Version 4.1
Declaration on Hippopotamuses
Category: Declaration
Proposed by: Bears Armed Mission
The World Assembly,
Aware that species of animals can differ considerably from each other in terms of their members' average and maximum sizes,
Also aware that the size of an animal can affect how easy it is for people to cope with that animal's presence,
And believing that some nations' governments might benefit from possessing knowledge about certain species' average and maximum adult sizes in order to develop plans for coping with those species before any members of those species enter those nations' territories;
Hereby,
1. Reminds this organization's member-nations that although there were two unsuccessful attempts at passing Hippopotamus-related legislation in the early days of its historic precursor there is currently a total lack of extant WA legislation about Hippopotamuses (hereinafter referred to as "Hippos");
2. Affirms that no true Hippo is a "pygmy";
3. Notes that Hippos can become aggressive towards people, as well as towards other animals, without any warning;
4. Informs all of this organization's member nations that, with known maximum lengths in excess of 16 ½ feet and maximum weights [in the wild] in excess of 4'400 pounds, Hippos are really very large.
FAQ
1.
Q: Why?
A: As it says, in tribute to the verry early days of the NS-UN: "Hippos are really quite large" was a forum meme here for a long time.
(For more information on that history, see:
viewtopic.php?p=38802667#p38802667
viewtopic.php?p=38804958#p38804958
viewtopic.php?p=38806972#p38806972
viewtopic.php?p=38808084#p38808084 )
2.
Q: Is this a joke?
A: . No. It's certainly light-hearted, but I do consider the information contained worth spreading. Bear in mind that _
i/ Hippos, particularly adult males, are known for their argumentativeness. It's thought that they kill more people directly (rather than by transmitting diseases) than any other animal in RL Africa.
ii/ There is already one [RL] nation, situated outside of Africa, where the Hippopotamus is an 'invasive' species! (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippopotamus_in_Colombia )
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Differences from third draft: Clause '0' inserted, clause about walruses dropped, measurements inserted into what is now clause '4'.
Differences from second draft: Clauses '1' to '4' inserted, and clause '5' given its current number; clause '5' (as it now is) re-worded lightly, and re-formatted.
Differences from first draft: contents of the "Aware _" & "Also Aware_" clauses switched over with each other.