Impressionable Kids, the Outdoors, and One of My Worst Fears
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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Hey there!
Thanks for the plug, raising kids isn’t as easy as I once thought it would be! No wonder my Mom and Dad always said, “You’ll see…”
BTW your excellent post has been ripped off:
Ripped Off Without Credit
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.
E.
Earth First … Before We Destroy Another World!
E,
I appreciate you stopping by, but I am perplexed by your argument.
All parents worry about their kids getting hurt, but I fail to see how my post even makes you think she will not live a peaceful and humane life.
Just because she is involved in hunting, fishing, or the shooting sports doesn’t mean she will one day become inhumane, crazy and violent; and even if you don’t agree with hunting – I can understand certain people can’t handle it – being involved with guns and archery surely can’t mean a child is headed down a road to become violent. If that is the case, then all the Olympic archers and shooters of the past and present are headed down a road of destruction. Do you believe that?
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.
The basis of my post was to provide my daughter with certain activities she can engage in that teach her life lessons I abide by. But the main point I was making – and you missed entirely – was that I want my daughter to be a critical thinker; I want her to think for herself and be independent.
Are you against that as well, or where you so blinded by hunting and firearms that you failed to see the message within the post?
I think it would be great if she becomes a critical and independent thinker.
She and many young people need to redefine our society and what it means to live in a world with many other beings.
Propelling a bullet or a hook into a being, that deserves to live as much as you and I, is NOT a peaceful activity.
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.
Life = Life, Death = Death
And if you’re using the overpopulation of a given species as an excuse to kill our fellow earthlings, then you’re looking in the wrong direction. It is our species that has overpopulated the world on a grand scale. Even still, there are humane ways to, what you call, “manage” wildlife.
The key is to manage ourselves. Nature will take care of itself.
So let’s hope that one day the children of the future can shed off the old way of thinking and live in harmony and peace with the rest of the world.
Besides, humans, being at the bottom of the dependence scale, need to ensure the existence of all life around us in order for us to survive. If the smallest being disappears, all life would cease to exist. If man becomes extinct, than everything would grow back and flourish.
Becoming humble, kind and humane is our only hope.
Thanks,
E.
E,
I am very curious as to how you obtain your food. Really, though, I suppose it doesn’t matter how your food is acquired, because the plain and simple fact is that for any food to be had something in fact has to die. If you choose to buy meat over the counter, instead of acquiring it yourself through hunting, then something still has to die; and if you are a vegetarian I can guarantee you that there isn’t a vegetable farmer out there who hasn’t trapped or killed animals in order to keep them from destroying his crop that you ultimately eat.
These two quote of yours honestly frighten me; by using the word others you have put an animal life on the same level as human life, and that is a scary concept to me. I am not a bloodthirsty killer, and I have helped many an animal back to good health, but still that does not put animals at the same level as human life. I would hate to think that if a human was drowning, and a cat was drowning at the same time, that you would pick the animal’s life over the humans. And for you to compare killing a human to killing an animal is scarily out of touch. In fact, I’m starting to think you value an animal’s life more than your own.
You will find that hunters are some of the most humble, humane, and compassionate people on this planet; and I’m here to tell you that a hunter has probably experienced more peace and being one with nature then most people do in their entire lifetime.
We do agree on one thing, however – nature will take care of herself. But you are forgetting one important aspect of nature, and that is that we humans are a part of nature; nature does not exist without us. I wonder, after hearing how compassionate you are about nature, what you have really done in order to preserve her – cleaned up a watershed, planted a tree, etc.
It is saddening to me that you have put animal life on such a grand scale, and honestly have let it become more important than a humans. We hunters are some of wildlife’s best friends; for without us they wouldn’t flourish like they do in this day and age – many of the species would have disappeared a long time ago.
We hunters are the true conservationists, and all you have to do is take a look around to know that is true. Our money goes to fund many different organizations that help to preserve the outdoors that you and I enjoy.
And finally, by putting my daughter in the outdoors, allowing her to hunt, and to ultimately know where her food comes from – that is was handled properly, and taken care of as it should – will provide her with more humbling, discipline, and know-how experience than any other activity I know, while also teacher her about life and death and cause and effect.
Regards,
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.
Now, maybe we were a part of nature before we evolved to our current state, but now, we’ve done so much damage to this earth, there may be no turning back.
We’ve destroyed the eco-system, we’ve created global warming, and we’re in the process of depleting the oceans.
With that being said, as a hunter (and fisherman), as long as you stay away from factory farms and fisheries, you’re doing your part to help the environment. You’re also ensuring that there are still places where animals can be free.
However, this does not make you a conservationist. To conserve something means “to keep in a safe or sound state or to avoid wasteful or destructive use of”. It also means to protect. As all hunters kill the animals they hunt, they are in fact destroying life around them, and for that fact alone, denies you the right to call yourselves “conservationists” or “environmentalists”.
You see, the true purpose of environmentalism and conservation is to protect and conserve land (water and air) in places where wildlife and nature can continue to exist (in areas that belonged to them in the first place) without man’s deadly intrusion, encroachment or purposes.
There are also other words that you use to describe what you do to hide the truth or sugarcoat your “leisure activities”. Hunting and Fishing should have never been categorized as a sport, as the second party does not wish to play any of your “games”. Words like culling, harvesting, and many others just don’t fit the actual events that take place on an ongoing bases.
This is what I meant about redefining our society and what it means to live in a world with many other beings.
