Dear Editor:
Once again, it’s the beautiful autumn season and our local papers are filled with pictures and stories of kids back in school, cider and doughnuts, local newsworthy events and, yes, pictures of dead and bloody deer with their eyes glazed over and tongues hanging out (DNR: ‘Plenty of deer,? as archery season opens, The Citizen, Oct. 4, page 14).
I fully realize that Michigan is a huge state for deer hunting. I was raised here and have lived here for 48 years.
My parents were raised here….Grandparents were raised here. So, it’s not like we’re unaware of the passion for hunting that many of our citizens have. It is, however, 2008 and there are more and more people (like me) who are not hunters and are clearly offended by the sight of these dead animals glorified in the local papers during this time of year. We have kids who like to thumb through the papers to see the local school’s sports pictures and end up freaking out when they see these photos. We have to explain that some people think it’s fun to hunt and kill these animals….something they just can’t mentally process, since they were raised to love and respect the wildlife we live with.
I would think that the hunters in our area would be happy enough having their stories told without the graphic pictures. But until that happens, I’m going to concede to the fact that The Citizen is no longer for us during hunting season and will be sure to toss the paper into the recycle bin immediately upon receiving it to protect my family from its horrific images.
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a local paper that everyone could enjoy?
Cindy Savoy
Oxford