On Sunday we went to the San Francisco Zoo. I have mixed feelings about zoos. On the one hand, I love the opportunity to see so many animals I would never see in the wild in my lifetime. I think it's wonderful for children (and adults) to see animals in person. It's a lot different to hear about the lemurs in Madagascar than it is to see them right in front of you. I think that helps foster conservation of animals.

According to the SF Zoo, there are more Siberian tigers in zoos today than in the wild. So that's another good thing about zoos--it helps keep some species alive.

On the other hand--they're in zoos. Some zoos are better than others, but any way you slice it, they're locked up in an unnatural environment. Some animals are better suited to that life than others. I'm not sure what the right thing is.