Acts of 'senseless animal slaughter' highlight human 'depravity'

Editor:

//

Most comments regarding the slain alligator in Columbia County seem to support the killing of the beast on the basis of the ferociousness of the alligators in general, especially those who come into human and domesticated animal contact.

Some have commented that those who decry the death and dismemberment of the alligator and offer a reward for the apprehension of the perpetrator don't seem to feel the same degree of outrage over the murder of a human. Of course, human life is more precious; but homicides have become so commonplace in our society, an individual murder doesn't spark the same emotions as repulsive, senseless animal slaughter, such as beating a live cow over the head with a hammer or dismembering a non-agressive alligator.

The situation highlights the depravity of which humans are capable. Whether it's strangling dogs, bludgeoning cows or this recent slaying of the alligator, these incidences demonstrate that humans are more capable of cruelty than the victim animals.

Humans often eat when they are not hungry. Animals don't. Human's don't have to kill animals for food: many species of wild animals (carnivores) do. Personally, I could not kill a living animal, but I recognize that legitimate hunter sportsmen may actually provide wildlife a service by hunting and fishing. The killing of animals for perverse pleasure or an innate ability to be cruel to animals demonstrates that the individual perpetrator may not yet be a fully evolved human being.

Gene Rickaby, Martinez