1 Brint, Ewing, Heibel, Smith

Jacob Bint
Gavin Ewing
Dylan Heibel
Zak Smith
English 3 Per.6
19 February 2015
Hunting: Good or Bad
Early human civilizations were based around a hunter-gatherer society. Where hunting
was required for trade and survival. Since humans have modernized hunting is no longer a
necessity but rather a sport. However many people believe that hunting is cruel and unnecessary
they propose we only eat farmed food and leave wild animals alone. Without hunting, however,
the populations of wild animals can run rampant and cause havoc on the local environment.
Whether killing animals for sport is good or bad has been a controversial issue between Nature
lovers, hunting activists, and the government for many years.
First, hunting is good because animals cost the government billions each year to repair
damages done by them. In Ken McQueens article he saysIn the U.S. the total cost of wildlife
damage to crops, landscaping, and infrastructure now exceeds $128 billion a year That is crazy
how they spend that much money just on fixing things wild animals are destroying. Let alone
$1.5 billion [are just] from deer-vehicle crashes alone (Sterba). In Columbia, South Carolina
they spend $1 million just on getting rid of beavers and their dams from drainage systems. If they
were able to hunt the beavers they would spend way less a year just on beavers and could spend
it on something else. A pro to hunting, is that it can save a ton of money for the government.

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Another pro to hunting is that there wouldn't be such an overabundance of animals, such
as deer, bears, geese, beavers, coyotes, etc.. They cause vehicle collisions and fouled parks.
Because of the overabundance of deer they are always on the roads and upwards of 250 people
die and 30,000 get hospitalized [a year](12). There are 3,000 to 4,000 deer-vehicle collisions a
day. That is so many people dying a year and getting injured just because of deer in the road and
that could be dropped tremendously if there was more hunting. Also, some animals are just a
nuisance, like canadian geese, [and] some are damaging like beavers(13). The geese wreck
parks by going to the bathroom all over the place and beavers build their dams on waterways and
can block them off completely. There are many injuries a year because of the overabundance of
animals and many fouled parks and that can be stopped if there is hunting allowed more.
The final pro to hunting is that it has been part of some peoples cultures there whole lives
and part of their grandparents. For example, For centuries the people of the Faroe Islands
survived by hunting whales(18) The people of the Faroe Islands have had hunting in there
culture since the vikings and they cant really back away from it because it is their main source
of income and food. Also, the indians have been hunting their lands their whole lives. Indians
survived off of the lands for generations and it is just how they lived and prospered. They would
use hunting to make tools, shelters and much more. Those are some reasons hunting is so
important is that it is part of peoples cultures and would be wrong to change that.
However good hunting may be, hunting also has its many cons as well. Such as how the
mass killings of game animals is resulting in them being added to the endangered species list.
In Wyoming the wolves there have been taken off the endangered species list so they are seen as
vermin and it is actually considered a good thing to hunt them. In William Gibsons article The
New War Wolves, he states that Roughly 60% of Wyoming's 350 wolves will become targeted

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for elimination. If people keep this up and keep hunting these wolves then they will all die.
Thats just one less living creature on this earth all because of hunting.
Another con about hunting is that it interferes with the environment. The ecosystem is set
up so that everything in it has its own role. Rabbits eat the plants, foxes eat the rabbits, its a cycle
that never ends. However if a bigger predator gets involved, like hunters, the cycle doesnt work
like how it should. Some might argue that hunting keeps the this upset of the ecosystem from
happening but this is not true. In Kate MacFalls article Protecting Bears from Hunting she
explains that hunters license fees are used to manipulate a few game species into
overpopulation at the expense of a much larger number of non-game species, resulting in the loss
of biological diversity, genetic integrity and ecological balance. Hunting is actually ruining the
ecosystem and something needs to be done about it.
The final con to hunting is that it is morally wrong to kill. Most of the animals do feel
pain and it isnt nice to shoot them. Hunting is called a sport but it is definitely not a fair sport. In
Louisiana three members of an already struggling species of crane were shot and killed. In his
article 3 More Whooping Cranes Lost to Gunfire, Dave Paresh describes how these hunters
"senselessly undercut plans to breed a thriving population of the radiant white whooping cranes.
New laws and acts have been trying to help the hunters and the animals but the nuters are too
insensitive to care.What did the animal ever do to them, theyre is just harmless creatures trying
to survive.
Hunting will most likely be a highly contested topic for many years to come. However
with all the strong evidence on both sides it is hard to find the correct solution for the matter. On
one side there are many good sides to hunting such as government savings, stops over
population, maintains the rich cultural history of hunting. There are however many downsides it

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can lead to the exploitation of consumers, extinction species,and can destroy entire ecosystems.
This is not a transparent issue there are many different unseen sides but with proper regulations
this is issue can be tackled.

Works Cited
Dave, Paresh. 3 More Whooping Cranes Lost to Gunfire. Los Angeles Times [Los
Angeles] 9 Feb. 2014: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

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Eilperin, Juliet. Legality of Polar Bear Trade Divides Nation. Washington Post
[Washington D.C.] 24 Dec. 2012: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.
Gibson, J. William. The New War on Wolves. Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles] 8 Dec.
2011: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.
Greenberger, Scott S. Sportsmen Push for Constitutional Hunting and Fishing Rights.
stateline.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.
Ives, Mike. Rhino Horn Craze Threatens Species. Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles] 8
Apr. 2012: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.
MacFall, Kate. Protecting Bears from Hunting. New York Times [New York] 30 June
2014: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.
MacQueen, Ken. On Wildlife Culls, Engineering the Landscape, and our Misguided Soft
Spot for Bambi. Macleans 5 Dec. 2012: 12-13. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Jan.
2015.
OBarry, Helene Hesselager. Heart of Darkness. Earth Island Journal 2013: 18. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.
Pak-Harvey, Amelia. Kill One to Save the Rest? Black Rhino Hunt Auctioned off for
Conservation Efforts. Christian Science Monitor: n. pag. Christian Science Monitor.
Web. 27 Jan. 2015.
Smith, Scott, and Jeff Barnard. State Board Votes to Protect California Wolf. Los
Angeles Times [Los Angeles] 4 June 2014: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 30 Jan.
2015.
Sterba, Jim. American Gone WIld. Wall Street Journal Online [New York] 3 Nov.
2012: n. pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

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Vanderkam, Laura. Bring Nature Back to the Holiday Table. USA Today: n. pag. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.