I am highly disappointed in our local television networks for airing the Question 2 ad that shows Bill Randall’s home video shooting a live bear in a trap with a handgun.

This ad airs throughout the day when children are watching. It is my decision as a parent if and when to allow my children to see the death of an animal. The networks took that choice away from me when my three-year-old and I saw this ad together right after the weather report.

The networks have a social responsibility to ensure children are not exposed to such graphic scenes and to ensure the ads they air are factually accurate.

The 2003 bear harvest totaled 3,900 bears, of which only 2 percent were shot after being trapped. Given the factual data, this method could be considered rare.

Shock value aside, when Mainers harvest bears over bait, treed by dogs or trapped, as opposed to large game running in the woods, wounds are much more likely to be accurate and deadly, allowing for the most humane harvest possible.

If referendum proponents are against an animal having pain, then they are against the hunting and harvesting of all animals, wild or domestic. It’s as simple as that.

I hope the viewers of our local networks enjoy their vegetables because if referendum proponents reach their true agenda, we’ll no longer have meat on our tables.

Susan Shaw, Turner