> I dunno. Doesn't seem all that tender when a
> "sportsman" hunts down a five point buck, removes the
> rack, and leaves the carcass behind for the buzzards.

Hey, buzzards gotta eat too!  If more hunters did this, species like the
California Condor would not be facing extinction.

If not for deer hunters, deer would have been exterminated as the
agricultural pests they are.  Because of the political clout of deer hunters
(licensed deer hunters in the U.S. out-number all the world's armies
combined according to The Wall Street Journal) deer are protected from
farmers.  Deer are now found in much greater numbers than before the
Europeans arrived because farmers have increased their habitat by clearing
land and eliminating their natural predators.

Of course I'm sure the deer would prefer to be killed quickly by a
high-speed bullet than chased, tormented and slowly killed by a pack of
wolves.  Population is also limited by starvation, predation by pet dogs,
and auto accidents.  Even where deer hunting is allowed, these usually kill
more deer than hunters.

Ray Audette
Author "NeanderThin"
http://www.neanderthin.com