had even heard of this incident. It also seems that
some kind of documentary has been in the works all
along, before O-6 handed everything over to "Quantra", and this event
was just the completion or a step towards the completion of that
"project". My
initial response was that this was all just another ploy for web hits
or to get certain peoples names back into the forefront of discussion. Then I read today's news in Rob Guadet's Blog Squatch Unlimited,
"Ed Smith Answers Questions". These questions and answers again
appeared on the MABRC Forum, but instead of "Ed" handling this session
himself, it was conducted by another party, which only reinforced my
belief that this whole thing was part of a plan to get certain people back in the headlines. But what shocked and disturbed me, and the ENTIRE reason for this post, was what I read after one of the questions (Please see red highlights below): "Question: Do you have any information on the alleged cage that was
built and allegedly used to capture, "Daisy"? What is it made of, and
the specs? Ed Smith: I retain the rights to my written work so I can talk about
the trap unit, but photos, video and CAD drawing are the property of the
Quantra Group. Yes, I designed 95% of the trap unit. It is not a clam shell trap as
has been reported in some of the blogs. Those reports are entirely
inaccurate. We attempted to modify a shipping container at first but found it was in satisfactory for our requirements. The materials used are steel, aluminum and carbon fiber. The dimensions are 11.5 feet in width and 17.8 feet in length, 8.2 feet in height, excluding the pressure bottle rack. The unit is transported in parts to a staging site and assembled. The
assembled unit is skid mounted can be moved by a tractor or wheeled
loader. It is also designed to be lifted by helicopter. Explosive cylinders much like an over loaded 12ga shot gun shell.
Would blow the trip laches on the door and actuate the tensioned springs
snapping the sliding door shut. A weight sensing module is placed at the entrance to the unit covered
in ground material would allow a reasonable weight to be attained. A second weight sensing module is embedded in the floor of the trap
unit allowing the electronic controller to activate the explosive
latches and servo valves on the nitrogen gas cylinders in the knock down
gas system which forces all oxygen out of the space an forces the
specimen in to an unconscious state. Side panels could be opened a
tranquilizing agent (dart) could be administered. The dosage could be determined because of the weight data collected at the entrance would be available at this point. The trap unit can be camouflaged made to look like a hut (out
building) or a stone out crop this is achieved by using modular or
gunite concrete (shotcrete) units then painted or stained to match the
surrounding rock features. Then baited with temptation materials. The unit would be under video observation at distance and video
coverage would be inside the unit and at the entrance. Small video cams
and lipstick cameras would be utilized for this application. Power for the unit would six to eight 12 volt deep cycle battery
configured in a 24 volt parallel configuration this would allow for long
duration soak times without disturbance. Battery box and DC circuit
breaker unit mounted on top of the trap unit. Engineers work on problems, Designers work on needs and we needed a trap. Question: Are you being told anything about the condition of,
"Daisy"? What are the conditions she is being kept in? Is she still in
captivity? Ed Smith: I have been told there is a health issue with the specimen but no details have been given to me." So
their method of rendering "Daisy" unconscious is "suffocation"? And
then they thought they could just open the doors back up, and
immediately "tranquilize" it? If this is real then the "health
concerns" they are dealing with are probably because they KILLED it.... You
cannot suffocate something to the point of unconsciousness, then think
all you have to do is add the oxygen back in and it will just magically
return to normal...Some sort of resuscitation would be necessary. And
trying to tranquilize something, especially an unknown, is a tricky
business at best and often leads to respiratory problems even in a
healthy animal using tried and validated methods tailored specifically
for that species! I have myself assisted with animal restraint during
anesthesia when I worked at U.C. Davis, and have witnessed unexpected
complications first hand, while the animal was under the care of
experienced professionals, so the idea that anyone without extensive
experience in this area would think they could just easily tranquilize
something nonchalantly, after they have suffocated it, is sickening to
me. Those who handle captive chimpanzees and gorillas avoid having to
use tranquilizers or anesthesia at all costs unless the animals life or
that of a caretaker depends on it, because it so often ends tragically
even though they are well researched animals, and the individuals weight
and medical background are not in question. Here is an example of an
unfortunate situation where tranquilizing did not work " Tranquilizing animals complicated, perilous" This
plan, if it was carried out in this manner, is reckless at best and
criminal in the worst case. Even with Bigfoot not being a validated
species they are still covered by all basic animal cruelty laws, and if
this creature was captured in a way that resulted in it's death or
permanent dysfunction then whoever "Quantra" is they need to be held
fully accountable by the authorities of whatever state they are in. This
was not a case of shooting something out of fear or mis-identification,
this was the purposeful baiting and trapping of a creature they knew
full well existed, in a manner that would most likely cause it harm.
