I received an email yesterday from my sister’s boyfriend.  Inside was something of a surprise –  I just didn’t think that he would have his mount back from the taxidermist already.  But lo and behold, there in the email for everyone to see, was Justin’s November buck from last year.

It’s a pretty good looking mount, and I think it looks great up on the wall.  Of course my goal now is to shoot one this year that looks just like it, so that it can be hung on the opposite wall of my turkey mount.

Taxidermy is definitely an art, and I think that Justin’s buck was made into a pretty good piece of artwork.

Now when’s it my turn?

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It was inevitable really.  After almost two years of writing for this blog – about many, many different topics, including some controversial ones – I finally had my first encounter with an anti.  I’ve written many posts for this blog over the past couple of years, including a few that I would have fully expected some antis to comment on, but for some reason “E”, as she called herself, decided to jump in on a post that I wouldn’t of expected an anti to even care about – this post from last week.

My main goal of the post was one of independence – basically that I hoped Abby made up her own mind about hunting, firearms, and the outdoors without being persuaded to take another path by anti-hunting propraganda.  My main point was that I wanted her to become a critical thinker.  “E”, however, went a completely different path:

“Geez, I thought you were going to talk about how your child could accidently get hurt or worse.

But yeah it would be a shame for your kid to live a peaceful and humane life.

Yep, we have to make sure that the next generation contributes to the violence. We’ll destroy this world yet.”

At first I was a little perplexed, and figured that it was another emotional rant by someone who would never visit the site again….I was wrong about that, though.  The second part about the comment that really stood out for me was the reference she made to violence.  If you go back and read the post, I don’t remember mentioning anything violent at all.  Oh wait, I guess I did mention the words “hunting”, “fishing”, and “firearms”.  Apparently “E” automatically associates such things with violence.  I even included that as part of my well-thought out and respectful response:

“I honestly think you read the word “firearm” or “hunting” in my post and immediately turned a blind eye to anything else I wrote, and automatically associated those two activities with violence, which is very contrary to the truth.”

It wasn’t long before E was responding again, and this is where things started to get really interesting.  First, I was a little surprised that she was keeping tabs on the post, and actually checking back after her initial response.  I honestly figured I would get the one comment, like most of us get from anti’s, and that would be the end of it.  But E – and I was honestly happy about this – proved me wrong.  We continued to comment back and forth, and I was impressed that she actually took an interest in having a civil conversation with me.  Although our opinions are vastly different, it was nice to be involved in a conversation,  including two people from vastly different backgrounds, that didn’t involve name calling, swearing, or other such emotional nonsense; we were simply two adults engaging in a polite disagreement – and a respectful disagreement at that.

I honestly don’t want to re-hash the whole conversation, because it honestly started to get somewhat lengthy.  If any of you want to read it in its entirety you can do so here.  I would appreciate that, and you could put your two cents in as well.  But what I do want to do is point out a few things about the conversation that honestly frighten me.   Take these comments for instance:

“There is a misconception that has been passed down from generation to generation that it’s okay to kill others.”

“Whatever justifications you use to take another life, it’s doesn’t change the fact that hunting and fishing are violent activities. It’s no different than killing another human being. The difference lies in the species. The action is the same.”

“First, let me say that in many ways nature is more important than humans. Don’t get me wrong, humans are important too. But if you look at it from an anthropological point of view, and I hate to repeat myself, but, we are at the bottom of the dependence scale and the most smallest being is at the top. Again, If the smallest being disappears, all life would cease to exist. If man becomes extinct, than everything would grow back and flourish. So you see, the world does NOT need the human race. In fact, it would be better off without us.”

Note: The bold is all of my doing, not E’s.

These comments are utterly frightening to me.  I can completely respect choosing the vegan lifestyle, and being involved in something you are passionate about;  that I have no problem with.  The problem I do have, however, is when you start to believe that your own race doesn’t belong, and that a fly is of more importance than you or your family.  For me, that is a scary concept.  When one puts animals above themselves, and truly believes that the world would be better off without us, it honestly saddens me.  How can one have such a lowly view of human life, and the good that comes from it?

And going right along with that, E’s comments also point out that he/she believes that animals and humans are on the same level; that killing an animal for sustenance is the same thing as killing a human being; that animals have a soul and contain a moral code such as a human does.

The paragraph above is what honestly frightens me the most.  Animals do not have morals, nor a soul.  And they surely can’t rationalize and critically think as we humans do.  Animals act – no matter how crude or immoral the act is – and they do it in order to stay alive.  They don’t care about the preservation of other species, or the hurt they are doing at the time, they only care about their survival; not anyone else.  Can you say that about humans?  I think not.

