[nine_k]

House cats kill an order of magnitude more birds and bats than windmills. Practically no one calls domestic cats ugly, or suggests to ban them.

Access roads required for wind generator maintenance are neither large nor busy: there's no fuel to bring, and no ash to take away.

[melagonster]

I hope people don't let their cat go to outside. problems are problems.

[wkat4242]

Cats belong outside where possible. And birds have predators, it's just nature.

[Johnny555]

Birds have predators, but most predators don't have humans to shelter them at night, feed them when food is scarce so they are always well fed when they hunt, and take them to the vet to protect them from disease, parasites, and heal their injuries. And human development has pushed out most of the predators that would keep cat populations in check (like coyotes)

[samplatt]

Indoor cats live longer and have fewer health issues. Sorry kitty, I like the idea of native wildlife existing and less vet bills more than your freedom.

[catiopatio]

Safety over freedom and happiness certainly is an increasingly common way of viewing the world.

[nine_k]

It's not safety. It's more like extermination: domestic cats kill to play, not to eat. They have plenty of energy, compared to wild animals, and vets keep their life longer and more healthy. So the balance goes even more off.

(I love cats, and keep two. They have their serving of fresh air in the fire escape.)

[samplatt]

Mine has an enclosed back verandah, a 3x15 meter space with lots of hideyholes. She also gets (supervised) time in a backyard with long grass. Doubtless she kills lizards and rodents during this time. But it's about as good a compromise as I can give her.

[mrguyorama]

Also there are just SO GODDAMN MORE CATS than there naturally would be, and SIGNIFICANTLY FEWER BIRDS than there naturally would be.

[smegger001]

yes but we killed off or drove off many of those predators.