November 8, 2006

Editorial: Bigfoot, Baloney!

The Columbian of Vancouver WA published this editorial today regarding the AP article about Jeff Meldrum.

There is a place to leave your comments regarding this editorial on their site here.

Just remember, no death threats please.

In Our View – Bigfoot, Baloney!

Wednesday, November 8, 2006
Columbian editorial writers

Maybe this legend fills a human need

Bigfoot doesn’t exist. That bold editorial stance is subject to change if and when there’s scientific evidence that the legendary ape-man of the Northwest, also called Sasquatch, now roams or ever did roam the Cascades or other mountains anywhere. Until then, taxpayers shouldn’t subsidize the fantasies of people such as anatomy professor Jeffrey Meldrum at Idaho State University or the late Grover Krantz of Washington State University.

A recent Associated Press story said Meldrum, a Krantz disciple, "spends most of his days in his laboratory (on campus) analyzing more than 200 jumbo plaster casts of what he contends are Bigfoot footprints." The notoriety Meldrum brings to the Pocatello school is embarrassing to many on the faculty, although some defend his work as academic freedom. Last summer, more than 30 faculty members signed a petition protesting ISU’s hosting of a Bigfoot symposium where Meldrum was keynote speaker.

Tom Leeson of Vancouver has taken wildlife pictures professionally for 30 years and has seen and photographed rare and furtive animals, including the black footed ferret in Montana, wolverines in the Canadian Rockies, and wild cougars on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. He and his wife, Pat (link to their website) travel all over the world shooting pictures.

And guess what? They’ve never seen a Bigfoot, alive or dead. And they haven’t seen or heard of evidence such as a bona fide photo or fur or bones that scientists can say are consistent with the notion of the legendary man-ape. "Somebody would eventually find a body" if there were a Bigfoot," Leeson quite sanely figures. "A hunter would have shot one in the past 150 years. A motorist would have hit one crossing a road somewhere."

Maybe, as Leeson figures, the Bigfoot legend fills a need in some folks to have something in their lives they can’t explain, like lost gold mines. Or how about a man’s disappearance? Thirty-five years ago this month, Dan "D.B." Cooper parachuted out of a commercial airliner over Southwest Washington with $200,000 in cash. He or his remains have not been found. Maybe Bigfoot ate him.

Filed under Bigfoot, Bigfoot Report, Breaking News, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Evidence, Expedition Reports, Eyewitness Accounts, Forensic Science, Public Forum, Sasquatch