As we watch in horror as birds and reptiles getslimed with toxic gunk as a result of man’s blundering about in our fragileenvironment, our state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) should neverdemonize people who care about wildlife.
And, in fact, the DNR has taken the positive step ofcollaborating with a national animal welfare organization to produce publicservice announcements warning kindhearted people not to remove baby animalsfrom the wild.
This is important public information because all ofus have been propagandized by heartwarming movies about lonely childrenadopting wild animals that become their best pals.
In truth, wild animals are far better off staying inthe wild instead of growing into domesticated beasts that might do what comesnaturally and eat their little friend, Johnny.
The DNR and the Humane Society of the United States(HSUS) split the $12,000 cost of two radio spots, “Don’t Bother Wildlife in theWild” and “Wildlife Are Not Pets.” Who could possibly object to securingprivate funds to reduce government’s cost of public education and reach morepeople with valuable information?
The answer is Wisconsinhunters who’ve always feltoften accuratelythe DNR exists only to serve them.To hunters, anyone who advocates “humane” treatment of animals is a swornenemy.
George Meyer, a former secretary of the DNR,obviously took the agency’s pro-hunting stance to his current job as executivedirector of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation.
The wildlife federation describes itself as anorganization of “hunters, anglers, trappers and others that are activelyengaged in the outdoors” working “to assure that healthy wildlifepopulations…will be available for our children and grandchildren toappreciate.”
By “appreciate,” the federation apparently means“shoot.”
Meyer’s reaction to the collaboration of the DNR andthe HSUS was “shock and disbelief.”
“If I hadn’t seen it on the DNR’s website, I wouldhave thought it was a hoax,” Meyer said. “This is a group that has worked toend hunting, fishing, trapping and the animal livestock industry.”
Seeing Past the Rhetoric
Meyer’s rhetoric is the usual overblown hyperbole byhunters who claim the only true friends of animals are those who go out andkill them.
Hunting, fishing and raising animals for food arenot going to end in the United States any time soon, despite commercialstelling people not to bring home wild bunnies.
Rob Sexton, a lobbyist for the U.S. Sportsmen’sAlliance, a national pro-hunting organization, made the even more absurdstatement the HSUS was supporting the Wisconsin DNR campaign to try to“sanitize its image.”
Since when does an organization with “humane” in itsname need to clean up its image? When did “humane” become a dirty word?
What has gotten twisted in Wisconsin is the idea advanced by hunters indefense of their blood sport that the only way to protect wildlife is to killit. It’s the old Vietnamconcept of destroying the village in order to save it.
Controlled hunting is a tool the DNR employs that,in fact, can help to maintain a healthy wildlife population. The problem ishunters have used that argument so often to, yes, sanitize what they do,they’ve deluded themselves into believing animals should get up off the groundand thank those hunters who blow them away.
In fact, the public debate over how to protectwildlife is changing with the growth of animal protection organizations such asthe HSUS and even the dreaded People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
In fact, the ad campaign partially funded by theHSUS is not the first time the organization’s efforts have coincided with theinterests of legitimate hunters.
One of the primary missions of the HSUS is to stopillegal hunting. And once again they’ve put their money where their mouths are.Since 2008, the HSUS has offered $180,000 in rewards for the arrest andconviction of poachers who kill endangered species or hunt out of season or inillegal areas.
Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the HSUS, saysillegal poaching probably kills more animals than all legal hunting. Curiously,you don’t hear about pro-hunting groups posting any rewards to stop competitionfrom illegal poachers.
Hunter, traditionally all-powerful in Wisconsin, are adiminishing voice in the environmental debate as their numbers decline. Wisconsin was sodesperate to increase new hunters that it lowered the hunting age to 10.
Hunters always press to kill more stuff, such as theendangered gray wolf gracing the state’s environmental license plates. Animalprotection groups including HSUS have successfully raised counterarguments.
The DNR, as the state agency protecting ourthreatened natural environment, has to listen to both sides, not just to themost heavily armed.