No wonder all the secrecy and non-information regarding this case, if
it is true. These people probably realize they have stepped over the
boundaries of animal welfare and into an area of full legal culpability. I am shocked and appalled by this information, true or not. UPDATE(January 6th): I received this comment from David Batdorf who was unable to directly comment here at the time: "Some very good points, Nadia Moore! Inert
gas asphyxiation is used in some countries for capitol punishment and
in the US for controlled mass-slaughter of livestock, such as
chickens... Maybe, they should have done a little more research before
making these claims? This is an efficient and somewhat humane way to
kill. My
guess is that we don't have to worry, as this likely never took
place... and if it did, nitrogen gas would not be the preferred method
of sedation. Killing, maybe... but as a knock-out gas??? There are
better/safer options. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inert_gas_asphyxiation UPDATE 2 (January 9th):
Whether of not she/he ever existed, I officially declare "Daisy" dead on arrival
Well in the last 5 days this story has continued to unfold with more claims by "Ed Smith" as the apparently self appointed spokesperson for the supposed "Quantra" group, an organization which no one had ever heard of before except via the claims of "Ed" himself. You can read how the story devolved at the links to the Squatch Unlimited Blog below:
Then "Ed's" explanation of his supposed meeting with Quantra where they informed him of the above news. Apparently this could not be done via telephone or email, but required an onsite meeting, even though no pictures or evidence of any kind was divulged during this in person visit.
For more understanding of this and other similar incidents please see Guy Edward's "5 Stages of Big Bigfoot Announcement" below:
I am personally greatly relieved that there seems to have never been any actual flesh and blood animal that has been killed or mistreated in any way. Just another sad attempt at garnering attention from a group of people with nothing else to offer.
UPDATE 3 (January 11th): Steve Kulls, AKA The Squatch Detective, hammers in the final nail to the coffin of the "Daisy" Hoax by revealing who "Ed Smith" really is and why he is not someone capable of actually being involved in any of the things he has claimed since 2009:
This post is in answer to the claims that I have seen circulating regarding Dr. Melba Ketchum not being a "real" Doctor, and not being qualified to perform a genetic study. So let's take a look at what it takes to become a Veterinarian in the United States, and what "Title" that entitles one, pun intended, to use. Currently in this country to be accepted into Veterinarian School you have to have completed a 4 year degree in a scientific discipline (Bachelor of Science) as well as fulfilling other qualifications of grade point average, character, experience, and potential, just like Medical School. Sometimes a person is admitted without a 4-year science degree if they have other outstanding experience or qualifications, but this is the exception. Vet school takes 4 years, just like Medical School, upon which many Vets then take internships/residencies, just like Medical School, if they want to specialize in a certain area of medicine or kind of practice, but unlike Medical School completion of a “Residency” is not a requirement. Many Vets specialize in certain areas such as Nutrition, or Radiology, or Genetics, just like regular Doctors. This can entail doing specialized work while in Vet school or completing Masters or Ph.D. programs concurrently or after Vet school. At my time attending and working at U.C. Davis, which has a School of Veterinary Medicine, I knew many Vets who chose to go into research or teaching, instead of practicing medicine. This is true of some Medical Doctors as well. In the United States Veterinarians receive a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine, which makes them “Doctors”. They then have to pass a State Board of Examination in order to practice in the state of their choice, just like Medical Doctors.
