Chickenhawks at play

So we all heard about Cheney's bad aim. Of course that's good for a yuk or three, but PZ Myers at Pharyngula points out the really revealing aspect of this incident. Here's the Humane Society Statement he quotes:

Monday's hunting trip to Pennsylvania by Vice President Dick Cheney in which he reportedly shot more than 70 stocked pheasants and an unknown number of mallard ducks at an exclusive private club places a spotlight on an increasingly popular and deplorable form of hunting, in which birds are pen-reared and released to be shot in large numbers by patrons. The ethics of these hunts are called into question by rank-and-file sportsmen, who hunt animals in their native habitat and do not shoot confined or pen-raised animals that cannot escape.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported today that 500 farm-raised pheasants were released yesterday morning at the Rolling Rock Club in Ligonier Township for the benefit of Cheney's 10-person hunting party. The group killed at least 417 of the birds, illustrating the unsporting nature of canned hunts. The party also shot an unknown number of captive mallards in the afternoon.

I guess the old boy just doesn't feel right if he goes too long without killing something. But you don't expect him to actually hunt his game, do you? I wonder what Bill "Cat killer" Frist does nowdays to get his kicks.