For Environmental Balance, Pick Up a Rifle, by Nicholas...

Nicholas Kristof’s article â€Å"For Environmental Balance, Pick up a Rifle,† which appeared in The New York Times, attempts to convince the American people that deer pose a danger to humans by taking more lives each year than any other American mammal. He states that deer populations, unchecked by predators, are increasing in a way that is unnatural and are destroying the ecosystem in many parts of the country. The suggestion he makes to his readers is that we must kill deer to bring the population down in order to prevent so many human deaths. Kristof appears to advocate hunting without much concern for other alternatives. While he does include statistical data to strengthen his point, other types of support he provides could be considered†¦show more content†¦A tick does not discriminate against its food source. Many animals in the wild are carriers of such parasites, and one reason the deer is considered a major carrier is that it has limited ability to rem ove ticks. It may be safe to assume that some Americans view hunting as being barbaric. This may be due to the fact that our society is not one that relies on this method for survival anymore. Most Americans acquire their food through a local grocery store which gets their food from farmers who grow vegetables and raise domesticated livestock. In the recent decades, hunting has been portrayed more as a â€Å"sport† than as a means for survival. It would appear that the meaning behind hunting has been lost and with it people’s idea that it is meant to be helpful. At one point in the article, Kristof does mention how states such as New York and New Jersey are talking about using birth control in order to decrease the deer population. Then he states, â€Å"Deer contraception hasn’t been very useful though.† He leaves out a lot of information regarding this alternative method. Questions that readers may want to know is â€Å"What kind of birth control?â₠¬  and â€Å"Why is it considered not effective if the states have only talked about it?† His wording sounds confusing and with missing facts. This confusion may lead the reader to believe that the author only wanted to mention it,