Hunitng vs. democracy

["Nick Sanyal" <nsanyal@uidaho.edu>]

Erikus4@aol.com said:
"currently sportsmen foot the bill for almost all management"

I believe that should say "all GAME management".  There is a difference
between management of wildlife species for, say aesthetic and spiritual
purposes, and for food and trophy reasons. Besides, what is good for elk is
NOT good for deer, or for black bear, and certainly not for mountain
bluebirds.  The right to hunt is an American value that I have defended on
camera (on "Outdoor Idaho" for example) but that right does not give anyone
the right for the high moral ground for ALL wildlife management.

Aren't these same people who want to kill terns and gulls to "save" salmon
for anglers, or who want to rid the nation of wolves and bears to have a few
more elk and deer for hunters to bag?  Hunting is a treasured American
value, maybe unique among all civilized nations, but don't  try and defend
it on moral grounds.  Wildlife, and game (i.e., wildlife that are managed
only to be killed during a hunting season), belong to all.

I support the American tradition of sport hunting.  Make that SPORT
hunting.  I haven't hunted in a while, but I do have an Idaho Elk license
plate on my van -- not a Bluebird plate.  Slobs and especially greedy and
inconsiderate slobs, have no part of my paradigm of nature conservation.

Nick Sanyal, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Resource Recreation and Tourism
University of Idaho
Moscow  Idaho 83844-1139

Fax:  208/885-6226
Phone:  208/885-7528