Dangerous Animal Missing from Durham Zoo

Alison Ritrosky

10/31/11

                The Durham Zoo’s 10-year-old Romanian spotted leopard, Fluffy, is nowhere to be found. State Police, the state wildlife department, and the National Guard are teamed up in finding the animal that has a special appetite for young children.

                Although naturally a warm and loving cat, the feline can quickly turn dangerous if cornered, as its natural instinct is to “kill, and kill quickly,” according the zoo’s chief biologist, Kitty Smith.

                Police and zoo workers alike are searching the premises, frantically looking in trash cans, behind buildings, in trees, inside the cotton candy concession. Some even carry high-powered rifles. The zoo is a place of mayhem.

Police Chief William Blair described the plan of attack to find Fluffy. “We will first search every inch of this zoo,” Blair said. “If possible, Fluffy will be shot with a tranquilizer gun. But if necessary, we will shoot to kill.” The goal is to find Fluffy by 3 p.m., before the elementary school is let out, as young children pose as a dangerous target.

Fluffy was last seen last night when the zoo closed at 9 p.m., according to the director of the zoo, Gerry Durrell. “This morning the door was shut and did not appear to have been tampered with. The fencing was unbroken,” Durrell said. “It’s cage is alarmed, but no alarms sounded during the night.”

Regulars of the zoo also first noticed Fluffy gone this morning.

“Fluffy usually draws the straw up into a nest when she sleeps, but there was no nest – there wasn’t even any straw,” said James Petronkis, resident of Newmarket. Petronkis goes to the zoo every morning at 7:30 a.m. only to visit Fluffy.

Petronkis is not the only one missing Fluffy. Durrell started tearing up while talking about her disappearance.

“We love that cat, and we don’t want to lose her,” Durrell said, choking back tears. The zoo is doing everything in its power to have Fluffy return safe and sound.

Smith, while hoping Fluffy has a safe return, warns everyone she can about the dangers of this cat on the loose. “Unless she senses fear she’s not likely to react violently,” Smith said. “They take the ‘kill now, ask later’ approach to life. Be especially careful to avoid eye contact.”

NY Times Wednesday 10/26

I found today’s news to be totally and completely sobering. Two articles in particular really got my attention. The first was the article “Voting Conception as the Legal Start of Life” in Mississippi – I was appalled and shocked to hear that starting on November 8 of this year not only would abortion be outlawed (regardless of whether she was raped or in a life threatening condition) but certain forms of birth control are being banned as well. Women NEED to have the freedom of choice regarding abortion given to them. In certain cases, like rape or a disease that’s life threatening, it is not just a choice, it is a vital necessity that women protect themselves over a fetus – not yet a developed person, in my opinion.

Secondly, as of today President Obama “eased student loan burden for low-income graduates” and proposed a “pay as you go” plan to ease stress for college grads. While I think this plan is smart, can we really afford to be doing this, financially, as a country? Tuition prices have gone up everywhere and student aid from the government is decreasing. It is getting harder and harder to attend college here in the US because of the prices. UNH was actually mentioned on A18 as one of the highest tuition costs for state colleges.

NY Times Tuesday 10/25

It was great to immediately see the follow up story of yesterday’s article about the earthquake in Turkey. At first, the man in the picture on the front page looks dead, but the caption actually says he is a survivor that was lifted from the debris. Amazingly enough, the number of known deaths increased from Monday to Tuesday from about 75 to 300. But there are only 25 survivors. Although the country has some support, there is not a lot of technology, and so rescue workers have to dig through debris with their hands.

I thought the reporter for “Children Watching More than Ever”, an article about children’s use of technology with iPhones and iPads, did a fantastic job with the article, getting many different points of view on the topic as well as connecting the dilemma to problems in years past. What absolutely amazes me is that parents would hand over their iPads to a three-year-old: I don’t care what kind of app you have on that thing, a child that young will not benefit from staring at a screen! To me, it’s a copout for parenting, and as the reporter referred to it, “a shut up toy”.

