Part 1
OP again. I didn't foresee this thread turning into a huge debate, but I suppose it's not unexpected. I finished my report thanks to some of the early posters, and to them I am quite grateful. I'm going to attempt to remain neutral here, but if you guys feel the need to perpetuate this debate I'd like to offer some facts that might commonly be overlooked:
“The sale of hunting licenses, tags, and stamps is the primary source of funding for most state wildlife conservation efforts.”
“$200 million in hunters' federal excise taxes are distributed to State agencies to support wildlife management programs, the purchase of lands open to hunters, and hunter education and safety classes. Proceeds from the Federal Duck Stamp, a required purchase for migratory waterfowl hunters, have purchased more than five million acres of habitat for the refuge system (2005 statistics only); lands that support waterfowl and many other wildlife species, and are usually open to hunting.”
-source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
http://www.fws.gov/hunting/whatdo.htmlFurthermore, you can take a hunters’ safety and education class for free to learn about the many regulations currently in place.
http://www.hunter-ed.com/ Most, if not all, of these courses should be free to take online. There are many regulations in place that protect both game species and their habitat.
For those of you concerned about animal welfare, your concerns are valid. Here is food for thought: Is death by hunting more inhumane than other natural causes of death? Examples being death by natural predators such as wolves, crocodiles, lions, etc. I won’t go into this, but I trust you can sufficiently research this idea on your own.