In the end, and especially after realizing how different E and I really are, I decided that we needed to agree to disagree.  And as weird as it sounds, and despite our differences of opinion, I’m still grateful that she visited the site, and we were able to have our exchange.  Although it was “spirited” at times, our exchange still can be a lesson for a lot of people out there.  It shows that two people, from differing backgrounds and extremely different points of view, can have a rational conversation that is respectful and polite.

It would have been easy to dismiss the first comment, and not even send a reply.  And it would have been easy for E to not keep checking back to see what I wrote.  But we didn’t.  We replied, we conversed, and although not a lot of progress was made – because we are on completely opposite sides of the fence – we still did the most important thing of all – we debated and discussed.  Each of us gave in a little,  yet stayed true to our convictions, and had a little chat.

If more of us hunters would take the time to have discussions like these, I think it could go along way to defining our image in the future.  E probably will never change his/her opinion about hunters, firearms, or anything of that nature because when one truly believes something, as he/she does, it is very hard to change that.  But, and here is the important part, having conversations like this one, and having them be publicly displayed,  means you never know who might come across them and might be willing an able to change their mind.

Author’s Note: On a side note, I think it is interesting that the anti on my blog used the name of “E”, and an anti that Holly had a email sparring with used the name “J”.  What is with the one letter names?   Interesting!

Popularity: 4% [?]

Some of you may remember this post I wrote about three weeks back;  it had to do with a gentleman who illegally kept a sturgeon he caught in the Grand Rapids area.  Apparently all of the news media attention – and I’d like to think my blog was part of that – helped to convince this particular gentleman to turn himself into the Report All Poaching hotline.

The incident actually happened clear back on May 17th, and I featured the story on this blog June 5th.  After a couple of months though, all the pressure from being in the spotlight evidently got to him and he will be arraigned on July 9th in 61st District Court in Grand Rapids.  Apparently his father was involved as well, and charges are being sought for him too.

I’m glad to see all the pressure got him, and that he is being brought to justice…….as he should!

To read the entire press release go here.

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It is a fear that I have lived with since I found out little Abby was on her way – the fear that she would grow up and choose not to hunt,  fish, or shoot guns or archery.

Now, I’m not an unreasonable fella.  I do realize that Abby might not turn out just like me.  God forbid if she did honestly.  What fun would it be if Abby and I were exactly alike, and how boring would it be if she didn’t turn out to be an independent girl with a mind of her own.  I would truly consider myself a failure as a parent if she didn’t become somewhat independent and unique – that is what makes this world what it is after all.

The fear I have though, is that she makes this choice because of misinformation, or because she wasn’t smart enough to be a critical thinker and not believe what everyone says is true.  In this day and age – when information is so fast and prevalent – it isn’t hard to get a big dose of BS from someone.  Animals rights activists organizations and anti-gun organizations thrive on this particular weakness – the weakness that a lot of people have – of believing everything they hear as fact.

Albert recently had this happen to him, and it just confirmed my fear even more; it solidified for me that no matter what kind of lifestyle I live, and no matter what Abby sees me participate in, that there is still a possibility that she buys into some organizations outright lies; or more likely that she buys into what another friend is telling her – based on information from one of these particular organizations – about a particular subject without researching that claim herself.

PETA is out there everywhere.  The HSUS is out there everywhere.  The Brady Campaign is out there everywhere.

So how do we combat these types of organizations when it comes to our children?  Here is my hope:

First, I hope that Abby is an independent thinker;  that she notices something doesn’t make sense, or doesn’t seem right, and goes about the business of revealing the lies with facts.  Hopefully her mom and I can instill that in her, and provide her a means to think for herself; that is a skill that is unheard of for many people these days.  If she has her mom’s personality at all, this will not be a problem.

Next, we are introducing her to all of these activities at a young age:  firearms, hunting, fishing, archery.  I figure if she is surrounded by such activities that she will know first hard how they feel, taste, and smell.  That way, on down the road – if she does choose to go her own route – it is because she knows first hand what it feels like to fish, hunt, etc. and simply chooses to not follow that path; and does so, not because of what a lunatic organization says about the activity, but because she decides to from her own experience.  This is honestly a day I hope never comes, but god forbid if it does, I would still support her decision.