NY Times Monday 10/24

The Times today really told the news like it was, cut and dry. In the article about the Argentinean elections, it was evident that the reporter researched his facts heavily. While he interviewed members of the Argentinean government and they insisted that “the inflation rate is less than 10 percent”, the International Monetary Fund proved otherwise. It said the government data was unreliable, and the inflation rate is indeed higher. I think that this lie said by the government makes a statement about not only Argentina, but governments around the world. If the Argentinean government would lie to a reporter from the New York Times, imagine what kind of lies our government is telling our society.

I thought the picture on A4 was absolutely horrifying but captured the intensity of the earthquake that hit Turkey, as 970 buildings have collapsed and as of right now 45 people dead. The picture captures the struggle of the Turkish people as they come out from under rubble of brick and cement from the buildings, with scared looks on their faces.

The story about the slaughter of horses surprised me, because the banning of slaughter of horses is actually making our economy worse and worsening conditions for horses. Horses that had been sold to slaughterhouses are now being euthanized, so the flow of money has stopped. Horses also are being brought across the borders and slaughtered anyway, so it actually abuses them more. I thought the Times did a good job with connecting the slaughtering of horses to the present state of our economy.

NY Times Reading Log 10/17-10/20

Monday, October 17th

               

I was really taken aback by the front pager “Pleas Unheeded as Students’ U.S. Jobs Soured”. By the title, I had no idea that the article I was about to read was going to deal with racism – I was shocked and quite disgusted.

For a trip that probably many foreigners save up for and look forward to throughout the year to get an “American experience”, they are simply plopped in a packaging factory in Hershey, PA – the program has been running for years, and students are finally protesting! How did it go on this long? Hopefully there will be some immediate changes.

I thought the Times had great pictures today – starting with the Martin Luther King statue on the front, to Genachowski’s speech on the next page, followed up with a snapshot from Afghanistan during an attack.

I am always drawn to the articles regarding education – on A13, there was an article about St. John’s College and how professors do not need to specialize in the subject areas that they teach. It is a liberal school and teachers are encouraged to explore different subject areas, and collaboratively work with their students in learning the material. There are also no majors – a scary and somewhat strange way to invest in education, in my opinion.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

                The front page picture of all the protests around the world really unifies the current situation of the world, both economically and socially. I was really impressed that the Times, instead of choosing to focus on one country (like Greece, or the US) and protests going on, they meshed it all into one. To me, it spoke volumes about the crises EVERYWHERE in the world.

                The direct quotes that the reporters got from some of these people were awesome. I was surprised but thought it was funny to see Ken Alandt’s quote, “Bro, I have been lied to so many times…” The Times made sure to include “Bro” in the statement. How does that speak to Alandt’s credibility as a source? It is less professional, but more relatable to the younger audience.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

                I decided to switch gears and read the Business section first today. Immediately the article on Abbott Labs splitting into two sections caught my eye; my uncle is a chemist at Abbott. Although the split was a reflection on the current success of the company, no one knows how they will benefit in the long run. Some people in the company are moving to Europe, as the company is moving more worldwide. Right now it is based in Chicago.

                And, Facebook is changing yet again! The little picture of the Facebook logo changing clothes behind a curtain made me laugh; it was a cute introduction to a somewhat disturbing article that made me want to delete my Facebook account. I used to think MySpace was a violation of privacy; it’s amazing how the social life of the Internet has evolved. According to this article, Facebook will be creating a “timeline of your life”, starting with the day you were born – and you can add events, pictures, etc of who you were before you joined Facebook. This is insane! Does anyone have an ounce of privacy?

                On a different note, I liked the informative article about the outbreak of listeria caused by the growth of tainted cantaloupe in an unsanitary packing shed. An interesting topic to cover, the reporter interviewed the FDA and victims of the outbreak.