I get a little bent out of shape over certain kinds of varmint shooting. IMO, hunting/killing should be limited to
1) Animals you're going to eat
2) Animals that are trying to hurt you
3) Animals that cause property damage, including damage to crops, livestock and/or pets
It's the last that's a bit contentious for me. Because gophers, for instance, can damage a pasture and result in cows with broken legs, some folks rationalize that they are doing some kind of good by driving to a field a hundred miles from nowhere and wiping out the local ground hog population. This, to me, is simple killing for killing's sake and is not exactly a noble undertaking. Helping out a rancher -- and enjoying yourself in the process -- by spending an afternoon in a hayfield with a varmint gun is one thing. Taking a thousand rounds to a prairie in Nowhere, North Dakota and painting the town red for the sheer "joy" of killing is quite another, IMO. YMMV, I guess.