RESEARCH? Why bother?

The current way of thinking pertaining to the Canadian Grey Wolf on certain anti-wolf pages is that the Canadian Government decided (wolf) generations ago that it was going to design and breed a super wolf…a hybrid killing machine that would eliminate the ungulate population in the U.S. so that a) hunters would have to come to Canada to hunt and spend their money and b) the American government would cite that “without any hunting there would be no need for guns” and therefore would implement gun control measures.

I love America and the times I’ve visited I’ve found the general population to be genuinely friendly and real folk but this is just one of those absurd issues that make me wonder what the hell is going on not only there but here…and everywhere.

I have to keep reminding myself that this type of thinking is spouted by a minority with a collective big mouth but I also look at the number of people buying into these fairy tales. I’ve come to the conclusion that a certain segment of the world’s population needs bad stuff to make them feel good. I’ve grown weary of all the conspiracy theories surrounding JFK and 911 but now Sandy Hook was all a conspiracy? The Boston Marathon bombing was a conspiracy? I suppose if you buy into these then Canadian scientists developing DNA for a super-wolf pack back in the late forties makes a lot of sense. I can picture these three or four science guys sitting around plotting how they can destroy game herds in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho in 2014. And they acquired the technology needed to carry out their nefarious scheme from a flying saucer that crashed through the roof of Maple Leaf Gardens during a Stanley Cup final game. It killed about 3,000 people but of course we had to cover it up. Okay I made up that last part but I’m sure someone will believe it.

Since this non-native super wolf story unfolded there have been countless reports of these 250 pound killers (no actual proof though) showing up on people’s back porches and chasing elderly women from bus stops. Stories about a fully-grown wolf “trying” to get through a patio screen or, my particular favorite, a hunter and his son breaking through heavy underbrush only to “surprise” seven wolves lined up in a clearing ten feet in front of them. My God…paranoia fodder or what? These fables have become common and are accepted as Gospel by the disciples who worship these pages.

I write fiction but even fiction needs a firm grasp in reality if it is to be believed. My son has a Pit-cross that is probably half the size of that wolf “trying” to get through the patio screen but his dog went through our screen like it wasn’t there. And before you make up a story about “surprising” a wolf pack you might want to research the wolf’s hearing and sense of smell then tell me you could get within ten feet of them without them knowing you were there. I won’t even get into the configuration of a wolf pack at rest. Suffice to say they wouldn’t be “lined up”.

Research is all important if you’re writing anything. I daresay the fiction writer does nearly as much research as someone writing a fact-based book. In the book I’m currently finishing I refer to Edmonton, Alberta for one chapter. I lived there most of my life until I moved in 1994. Even though the area was clear in my mind after I’d completed the chapter I googled all the landmarks I’d referenced…then had some re-writing to do. Most of them were gone and the street I referred to is now one-way and an action I had presented would not be possible. Studying the google earth photos gave me a clearer reference and helped me add the touch of realism I wanted.

Is this important? Yes. Without me checking up on myself someone from Edmonton could pick up my book and see right through me but as it is they can now follow the story-line in a setting that they’re familiar with.

It’s all in the details.