Are the requirements in Texas the same or as stringent as other states? Maybe not. Were the Texas requirements the same at the time of Dr. Ketchum’s acceptance and completion of her degree as they are now? (Current Texas A&M Vet School Prerequisites). Perhaps not. Would Dr. Ketchum be able to pass the California State Board of Veterinary Medicine? Possibly not. Are her Texas State Board Qualifications currently up to date? What were her pre and post Veterinary School degrees in, and do they exist? I have looked into these questions and what I have found so far from the Texas A&M Alumni Office are as follows: Dr. Ketchum Graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in 1976, and was part of the Graduating Class of 1978 receiving a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. Those dates would indicate that the requirements for becoming a Vet at that time took only 2 years instead of 4. So yes Dr. Melba Ketchum IS a real Doctor. But her seeming 2 years of post graduate work becoming a Vet is in no way comparable to the time it takes to finish a Ph.D in research, which would usually be 4 years at a minimum, and I know one person who took 12 years as her area of research was more demanding. And as Doctors, Veterinarians take their own version of the Hippocratic Oath upon receiving their Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Degrees: "Being admitted to the profession of veterinary medicine, I solemnly swear to use my scientific knowledge and skills for the benefit of society through the protection of animal health, the relief of animal suffering, the conservation of livestock resources, the promotion of public health, and the advancement of medical knowledge. I will practice my profession conscientiously, with dignity, and in keeping with the principles of veterinary medical ethics. I accept as a lifelong obligation the continual improvement of my professional knowledge and competence."
But how did Dr. Ketchum become qualified to work in the area of
genetics and genetic testing? She makes the following claims on her
company website: "Dr.
Ketchum is a past
three-term Chairperson of the International Society for Animal Genetics
Equine
Genetics Standing Committee. She has also been Dog Map Chairperson and a
Committee member on the Dog and Cat Parentage Committee. She is a former
Treasurer
for AFDAA, The Association of DNA Analysts and Administrators." But she
does not list any Degrees, Certifications, or indications of further
education or training beyond her Veterinarian Degree. That does not
mean these do not exist, but it seems odd that someone making the
extraordinary claims that she has regarding the Sequencing of Bigfoot
DNA, and her year/s long attempt at bringing her findings to an esteemed
Peer Reviewed Journal, would not have released her Credentials or her
Curriculum Vitae by now. These are commonly circulated amongst members
of the Academic Community, and I am sure something of the sort was
submitted along with her paper to the Journal/s she has been working
with. Her Genetic expertise may well have been gained on the job while
working in the labs of others before she founded DNA Diagnostics Inc. in
1985, which is quite a valid form of learning and training, but that
information could be relaid by making public her CV. Doing so would go a long way to setting the minds of many to rest who have serious doubts about her credibility, doubts based on her own statements and public association with members of the "fringe" of Bigfoot Research, those claiming on the one hand that Bigfoot are "human" yet on the other hand that Bigfoot are capable of all manner of paranormal and other-worldly abilities and behaviors. And they have yet to bring forth any evidence of the abilities and behaviors they are claiming their Bigfoot are capable of which would withstand any manner of scientific scrutiny or substantiation.
http://careers.guardian.co.uk/cv-advice
I think another legitimate question might be has Dr. Ketchum violated the "principal of veterinary medical ethics" in that above oath? Well since her lab provided a genetic identification service, and not a medical diagnostic service which could have resulted in the harm and suffering of animals due to the negligence indicated by her Better Business Bureau "F" rating and customer complaints, probably not. But this is a gray area and may be interpreted differently by others, as she is using her title of Doctor in her DNA Diagnostics Bio Page which I am sure her customers used in their decision to do business with her. So Dr. Ketchum I call for you to please release your academic history and qualifications by making your Curriculum Vitae part of the public record, along with the extraordinary claims of success in sequencing the entire nuclear and mitochondrial genomes of several specimens of Bigfoot that you were so eager to share with us before any data substantiating those claims had been released. Read more about DNA Diagnostics Customer Complaints at the Bigfoot Lunch Club. And you can read what an actual geneticist feels about Dr. Ketchum's claims here: Dr. Disotell is a Professor of Anthropology at New York University
