Hunting isnt murder Essay

Is hunting murder? This is something that people should think about. Many people walk around and believe that hunting is truly murder and think that they are completely right about this. However, I believe strongly that hunting is not murder and I will explain and prove why it is not murder. Murder is defined as: 1. The unlawful killing of one human by another, especially with premeditated malice. (murder,1) 2. To kill brutally or inhumanly. (murder,1) Now looking at these words in these definitions I can prove that hunting can not fall under the category of murder. Unlawful is defined as something that is illegal. (unlawful, 1) Therefore, I can make my first point on how hunting is not illegal. Yes there are times when it can be illegal if people are hunting the wrong time of year or don’t have their license. However, that is not what we are concerned about, when it comes down to it the majority of people who hunt do it legally and if they don’t then they are fined and even in some cases jailed. Next, human is defined as having or showing those positive aspects of nature and character regarded as distinguishing humans from other animals. (human, 1) No animals are not human, and yes they are living things, but they are not homo sapiens. I don’t care what people say there is no way you can prove that a deer, goose, duck, or turkey is under the category of a homo sapien. With knowing this I can also state that hunting can therefore not be considered murder by definition. Next in the definition of murder it states that murder is the killing of a human with premeditated malice. Malice is defined as a desire to harm others or to see others suffer; extreme ill will or spite. (Malice, 1) Yes, many people like myself hunt as a sport. However, many people don’t realize that we don’t do this because we like to kill and watch animals suffer, but  in fact we do this because we love nature and animals and we do not want to see them suffer. Hunting is legal as a sport, because the government knows that there are mass populations of animals that need to be made smaller in order to keep the populations strong. The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, better known as the Pittman-Robertson Act, was passed by Congress in 1937. Pittman-Robertson placed a Federal excise tax on hunting equipment of many kinds, including guns and ammo (11 percent tax on sporting arms, ammunition, and archery equipment, and a 10 percent tax on handguns). (Category, 1) With the overwhelming support of hunters across the USA, this Act directed that money produced by this additional tax on our gear be used to provide funding for the selection, restoration, rehabilitation and improvement of wildlife habitat, wildlife management research, and the distribution of information produced by the projects. It was later amended (1970) to include funding for hunter training programs and the development, operation and maintenance of public target ranges. (Category, 1) Many hunters love and care about the animals they are hunting and do not do it in spite of the animals or to watch them suffer. The last keyword I want to talk about in the definition of murder is to kill brutally. Brutally is defined as extremely ruthless and cruel. I don’t know if people know much about starvation, but I have been taught about how painful of a disease it is to go through. Starved animals are generally emaciated, their fat stores are depleted, their body catabolizes the protein from their muscles, and leaves them in severe pain and anguish. I would have to say that I would much rather have a bullet but through my chest then I would want to have to go through the pain of starvation. As long as there are hunters, we will be able to have control over animal starvation and be able to keep it at a minimum. Many people question me when I tell them I am a hunter and like to go on about how cruel it is and wonder how I am able to kill an innocent animal. I explain that as a hunter I love animals and that is why I hunt. It is tough to convince someone when their mind is already made up, but I like to try. I hunt for many reasons. Some of which are for adventure, the feel of satisfaction of a job well done, the sense of being closer to nature and yes, for the kill. I explain that I hunt for the joy of the hunt. Also, that thousands of years ago hunters told their stories and honored their animals with pictographs. I don’t know if people often use pictographs anymore, but we do the same thing in a different way. Rather than painting on walls, we now mount animals on walls. Like our ancestors, we share the meat with our families and friends. I also know of people who take meat from animals they have hunted and donate it to people in need. Hunting is not something I do to just pass time. Hunting is a way of life for me, and I am just grateful that I am able to enjoy it. Take a look at my reasoning of why I believe hunting can not be considered murder, do you think hunting is murder? Works cited Brutally – Definition of Brutally by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. † Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Jan. -Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. . Category, By. â€Å"A Discussion of Who Hunters Are and What They Do for Wildlife, Habitat, and Folks Who Don’t Even Hunt. † Hunting and Shooting. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. . Human – Definition of Human by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. † Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Jan. -Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. . Malice – Definition of Malice by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. † Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Jan. -Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. . Murder – Definition of Murder by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. † Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Jan. -Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. . Unlawful – Definition of Unlawful by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. † Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Jan. -Feb. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.