Here’s a break from the soul-crushing political firehose we engage in every day.

For a while in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, I was somewhat obsessed with Pablo Escobar (this is a great book and read about Pablo and his drug empire: Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the World's Greatest Outlaw by Mark Bowden - also the author of “Black Hawk Down”).

Escobar “cultivated” (another bad pun) a complex legacy in Colombia. He built immense wealth and is often cited among the richest criminals ever. He was ruthless, using violence, bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, and bribery (in what became known as “plata o plomo” — “silver or lead”) to enforce his empire. However, he also cultivated a “Robin Hood” image by funding housing and community projects in poor neighborhoods, which gave him a grassroots following amongst a significant part of the population in Colombia at the time.

One of Escobar’s drug-fueled pastimes was putting together an exotic zoo at his estate Hacienda Nápoles near Medellin where his cartel was headquartered. It was quite the menagerie, including: African elephant, giraffe, zebra, ostrich, camel, rhinoceros (never confirmed), antelope species, buffalo, and exotic birds, including parrots and other aviary species.

But the most famous (not sure why) were the hippopotamus. After Escobar’s death, his exotic zoo was disbanded and most of the animals were moved elsewhere. Except… 4 hippos somehow managed to escape.

Fast forward 30 years or so and the wild hippo population in Colombia has become a bit of a problem. After trying all sorts of control methods, Colombia has finally decided to kill them:

As an “invasive” species, they are understandably causing problems. And yet, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Cocaine Hippos. Whatever their ultimate fate, may they’re legacy live on in lore…

Ladies and gents - may I present The Animals