A life for a life?

Colin Watson is dead. He was 63. He died falling from a 40ft larch tree. What he was doing up there is open to question.
What is fact is that Mr Watson had spent his lifetime stealing. Not money. Not gold or jewels. Not other tangible valuables.
He stole eggs - birds' eggs. From the nests of rare birds like ospreys, golden eagles, rare falcons, hawks and snipes. Eggs which could have helped to make these species less endangered had they been allowed to hatch and grow into adult birds.
In effect Mr Watson stole life from eggs which could possibly have hatched into chicks. He stole the most important thing on the planet - life itself.
I don't know why Mr Watson had this obsession but it seems it must have been compulsive. He was brought before the courts on many occasions over many years and fined - in total - more than £5,000. A spokesman for The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds stated that, although the death of anybody was regrettable, endangered and rare species would now be less vulnerable. Mr Watson's son has said that his father had seen the error of his previous ways and was just climbing the tree to take photographs of the nesting birds.
Yeah, right . . .
Some people would say that if that was the case he should have been helping the authorities to bring other egg-thieves to justice. Some people would say that, had we been able to use some of the knowledge that Mr Watson had accumulated over the years, we would be able to increase our understanding of these species and thus better help them to survive and increase in numbers.
Some would just say that Mr Watson got his just desserts - in depriving rare birds of life he finally lost his own life.
Personally, I am uncomfortable with a society that only reacts after an event. We need more positive action to protect what is, in effect, all our heritage. Our future - as well as our past.
You're getting too profound again, Mac.
Nuff said.