Letter to the editor

Who's really the Neanderthal?

Aimee Rathburn Jan. 18, 1999 From the print edition
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  Dear HCN,


I resent Stephen Gies' repeated references to manhood and the male ego, since I happen to be female and an avid hunter (HCN, 10/26/98). While condemning hunters as barbaric Neanderthals, Gies implies that hunting his way (with a self-fashioned stone knife or spear and wearing animal hides) would be OK. Who's the Neanderthal now? Or is he simply a snob?


Mankind happens to be at the top of the food chain, and I make no apologies for that. We're in that position because we're smarter than other animals. Being smarter means using efficient tools, such as rifles or compound bows. Frankly, I prefer wearing designer clothes to animal hides, but my shoes are made of leather, if that counts.


If Gies doesn't like being at the top of the food chain, he can frolic naked and blindfolded in the wilderness and give wildlife a chance at him.





Aimee Rathburn


Denver, Colorado


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