Hunting is back in the news and the entire issue of conservation tends to devolve into black and white, yet its contentious and complex, its profane and sacred elements well beyond the standard sound bite and immediate flash of rage the event triggers. But, even if the anger against wildlife abuse is channeled into long term commitment, exactly what that will involve is wide in scope: what are the boundaries of unnecessary pain to animals? And, is hunting just part of our genes that is too strong to master, the will to conquer those perceived as inferior? Columbus implied so in 1493:
In addition to announcing his momentous discovery, Columbus’s letter also provides observations of the native people’s culture and lack of weapons, noting that “they are destitute of arms, which are entirely unknown to them, and for which they are not adapted; not on account of any bodily deformity, for they are well made, but because they are timid and full of terror.” Writing that the natives are “fearful and timid . . . guileless and honest,” Columbus declares that the land could easily be conquered by Spain, and the natives “might become Christians and inclined to love our King and Queen and Princes and all the people of Spain.” Read More:http://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/exploration/resources/columbus-reports-his-first-voyage-1493
…King Juan Carlos also faced calls to resign his position as patron of the Spanish branch of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) over his hunting of elephants….
---The photograph came from the website of Botswana-based Rann Safaris, which had been taken down by Sunday. The pictures, taken before the latest hunting trip, also showed the king with two dead water buffaloes. Shoots with Rann Safaris cost upwards of $8,700 (£5,500) a week, with an elephant costing a further $15,000 to kill. A day out with professional hunter Jeff Rann, pictured with the king, costs a further $2,000. The king's accident, after which he was flown back to Madrid for a hip operation, came days after his grandson, 13-year-old Froilán Marichalar, shot himself in the foot while hunting in Spain. He also had to be hospitalised and doctors removed the contents of a 36-calibre shotgun cartridge from his foot. Newspapers reported that it was illegal for a 13-year-old to handle that type of gun.---Read More:http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/15/spain-king-juan-carlos-hunting
A petition on the online forum Actuable had already attracted 40,000 signatures by Monday lunchtime calling for the King to renounce his presidency of the WWF in light of the recent hunting trip….The incident brought back memories of a 2006 hunting trip, which saw the king pictured with a dead elephant and two buffalo. …But the holiday would have remained secret if the 74-year-old royal had not fractured his hip after tripping on a step. The king, who is the honorary president of the World Wildlife Fund’s Spanish branch, was rushed back to Madrid to undergo hip replacement surgery….
---Real estate mogul Donald Trump’s sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, have come under fire after some gruesome photos showing them posing with a dead leopard and holding a severed elephant tail were released online . The photos were taken during a hunting trip in Zimbabwe and originally posted on the Hunting Legends website. They were quickly denounced by PETA and other animal rights and conservation groups. Read more: Donald Trump's Sons Under Fire for Photos with Dead Leopard, Elephant and More | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building---
….Despite his trip abroad, the king recently claimed there were times when he could not sleep because of worries about Spain’s youth unemployment. …Read More:http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4260494/King-of-Spain-takes-elephant-hunting-trip-during-nations-economic-crisis.html
Biblically, there are but two individuals in the entire Bible who can be characterized as hunters: The dubious and ignoble archetypes of evil in Nimrod and Esau. Hardly palatable conservationists and ambassadors against wanton destruction. They inform the attitude that Theodor Adorno expressed when people walk by an abbatoir and exclaim, “they are just animals.” So, we know that the road of these biblical monsters led to Auschwitz. By extension, conservation can also imply not using animals for play and fun, entertainment value, which would include dog shows, hunting dogs, dog racing, horse racing and so on. Even fishing. Practices such as catch and release also fall under sport and entertainment causing trauma to the animal. Things are never as simple as they seem. Animals only kill each other to eat and not for amusement. Maybe there is a lesson there.
ADDENDUM:
Going back to Augustus Caesar, more than three thousand wild animals were killed in front of paying Roman crowds. Kings and noblemen throughout history saw hunting as a mark of status with often little regard for the wounded and crippled. At the other extreme native Indians were said to have run the buffalo off cliffs, leaving many dead and dying. Does the argument that they were in plentiful abundance distract form the entertainment aspect? After all, until the eighteenth century the overall perception was that animals were devoid of rights and had no feelings, or their feelings were incidental.
But where to draw the line and how extreme an attitude to conservation can be significant and not detrimental? The complete Vegans, the pre-Noah types, those against animals in medical research, and the sacred animal groups such as the Jainists to whom everything living falls under the sacred;
e are known to sweep the ground while walking in order to avoid harming insects. …
COMMENTS