[log in to unmask] schreef writes:

<< How sad for the dogs and bears.  Spearing a bear is a very cruel
and slow
way
for the bear to die.  At what expense do you want to eat a meat-based
diet?
At the expense of extreme cruelty to animals?  This is very upsetting
to me.>>

 Ray Audette <[log in to unmask]>writes:

<< Cruel deaths are the norm in Nature.  Very few wild animals ever
live to
old
age because of the actions of pathogens, parasites and predators.
Without
perdition to kill of the infected, contagious pathogens and parasites
would
rapidly spread, decreasing the prey species survival rate. >>

This is certainly true. Nevertheless, humans are the only species that
hunt
for sport, and not just for food. I see nothing wrong with hunting
wild
animals for food, (after coming off of 20 years of vegetarianism to
now being
a devout meat eater for the last 5 years). However, I do not condone
the
killing of animals in such a way as to invoke more cruelty than is
necessary
to get the job done. If an animal can be killed more quickly and
easily with
a gun than a spear, then it is my feeling that it should shot with a
gun.

It has often been said that we should eat to live, not live to eat.
Similarly, I feel that ethically, we should kill to eat, not kill for
sport.

Maddy Mason
Hudson Valley, NY