Couldn't we all do with a little bear rub during these difficult times? Yes. Yes we could.

Would you like to see the governor of Massachusetts cradling a bear cub? Would it help if I told you the bear cub is absolutely adorable? It would? Well, then, here you go. If you would like to see a polar bear cub as well, go here.

"It is a nutty winter for the state's only bear rehabilitator, Ben Kilham, who is caring for a record 27 orphaned bear cubs who will not go to sleep."

This has been all over the Twitters, but I guess it's possible you missed it. Anyway, awww.

"The melting Arctic ice has brought polar bears and grizzly bears together and their hybrid offspring, known as 'pizzlies,' have been detected on Canadian islands. It is a trend that is happening with other species as well, and scientists are worried because it poses a risk to biodiversity."

"A black bear chased up a tree by police near a northeast Ohio apartment complex eluded multiple captors and eventually headed back to the woods. Cuyahoga County Wildlife Officer Jesse Janosik says the bear eventually should reach Cuyahoga Valley National Park after passing through Cleveland Metroparks' Bedford Reservation. Police placed honey buns near the tree to lure the bear down while firefighters doused it with water and a snow fence was erected around the tree." Mmm hmm, there's video. RELATED: "Leave the bear alone."

Awww! This bear is hot too, just like us! You chill out, bear! Speaking of chilling out, here are some cool cubs for a warm day.

Some 20,000 polar bears are left on Earth, their only planet, and most of them live in the Canadian Arctic. While the bears have been distracted by the melting away of polar ice and their entire habitat, humans at a meeting in Thailand have decided that's it's okay to continue killing the endangered animals to sell their parts on the international market for bits of endangered animals—bearskin rugs and claws and "other body parts."

The United States delegation proposed not hunting the polar bear to extinction. Although the ban had the backing of Russia, which also has a declining polar bear population in its arctic zone, the Convention [...]

"The male bear, known as M13, was shot dead by wildlife rangers on Tuesday, said Adrian Aeschlimann, spokesman for the Federal Office for the Environment. 'The cull was carried out according to the management plan for bears in Switzerland,' he told AFP on Wednesday." —Imagine that quote in the original German.

"Not all encounters with bears had a happy ending this year. Albert E. Smythe of Lanark Village was arrested by sheriff’s deputies on Oct. 3, for shooting a black bear and attempting to hide his actions after FWC officers investigated an incident that took place at Smythe’s home on April 10. Initially, Smythe claimed to have witnessed a hit-and-run involving the bear but further investigation showed the bear had been shot."

Attention hunters in tree stands: the bears are coming to join you. Oh yeah, there's video.

Okay, so the bear stole an iPad. I can understand why an animal would be attracted to a sleek, shiny object that is more form than function. What's your excuse? Also, how excited is the anchor here that he gets to say "pic-a-nic basket"? The little joys in life: most days, they're all we've got.

So: "Three Baby bears got stuck in a dumpster over night. Mama bear sat by the dumpster all night listening to her cubs cry. Shirley and Tom Schenk, help three bear cubs escape from a dumpster in Ruidoso, N.M."

Related: Big thanks to all of you who have been passing along the links to these bear cam feeds. They are prime bear-watching experiences!

"You know how it is: You kill a sheep and it feels good. The power. You've got all the power. And you think to yourself, I killed that one sheep and it felt amazing, how great is it gonna feel if I kill a bunch more? And suddenly you come to in some Montana field, and it's two weeks later and you've killed 70 sheep and you're covered in blood and entrails, and you start to ask yourself, what am I doing? It used to be about the sheep slaughtering, the innocent joy of playing God with a helpless ruminant. Instead you're trapped in some senseless orgy of ovine depredation, [...]

Did you know that bears have a fear of heights? Apparently it is only surpassed by their fear of being beaten by their trainers. :(

You kill the bear, eat the bear meat, and then put on the bearskin. The power of the bear shirt—or ber serkr in Old Norse—gives you the strength and fury of the great animal. This is what berserk means, "bear shirt." Do you actually turn into a bear-human hybrid? Maybe. Nobody liked to go to war against the berserkers, that much is known from the stories of the Roman Empire's long border conflict with the barbarians, which means not "bear brains" but "foreigners."

The human-bear combination exists in North American and Siberian tribal religions, too. These stories go back to the Bear Sons, born to an animal-god father and [...]

"Boxed and wrapped in paper and bows, teddy bears have been placed lovingly underneath Christmas trees for generations, to the delight of tots and toddlers around the world. But the teddy bear is an American original: Its story begins with a holiday vacation taken by President Theodore Roosevelt." Not surprisingly, death follows.

"Bears move into B.C. community, acting ‘like they own the place’"

"At least two candy stores have been burglarized this summer by ravenous, drought-starved bears."

"Los Angeles’ newest star, the popular Glendale bear, has been sent back to the woods in hopes he won’t return, after his latest appearance in search of an easy meal. The California black bear, whom locals have nicknamed 'Glen Bearian' and 'Meatball,' was spotted Sunday morning sleeping 75 feet up in a tree." A couple of darts later and it was into the van with him. Good luck out there, Meatball.