On Thu, 22 Jun 1995, Mike High wrote:
 
> Anyone wearing gel in his hair around the bees is an idiot.I
> doubt the bees were "agressive" as they did'nt bother anyone
> else.
 
I am really concerned about this 'blame the victim' approach.
 
This episode is a serious public relations problem for all beekeepers.
Doubly, inasmuch as the media was involved.
 
It appears to be a regretable anomaly, however identifying causes and
making them known - as did Eric Abel in his post - is useful.
 
We cannot just call an invited naive visitor who is severely attacked 'an
idiot'.
 
Any such statements are a disgrace to this industry.  Blaming the victim
only exacerbates a bad situation.
 
We must do everything in our power to avoid incidents like this and
everything we can to ensure that nothing but support and apologies flow
towards any victims.  That is assuming we wish our pursuits to receive the
blessings of thepublic, the authorities, and the landowners on whom we
depend for good will.
 
I personally wear aftershave, shampoo regularly and sometime even use soap.
Afterwards I often work my bees without a veil. I don't think this makes
me an idiot. I've done it for twenty-five years.
 
There are, however some products that antagonise bees and we don't know
which ones until and incident like this occurs.  When we find out, we
should take steps to make the problem known and perhaps notify the
manufacturer - who might be interested in knowing about the potential for
death or injury to his customer and the possible subsequent liability.
 
A small change in the formulation might make everyone happy.
 
Allen
 
 
W. Allen Dick, Beekeeper                        VE6CFK
Rural Route One   Swalwell   Alberta   Canada  T0M 1Y0
Email:   [log in to unmask]    or   [log in to unmask]
Futures, Art & Honey:http://www.cuug.ab.ca:8001/~dicka