RATS!: The rodents are winning

Truth is at least some of these bodies we have scurrying about are just lab rats, part of a study having to do with overcrowding. The socio-economic and psychological consequences of it, etc. At least that’s what I think it is.

But, of course these rats wouldn’t have a clue. They weren’t consulted. All they know is this business of bumping into other rodents all the time — and more of them every week — is grating on their nerves. Just getting to the food bowl has become a pitched battle for them. And certainly no self-respecting rat can tolerate that for long.

But, luckily, we humans have evolved. We can see the big picture. We can see, for instance, how plunking down as many houses as possible into the subdivisions — the many, many subdivisions — is a boon to tax revenue. We can see how promotions and advertising in California and elsewhere have been wildly successful in attracting hordes, immigrants and tourists, to the area. And it’s plain as day how local merchants and businesses benefit from that.

So, maybe, all things considered, we should welcome the congestion, the loss of open spaces and elbow room, the noise and increase in crime. Maybe we should. Our options seem pretty limited, after all.

But at least we can be grateful that we’re not unwiitting subjects in some kind of lab study. Well, we’re not, are we? I mean, I don’t think we are.

DEL CAMERON

Coeur d’Alene