The Editor’s Note

irst and foremost, it’s been difficult to focus on anything other

Fthan what’s happening on the other side of the world. How could you take your eyes off the events unfolding in Ukraine?

As someone who has traveled in former Soviet Union republics Latvia and Estonia, plus one-time Eastern Bloc nations such as Czechia and Romania, the experiences allowed me to get a glimpse of the history of those now free nations. So my heart is with the Ukrainian people as I’m reminded that freedom and peace should never be taken for granted. But we go on the best we can here at home.

Some happy news among all the despair, strife and concerns came from the Lake Tahoe area, where a literally larger-thanlife black bear has temporarily been given clemency from a potential death sentence.

The massive bruin now known as “Hank the Tank” was thought to be the sole culprit in a series of home invasions Social media posts have flooded the Internet in around South Lake support of “Hank the Tank,” the Lake Tahoe-area Tahoe. California black bear found not to be the sole culprit in a series Department of Fish of home break-ins. DNA evidence showed that multiple bruins have been seeking out food sources and Wildlife officials in homes, which means Hank will not be euthanized were going to have if trapped. (TWITTER SCREENSHOT) to trap and likely euthanize what was considered a 500-pound problem bear that clearly was dangerous enough to equate humans and their homes with food sources.

But Hank isn’t the rogue badly behaving critter as originally thought. DNA evidence collected at some of the sites – most break-ins happened in the Tahoe Keys area on the California side of South Lake Tahoe – indicated that multiple bears were involved in the home invasions, not just Hank the Tank.

“DNA evidence collected from the most recent incident as well as prior incidents over the past several months prove that at least three bears were responsible for breaking into numerous residences,” a CDFW press release stated. “CDFW will work in coming weeks and months to trap bears in the South Lake Tahoe area, tag them, collect evidence for genetic analysis, and then release them into suitable habitat. … CDFW is not going to euthanize any bears that are trapped during this effort.”

So as many social media posts indicated, there is some justice for a beloved and – at least for now – exonerated Hank the Tank. We wish him well and hope that Tahoe humans and bears alike can peacefully coexist. That goes for the world as well. -Chris Cocoles