I mean, this is not really a solution. Poachers don't do what they do because they're greedy and hate animals, they do it because they're poor and have often no other choice but to risk their lives to make a living, and they are probably getting something like 10$ per rhino horn. This is a systematic problem perpetually reinforced by the actual people we should be shooting: the millionaires who hire the poachers. They are the ones destroying the environment, exploiting animals and people and reselling those same rhino horns for ridiculous amounts of money on the black market.

[–] HikingVet@lemmy.sdf.org 16 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Then they should be stealing from the rich. Not killing endangered species.

And at ~ $20000 USD/kg for African and ~400000 USD/kg for Asian, and them not taking the meat. Its definitely for profit and not survival.

[–] radioactiveradio@lemm.ee -4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's simple math, if you kill animals and get caught you get one maybe up to 10 years in prison. If you kill/steal from a millionaire you get lifetime of troubles and jail and possibly put your family in danger too.

[–] HikingVet@lemmy.sdf.org 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Well, it appears trying to kill an Asian Rhino in India is much more dangerous than robbing the rich.

Or did you miss the part that they are killing the poachers?

[–] radioactiveradio@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago

"I missed the part where that's my problem" Bully Maguire

[–] lambalicious@lemmy.sdf.org 9 points 1 year ago

Poachers don’t do what they do because they’re greedy and hate animals, they do it because they’re poor and have often no other choice but to risk their lives to make a living,

Well, they're risking their lives, they're losing them in the gamble. No one owes you winning a gamble.

This is a systematic problem perpetually reinforced by the actual people we should be shooting: the millionaires who hire the poachers

Not saying we don't, I'm all in for shooting a millionaire myself; but that doesn't detract from still needing to kill the poachers: we can't leave the reservoires and wild habitats unguarded merely to kill one or two twitter twats, so the job of millionaire killer we have to give to someone else.

[–] pinkdrunkenelephants@sopuli.xyz 8 points 1 year ago

Nah, we of the working class and impoverished are partly responsible for the situation we're in, because we're too busy playing the system instead of fighting back like we were supposed to be doing. The result is this: people wiping out popular and beloved species just to get crumbs from their masters. How disgusting.

[–] Marzepansion@programming.dev 6 points 1 year ago

we should be shooting: the millionaires who hire the poachers

Damn, I was looking forward to eating them. :(

But you're entirely right. Obviously the poachers do the hunting, but there are people rich enough out there that put a price on rhinos to begin with, they are the real problem. They wouldn't be hunted if there was no incentive.

[–] argv_minus_one@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago

ridiculous amounts of money on the black market

Exactly. These aren't impoverished farmers doing what's necessary to live in some semblance of comfort. They're greedy SOBs who don't give a rip about anything other than riches. They don't deserve sympathy.

[–] Nacktmull@lemm.ee 0 points 1 year ago

Exactly, the real solution would be the west allowing disadvantaged countries to develop a functional and stable local economy that provides people with better ways out of poverty than poaching endangered animals.