Kendall Jones is a 19-year-old cheerleader at Texas Tech University with a rather disturbing ethical code and hobby — the shooting and killing of endangered species for sport or, as she terms it, “conservation.” The logic being that the countries that allow hunting use the hunting to fund fighting poachers. Or, as Kendall puts it in one comment:
Maybe people should get their facts straight. Leopards,Lions, elephant and White Rhinos are protected by permits issued by CITES. This is a conservation effort to assure that they never do become extinct. The proceeds from these permits and from hunting go directly back to conservation efforts, habitat preservation and anti poaching personnel. Look up Safari Club International (SCI) — Official Group and read up on the millions of dollars that hunters provide in conservation efforts. Educate yourself…..the meat from these animals, Lion and all, was donated to the local communities and schools. Not any part of these animals went to waste.
It’s a plus for efficiency that the carcass of the animal doesn’t go to waste, but it doesn’t negate the removal of the animal from an endangered population. And as another Facebook user responds,
This is good because your money goes to conservation efforts? So you’re saying those organizations wouldn’t accept your money if you didn’t go kill animals first? The idea of giving to conservation organizations is great, but using that as an excuse to justify killing for fun is disgraceful.
And that’s really the crux of it. No matter which way you look at it, she is hunting and killing for sport.?To justify it by positing some level of good for the whole reminds me of a short story that is often studied in ethics courses: The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas. In case you’re not familiar with the story, I’ll give you a short summary.
Omelas is a utopian city, and everything is as perfect for the residents as you can imagine, except for one thing. In order for things to stay that way, “Omelas requires that a single unfortunate child be kept in perpetual filth, darkness and misery, and that all her citizens should be told of this upon?coming of age” (source). The question given to students of ethics is simple: Would you stay, or would you leave?
To say that killing endangered animals to save endangered animals makes ethical sense requires the mindset that would allow a person to stay in Omelas. If she truly cared about conservation, she would donate the money without sacrificing part of the population to do so.
Many people have spoken out against her on her Facebook page. While many are threats or disgusting statements that shouldn’t be said to anyone, there are those that legitimately criticize her, in response to the attention she’s received around the internet. Here are a few screenshots of comments on her many photos:
However, her Facebook page has also exploded with followers, swelling to nearly 235,000 “likes” as of the time of this writing, and there are many comments on her page expressing support as well:
It’s notable that those expressing disapproval seem to outnumber those expressing support. Also, there is a petition circulating with 165,000 signers as of right now, which you can find here, to have her page taken down. What do you think? Is what she is doing right?
Let us know your thoughts on the Liberal America Facebook page.
I’m a millennial with an attitude, and I’m tired of a left wing that has stopped being willing to rise up and fight for the rights of the people. In my short career, I’ve published hundreds of articles on many topics. You can follow me on Google Plus, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or?Instagram.
