LETTER: Cast off sense of superiority

To the editor:

It was an interesting experience to open the feature about animals and find articles about what we can learn from animals, the healing power of our relationships with animals and the emotional bonds we form with our pets right next to an article about the “adventure” of hunting. I wonder if I am the only person who notices the irony here: we speak of our caring and compassion toward animals in one sentence and then celebrate our brutality toward those same animals in the very next paragraph. It’s time we realize that we our views toward animals must change. We cannot love some while we kill others and still call ourselves morally consistent.

If we are revolted at the idea of shooting the family pet with a high-powered rifle, we should be equally revolted at the idea of shooting any other sentient animal. We must cast off this false sense of superiority that allows us to feel justified in taking the lives of others. As Isaac Bashevis Singer said, “There will be no justice as long as man will stand with a knife or with a gun and destroy those who are weaker than he is.”

Bryce Draper