It is a well known fact Beth that Hornets can be expected to become much bigger and more dangerous as a result of Global warming.
Class - 31 people have lost their lives in a horrific way and we have fans of another team coming on to our forum to make jokes about it. Take a bow
Frenchie - have you seen these things? Apparently well established in France. Saw the pictures on line. Viscious!!
No we don't get these. We do have the smaller Asian hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax that has caused problems getting into hives and killing off the bees. These things though are Vespa mandarinia that are twice the size. The normal even smaller hornet that goes after my pears and grapes can be lethal, and if stung you are advised to get to A&E or the doctor within half an hour for an injection. A 35 year old healthy man died a few years ago near here after being stung and not bothering to get medical treatment. By and large, like wasps they do not attack you unless they feel threatened, it is when you don't see them and grab hold of one that the trouble starts.
Beth, I did appreciate how you meant it, but I also agree with Dan about not putting something like that on here, especially when you see the full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-24367050 I'm just relieved it's not in the province where my colleagues in the office in China are, especially having met some of them when they came to visit here.
Absolutely certain that Beth meant this in a light hearted way. I think we're forgetting also how many times black humour comes into our daily lives. It's part of being British. We have all laughed at Monty Python sketches in the past - some of which contained references to things which could have been hurtfull to someone else - think of some of the jokes about mad cow disease for example. It's just our British way of protecting ourselves against grim reality. The story about giant hornets is, unfortunately very normal for our times. Arising out of global warming, milder winters, monoculture in our farming methods, pesticides and the dying out of natural balances - these are the real subjects for debate. The way we are treating the World is kicking back at us. The animals who we want to increase in numbers don't e.g. bumble bees, and those we wish to decrease go on multiplying - giant hornets or malaria carrying mosquitoes for example. In Germany we have seen a 320% increase in the numbers of wild boar. They are all around us - at night less than 200 metres from my house, making walks after dark potentially dangerous (I live in the countryside 40km from Cologne). They actually sometimes dig up corpses in graveyards. The reasons for their multiplication are; mild winters and farming practices which prioritize fodder for cattle ie. maizefields and their natural control (the wolf) is not with us yet. Other problems closer to home are the increase in tick borne diseases in central Europe and the re emergence (according to WHO) of cases of malaria in some parts of Southern Europe. Most of these have one central cause yet I doubt if any of us will draw the natural consequence and drive our cars less, fly less frequently on holiday, or be prepared to pay more for healthier more balanced food, or avoid having our junk transported around the globe. Mostly we will just express horror at stories like that of the hornets and think it is nothing to do with us. Sorry in advance - rant over !
I wouldn't disgaree but some time ago, following jokes from a couple of people myself included, it was generally established that jokes about disaster on this forum were a no go area and I was happy to abide by that but equally want to ensure a level playing field