And lastly I’m going to keep an open dialogue.  Her mom and I participate in a ton of outdoor activities and I am going to keep her in the loop about every one of them.  There isn’t going to be subject pertaining to the outdoors that is off limits, and if she has a question she will know she is free to ask it at any time.  Of course this also requires another side as well; it requires the wife and myself to be on our toes, and make sure that she is included in our outdoor pursuits until such time – if it comes – where she decides she doesn’t want to be involved in them.  I think keeping this open dialogue, and making her involved first-hand in all of our outdoor experiences will help immensely to disperse the lies and deceit that might reach her eyes or ears through PETA, HSUS, or some other lunatic fringe organization.

The conversation that Albert had with his daughter is one I hope I never have.  But if I do, I hope Abby has been instilled with lessons from her mother and I that allow her to research all her facts before she comes to the table against dear old dad.  If her feelings are for the right reasons, and based on fact and critical thinking, I will definitely have an open mind to her thoughts.  If that isn’t the case, however, she might want to rethink her strategy.:)

Raising Abby in the outdoors has been a goal of mine since the first time I thought about having kids.  I hope it is a path she chooses to stay on in some form or another;  and I hope she doesn’t buy into the lies and propaganda that exists against pastimes of old.

I suppose only time will tell.

Author’s note: If you haven’t yet, make sure you check out the The Rasch Outdoor Chronicles.  Albert has some great stuff over there, and I’m honestly not sure why I haven’t been reading it before now.

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Since it is the middle of summer, and all of our blogs seem to go through this summer lull, I started to think of a few ways that might help me get through summer, and also help to cure the blog slows.

I could head down to the lowcountry and go after a few hogs.  I think they’re in season this time of year, although the heat and humidity might kill me; maybe Jeff could just teach us how to trap a few of those buggers – we might need that skill in a few years if our feral swine problem doesn’t get addressed.

I could take a trip out to California and get an update on the lead ban.  I’m sure Phillip would let us fling a few rounds of non-lead ammunition, and let us get a feel for how it shoots – especially since it’s only a matter of time before the lead ban starts effecting all of us.

While I’m in Cali maybe Holly could teach me a few things about wing shooting as well.  The only wing shooting I’ve ever done is hunting pheasant, and they’re a little slower and much bigger than the average mallard.  I’ve always wanted to duck hunt, and this would be the perfect opportunity.  Then, after that, maybe Holly and Phillip could take me to Native’s place and help me kill a hog; or even better, a ram.

If it’s too hot to hunt I could always visit Rick.  He could teach me to reload, then I could help him finish his puzzle.  Of course I’d have to take some antler art home with me as well, so hopefully he lets me have some.  And then I’d sucker him into building Abby a playground at our house.

After that I’d head on over to Tom’s place and help him with the new site; it’s been down for the last couple of days, and I have some expertise in that area, so maybe I could provide some help.  In return of course I would like a guided elk hunt, although I’m not sure when the season is out there – I might have to get a rain check.

I could visit a doctor, but I might have to wait until he’s settled into his new place back in Ohio.   Once there, though, maybe he would let me shoot his crossbow – I hope he still has it.

When I’m done with that I’m heading out to Kansas to see what happened to Elizabeth.  I want to hear the rest of the fishing story, since it’s been awhile since we heard anything from her.

I could learn how a rabbit operation works, and provide some help with that, or I could head on over and learn what it feels like to hunt like a girl.  I’m sure we could swap more stories that are just as funny as this one is.  I have a few in the memory banks that rank right up there with it.

I could head on over to Marian’s and find a look-a-like for her, and while we’re in the area we could stop by Rex’s place and have him allow camo to teach our dog all of her tricks.

If none of those work out, or even if they do, we could then head up to Canada and visit Othmar.  I’m sure he won’t mind us visiting his slice of heaven while he’s recuperating from an incident he had last week.  I haven’t fished much this year, and I’m sure I could find a few places close by that would provide that opportunity.

I could take the wife and visit Blessed.  We’ve already forgotten what it’s like to have a newborn, since Abby got so big so quick, and right now she could help us with that since her new arrival came last week.  And besides that, I’m sure she could use the help – those little buggers are a handful.

After that I could save a little money,  gas, and air travel costs by visiting my local blogging friends, Mike and Mike.  One could teach me how to build a new bowfishing platform for whenever I finally get a boat, and for the other one I’d do my impression of what a Sandhill Crane sounds like, since apparently he’s never had the privilege to hear one; they make the weirdest noise.

And if none of those work out, I will simply enjoy summer by spending it at the lake – fishing, not swimming.  Of course I will be sure to bring my sunscreen – I don’t want to end up looking like this.

I think, once all of those things were accomplished, that summer would be pretty much done, hunting seasons will be back in full swing, and people will actually be reading outdoor blogs again.  Man will that be nice.

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