Now, I will agree that vegetable farmers at one point had to trap or kill animals to protect their land from their crops being destroyed. This doesn’t sit well with me. But as a vegan, my goal is to buy organic where nothing has to die, not even a small bug. I would love to grow my own vegetables and become more self-reliant on the food I eat.
At the same time, I’m not unrealistic and realize all living beings, including ourselves, do die, sometimes in accidents. But the goal is to be kind and humane to all living beings as best as you can and to not purposely take a life, when it’s not really necessary.
I’m hoping that one day we can create peace in this world, and all living beings can live without the fear of the human predator following their every move.
Just think about it. That’s all I ask.
I’m also pleading with you and others to stop attacking those organizations that are doing the best they can to create a peaceful world for all. It does not look well on you.
Peace
E.
E,
I honestly think it is a shame that you have such a deplorable view of human life. Sure we humans have committed mistakes – that is a simple truth – but we are also the ones who are capable of rationale thought and objectionable thinking; we can actually formulate what it is we want to do in order to do good for the world. I’m sorry to say, but nature, and especially wild animals ,cannot and will not think – they act. They are merely programmed to do what they need to do to survive, and they do not have a soul as a human does.
I am amazed by people who have your view that the world would be better without us. How can you stand by such a claim; it only shows your lackluster view of human life, and proves that you believe humans – you, your family, your kids (if you have any) are not as worthy to live as a dog or a ladybug is. That right there honestly makes me sad for you. I can’t imagine having such a negative opinion of human-life – think of all the good we’ve done in the world.
And I am a conservationist. My hard-earned money – money spent on hunting equipment, licenses, etc. – goes to fund and protect all the animals and wildlife you speak so fondly of. I also engage in protecting the natural world that I am allowed to be a part of by picking up after myself, planting high nourishment crops for the animals I love and hunt, and picking up trash I find left by other people who get to enjoy the resource without paying into like I do. What other group of people can claim to have such a monumental impact; and as far as attacking organizations that are doing the best they can to create a peaceful world, I only will do so if there ideology doesn’t jive with their message. PETA, HSUS, and other organizations claim to protect animals, and yet PETA only found homes for 13.7% of the animals they took in last year; that means they killed 86.3% of all the animals they took in. That is preposterous right there, and I haven’t even mentioned there affiliations with domestic terrorist organizations – you want to talk about violence. You will never hear me put down organizations who are truly looking out for animal welfare – that would be a huge mistake. Organizations like Ducks Unlimited, The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and others will always have my stamp of approval because they actually defend and abide by the rules of their organization without using any sort of smokescreen.
I think, though, at this point in time we have to agree to disagree. I will give you a compliment in closing, though. I am glad that we can have this discussion without name calling and other such nonsense, and I appreciate that you have – although we have very differences of opinion – treated me with respect.
I hope you keep visiting the blog.
Regards,
Arthur
You are absolutely right. Humans are the problem, but we can be the solution. In your words “We are capable of rationale thought and objectionable thinking; we can actually formulate what it is we want to do in order to do good for the world.”
That is my whole point. People can change. I’ll admit I’ve done things I’m ashamed of, but I’ve evolved to a compassionate and humane individual where even the smallest being gets my respect.
But you’re wrong about one thing: All living beings have souls, as well as the capacity to feel pain and emotion. There have been plenty of studies to prove this point. They, like us, come with moral code as well.
And as far as the world being a better place without us, you cannot deny that our existence alone has thrown the natural eco-system out of balance. It is also an anthropological fact that once we’re gone the natural system will eventually fall back into place.
Don’t misunderstand me though, human life is very important, as I am a human. I just believe that it’s better for the world to respect all regardless of species, race, or religion–size does not matter either. You can value human life as much as anybody else, but it doesn’t mean disrespecting other beings. Since we’re all connected anyway, it does a world of good to respect all.
You may call yourself a conservationist. You may have done good by nature, but if protecting all animals means killing them, I won’t be coming looking for your protection any day soon (laugh). There is a lot of hypocrisy in that. That’s all I’m going to say about that.
As far as PETA, HSUS, and other organizations are concerned: You’ve fallen in the same trap as many people. There are groups of people who are paid by the alcohol, food, and firearms industries to discredit and lie about those organizations who are really doing everything they can, even with the obstacles thrown at them, to make the world a better place for all.
I can’t blame you for believing such lies since our media is owned by the right-wing and constantly spin stories about animal rights, human rights and environmentalists. I hear it all the time. These stories are just not true.
These groups of people also attack Mothers Against Drunk Driving and the Second-Hand Smoke campaigns. It’s deplorable. Believe me.
And you support organizations like Ducks Unlimited and The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation because they advocate hunting and fishing (which again are violent acts against nature).
I will say one thing that concerns me, is that children are allowed to hunt and fish when they’re not even old enough to drive, or drink, etc. To me that doesn’t seem right. But that’s me (and many other people I know).
Let me say that my compassion is not just limited to animals. I believe that animal rights, human rights, and environmentalists must work together to create a peaceful world, thus creating the up and coming Humane Revolution.
But you’re right as you say “at this point in time we have to agree to disagree.”
I too enjoyed this discussion with you. I have the feeling that we learned something from each other.
All the best to you and your family.
Peace
E.
“I can’t blame you for believing such lies since our media is owned by the right-wing…”
Well I learned something new by reading this discourse.
E, Perhaps your energy toward thwarting violence would come in handy in Iran. Watchout for camel spiders though.;)
Big T
Not bad arty. I laughed out loud when E said the media is controlled by the right wing. Very interesting to read this conversation. You both kept your cool and that is good to see. It sure is a crazy world!