Letter to the Editor on the Fox Hunting Debate

579 Words2 Pages

Dear Sir,

Re: Fox hunting debate.

Over the years, we have listened to the hunters' spurious claims about

job losses, civil liberties, numbers of hounds that will have to be

shot - arguments that distract from the real issue, which is that

hunting with dogs is a barbaric practice, and the majority of people

in Britain want to see it banned.

Fun is a good thing, agreed, and great if you are having it... so long

as it is NOT at the expense of others. You seem to think that Foxes

(animals in general) are just feeling less objects that are there for

people to abuse in however way they desire, and that they should not

be given rights, supposedly only because they are not humans, and

therefore are not worthy of having any rights. I am asking - Why is

this discrimination made?

I am not saying they should have the right to single mother pensions

and the right to ride on buses, it is clear that as another species

their needs are different, and mostly not related to ours. But as

individuals unable to defend themselves from human abuse, they need

protecting by law. What right do we have to say their lives are not

worth protecting? Again, my reasoning here is fundamentally NOT to

stop fox-hunting because I believe it is a perverted pastime, but to

stop all animal abuse whether it be for entertainment, unnecessary

food (there's plenty else to eat), or sadistic vivisection for

cosmetics, psychological curiosity, or even medical research when

there have been plenty of more ethical alternatives available for some

time...

Your arguments are similar to arguments that were once used to justify

slave trade. Members of one particular race thought themselves

superior to members of another race, purely because they were

different. Different skin color, different language. Their feelings

were completely misguided and prejudged. Slave trade still exists, but

generally it is accepted that it is a morally unacceptable practice.

One day, our descendents will look back at our relationship to animals

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