Cecil

The most famous lion in Zimbabwe, Cecil, has been slaughtered by a dentist from the U.S. Cecil, he had a name. He was in many ways a goodwill ambassador for that country. It is estimated that there are less than 32,000 lions left in the wild.

He was lured away from his protected conservation land with food in order to kill him for trophy purposes.

I don't understand trophy hunting and never will. Hunting for food is one thing. The killing of livestock to feed people is one thing. I eat meat and will never apologize for it. But killing animals for the purpose of mounting a head on your wall is creepy.

Those who do it will speak of the thrill of the hunt. What hunt? These trophy hunters have guides who find the beast, then set the stage for the hunter to slaughter the animal with superior weaponry. You want a thrill? Track the animal yourself and then battle it with your bare hands.

A rogue dangerous animal must sometimes be hunted and put down. That is not what happened here and it's not the issue. Controlled hunts must also take place sometimes for conservation purposes, again this is not that issue.

I know hunters who do so for food purposes, again not the issue. Cecil the lion lived in a protected area and was a big tourist draw for Zimbabwe. He was tagged and monitored. He never attacked a human being or threatened tourists. What happened to him was a crime.

I am not writing this commentary out of a belief there should never be hunting. Right is right and wrong is wrong. This is wrong. We have a duty to be good stewards of the planet, that includes protecting species that are in danger of becoming extinct.

Once upon a time I had a job that brought me into contact with a wide variety of people. These customers spoke freely to me about many issues. Some of them were very wealthy. One of those customers was a big game hunter. He had travelled the world hunting exotic animals. So many animals had fallen to his bullets that he had to erect a separate building on his estate to house his trophies. One day he suggested I should come out and view it. I diplomatically avoided it. I had no interest in viewing his house of horrors.

I live in a rural area where there is a lot of wildlife including coyotes and foxes. I'm alert but avoid them when possible. A few days ago I had to kill a snake, I didn't feel good about it but it was absolutely necessary. But again I say this is not the issue with Cecil.

I'm aware that some people just don't care about this and believe that animals are here for our amusement. They are not. They serve a vital purpose for our environment. Where I live we have a large population of turkey vultures. These very large birds are nature's janitors. Thankfully they prefer the dead.

He had a name, Cecil.