ORIGINAL: RedAllison
It has nothing to do with "buckskinners" or doing it the hard way or anyother "primitive" methods. The reasons are to encourage more harvests. MS (and most anyother southern state) is about 15 years behind the curve with respect too proper harvests and eliminating over-abundant animals. This is why they are encouraging use of such weapons. I quit hunting north MS about 10 years ago because of the poor health of the herd (simply to many animals) and despite our best mgmt techniques we just couldn't produce animals much over 130". (That and the redneck poachers are RAMPANT in this state!)
For most of the 80s and throughout the first half of the 90s the state was to strict in antlerless harvests and now they are panicking because the herd has gotten out of control. The densities per square mile are higher than anyother single state in the U.S. Even having the greatest deer biologist within their own boundaries (Dr. Jacobs at MS State Univ.) wasn't enough for those thickheads. They wanted deer!
Well by God they got em now!!!
RA
I have never heard of "rampant" poaching and an over population of deer. I am assuming the "redneck poachers" are only buck hunters. In my area where the poachers are active, they are not gender specific. They follow the "if it's brown; it's down" philosophy, and in certain parts of the county, deer numbers reflect it.
In my opinion, there has got to be another way to encourage deer harvest than corrupting a "special" season.