The real question is why we place these increasing demands on participants. It
is not as if the winner gets crowned king or wins a million dollars. If they
are lucky, perhaps they will be featured in a book that gets made into a movie.
Eric Jeffrey
Sent from my iPhone
> On May 19, 2016, at 8:33 PM, Peter Shute <> wrote:
>
> Kim, my point wasn't about the morality of big years, but about the
> decreasing practicality of them. Apart from the increasing cost due to the
> higher counts required, the burden of proof required for such a high stakes
> game may be getting too difficult to meet. Do you have to photograph every
> bird now, where once only one's word, or the occasional photo was sufficient?
> And do you also have to prove that you took the photos yourself, at the place
> and time your claim to have taken them?
>
> Peter Shute
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Birding-Aus On Behalf
>> Of Kim Sterelny
>> Sent: Friday, 20 May 2016 10:04 AM
>> To: Kim Sterelny <>
>> Cc: 'Birding Aus' <>
>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] John Weigel
>>
>> People
>>
>> I have never done a big year, nor have any intention (or the skills) to do
>> so.
>> But can folks please stop moralising about the choices of how other people
>> spend their time and money. If people want to go on a holiday chasing birds,
>> or have a gap year doing so, that is their choice. If you think it is
>> interesting
>> and fun; read their books; follow their blog (I'll certainly be looking out
>> for
>> Kingbird Highway); if not, don't. But unless you never go on a holiday; never
>> spend money renovating your house; never fly; cycle or walk everywhere;
>> remember that you have a carbon footprint too; you could donate to
>> charities more; and so forth. As choices about how to spend your life go,
>> bird
>> chasing is pretty harmless. So respect others' choices.
>>
>> OK: that probably counts as moralising too! But I'll risk it Kim
>>
>>
>>
>> Kim Sterelny, School of Philosophy, Research School of the Social Sciences,
>> Australian National University, Acton, 0200, ACT, Australia
>> or
>>
>> 61-(0)2-6125-2886
>>
>> ________________________________________
>> From: Birding-Aus <> on behalf of Tony
>> Russell <>
>> Sent: Friday, 20 May 2016 8:45 AM
>> To: 'Peter Shute'; 'Anne Brophy'
>> Cc: 'Birding Aus'; 'Tim'
>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] John Weigel
>>
>> Were they ever practical ? Or of any use whatsoever ? Surely only the
>> attention seeking misdirected aspirations of the person with too much time
>> and money to expend are involved. It's just a silly " I'm better than you"
>> game and the money would be better given to a deserving charity ( and for
>> the person to get a job).
>>
>> Tony.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Birding-Aus On Behalf
>> Of Peter Shute
>> Sent: 19 May 2016 21:11
>> To: Anne Brophy
>> Cc: Birding Aus; Tim
>> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] John Weigel
>>
>> I haven't read Kingbird Highway, but I see that it's set in 1973. I believe
>> Roy
>> Wheeler and Kevin Bartram, who did their Australian big years not that long
>> after, also didn't drive.
>>
>> I think it would be impossible to break the record these days without a
>> driving licence, and a lot of time and a lot of cash, let alone the
>> organisational
>> and birding skills and luck that have always been required.
>>
>> Given the increasing difficulty of breaking the record, can these attempts
>> continue indefinitely? Surely a time will come when the personal cost won't
>> be worth the tiny chances of beating the record. And surely, as the record
>> gets harder to beat, the temptation to take "shortcuts" will increase, and
>> with it the need to provide the proof that is being asked of John Wiegel.
>> It's a
>> big ask to expect someone to get a photo of every bird, and as we saw in a
>> recent Victorian big year, even a photo can be insufficient proof.
>>
>> Are big years becoming impractical?
>>
>> Peter Shute
>>
>>
>>
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