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AIBU?

BBC call cruelty to Swan a prank

17 replies

Lightswitchesoffatnight · 05/05/2021 22:54

AIBU to call the BBC out on this?

BBC report a sock was pulled over a swan's head in a "mindless prank" that could have led to the bird's death.
Police believe the garment was put on intentionally due to the "snug fit" and "how far down the neck the tube was".
Had it not been rescued, officers said, the swan, found in Coulson Road, Lincoln, would likely have starved to death or suffocated.

This isn’t a fucking prank, it’s cruelty to a beautiful bird.

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Am I being unreasonable?

AIBU

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SouthOfFrance · 05/05/2021 23:06

Awful. How can people do such a thing & then just swan off & leave the poor bird like that.

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SquirtleSquad · 05/05/2021 23:10

BBC didn't seem it a prank themselves, they have quoted direct from the RSPCA officer who issued a statement

Inspector Kate Burris, from the wildlife charity, said the "mindless prank could have resulted in this poor swan suffering over a long period of time and ultimately ended in their death."

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SquirtleSquad · 05/05/2021 23:11

*deem not seem

And I'm in no way trying to minimise what happened, which is fucking awful. But BBC have used quotation marks around prank in all written reporting on it.

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BeefSupreme · 05/05/2021 23:12

It’s not a “mindless prank” some bastard put effort into being a cruel bastard to the innocent swan

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osbertthesyrianhamster · 05/05/2021 23:14

It's cruelty that could have killed the animal.

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MercyBooth · 06/05/2021 01:26

WTF goes through the mind of people who do sick shit like this. Poor bird. Sad Angry

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MrsTerryPratchett · 06/05/2021 01:36

Policing language gets old really quickly. I could say that you posting, "it’s cruelty to a beautiful bird" implies it wouldn't have mattered if it was an ugly animal.

Fact is, it doesn't matter how it's described since the arseholes who do this kind of thing don't give a shit about your opinion or the RSPCA's.

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FrankensteinIsTheMonster · 06/05/2021 02:23

I wish they hadn't publicised it; all that can do is give twats ideas.

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Lightswitchesoffatnight · 06/05/2021 08:35

Awful to call it a prank and awful cruelty.

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Lightswitchesoffatnight · 06/05/2021 08:36

@MrsTerryPratchett

Policing language gets old really quickly. I could say that you posting, "it’s cruelty to a beautiful bird" implies it wouldn't have mattered if it was an ugly animal.

Fact is, it doesn't matter how it's described since the arseholes who do this kind of thing don't give a shit about your opinion or the RSPCA's.

I absolutely take your point. Any animal, any cruelty just turns my stomach.
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user1471457751 · 06/05/2021 08:39

The BBC was quoting the rspca. Other news stations have done the same thing.

You're right that it's jot a prank, it's animal cruelty but take it up with the rspca if the language bothers you

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userxx · 06/05/2021 08:39

@BeefSupreme

It’s not a “mindless prank” some bastard put effort into being a cruel bastard to the innocent swan


This 100%.
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Babdoc · 06/05/2021 08:47

I’m with Frankenstein- the BBC either should not have reported it, or just gone with unspecified “cruelty to a swan”.
There will now, no doubt, be copycat incidents from other sick bastards.

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SouthOfFrance · 06/05/2021 11:53

To be honest, the first thing that I thought of when I saw it was how the fuck do you get a sock on a Swan without being injured yourself? It's just such a bizarre thing to do.

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mainsfed · 06/05/2021 12:08

YABU for the misleading title. They've quoted the RSPCA, and the 'mindless' makes it clear that it was not condoned.

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BlackAlys · 06/05/2021 13:03

@FrankensteinIsTheMonster

I wish they hadn't publicised it; all that can do is give twats ideas.

This. 100%
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HunterAngel · 06/05/2021 16:45

It’s a cruel and nasty thing to do but part of me really wants to know how the heck they caught the swan and held it down long enough to pull a sock over its head. Swans are big birds with very powerful wings and known for their bad temper. They’ve attacked people before, particularly when they’ve young nearby

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