[Megan]

Michael, I see this as inherently a spiritual issue that reaches right down to where the rubber meets the road--the back yards where our children play--but you have a perfect right to your own opinion, it goes without saying, if you find it uninteresting.

I think it is a fascinating, multi-layered problem that will take our best minds and creative efforts to deal with. At present, I can't even imagine how we will deal with it, but I think we have the potential for a great deal of collective growth in the process.

In the mean time, I think we need to take keeping our children safe in our communities and recreational areas very seriously. That may mean shooting some cougars, which I am very sorry about, but I think we need to put human life first, and work toward a long-term solution that respects human life and ecological balance.

That will involve grappling with one of our most ancient fears, and has the potential for catalyzing a tremendous evolutionary shift for us collectively, I think. But...that's just me, I realize.

I don't think anyone has an answer to this yet. That's why it's interesting to think and talk about, to me, anyway, but to each his own.