Project Gutenberg 2016-02-21 Public domain in the USA. 134 Laumer, Keith 1925 1993 Laumer, John Keith Laumer, Kit A Bad Day for Vermin Produced from Galaxy Science Fiction February 1964 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "A Bad Day for Vermin" by Keith Laumer is a science fiction short story written in the early 1960s. The narrative unfolds in a small town where an extraterrestrial being makes contact, prompting a heated debate about the definition of life and human rights. Through its engaging plot, the story tackles themes of prejudice and the nature of humanity in the face of the unknown. The tale begins with Judge Carter Gates witnessing the arrival of a friendly alien, only to have that moment shattered when a local man, Cecil Stump, shoots the creature. This act sparks an uproar among the townsfolk, leading to a contentious community meeting where the very concept of personhood is fiercely debated. As emotions run high, the townspeople strive to redefine what constitutes a “person,” ultimately deciding that a "person" is any harmless creature, whereas those who commit violent acts are deemed "vermin." The story culminates in a twist as a new exterminator arrives, leaving readers to ponder the implications of their decisions. Laumer deftly explores the complexities of morality and societal norms, making this short story thought-provoking and timely. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 85.3 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Extraterrestrial beings -- Fiction Human-alien encounters -- Fiction United States -- Fiction Ethics -- Fiction PS Text Science Fiction Browsing: Literature Browsing: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Browsing: Fiction Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy 39131 2025-06-20T14:35:08.878969 text/html 15197 2024-10-23T00:04:54 text/html 138607 2025-06-20T14:35:10.780870 application/epub+zip 137432 2025-06-20T14:35:09.288919 application/epub+zip 68041 2025-06-20T14:35:09.058887 application/epub+zip 170842 2025-06-20T14:35:12.093905 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 164377 2025-06-20T14:35:10.562917 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 95050 2022-09-23T10:31:55.007733 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 32417 2023-09-22T08:48:56.357417 text/plain 12703 2024-10-23T00:04:54 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 17243 2025-06-20T14:35:12.233883 application/rdf+xml 28532 2025-06-20T14:35:09.140908 image/jpeg 4664 2025-06-20T14:35:09.098932 image/jpeg 124365 2025-06-20T14:35:08.888894 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia