“The federal government’s wildlife killing program exists mostly
for the benefit of cattle and sheep ranchers. The Animal Damage
Control Bureau kills a wide range of wildlife, including birds, all
at taxpayer expense. In 1994 the program called 1988’s numbers, the
most recent available, a ‘snapshot year’ typical of the bureau’s
activities.”
“No record is kept of wild animals poisoned, shot, or trapped by
ranchers. ….ranchers undoubtedly kill far more than the government.
Wildlife control is the main reason ranchers often carry guns on
‘their’ public land. Richard Lessner, deputy editor of the Arizona
Republic, sums it up:
“ ‘Although they love to dress up like Gabby Hayes, ranchers are
businessmen, and like all businessmen, they want to maximize
profits. If bears or lions take a few calves, that is an economic
loss, one which is most easily avoided by killing the predator. But
those are my lions and bears. They belong to the public just as
surely as the land. I object to the wholesale slaughter of the
public’s wildlife so that a few dozen ranchers can sustain an
uneconomical ‘lifestyle’ that became an anachronism 50 years ago.’ ”
– From Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating by Erik Marcus
I like the way Richard Lessner, in the above quotation, brings out
the fact that the animals that our government and the ranchers kill
belong to the public – the taxpayers!
