ORIGINAL: Windwalker7
No plant. Just don't see it that way. Every year there are fewer and fewer hunters. We hunters are not accepted on TV or in the media.
With all the issues of gun control and animal rights, I do feel that hunting is on a downhill slide and someday will be abolished.
People from the big cities don't accept hunting like people from the country. With all the urban sprawl, we lose hunting ground everyday.
I guess I feel that something like this will at least get people to look at hunting and maybe understand more than they did before. JMO
I look at what the BASS tournaments did for fishing. I think it got more people involved in fishing than there were before.
I will admit that I do see some of your points. Yes, it may make the public more against hunting. I can see things going that way too.
Here's my point. For the last few years I've been thinking of quiting hunting. I've taken too many deer, to the point that I actually feel quite guilty for taking its life.
When I was younger, I hunted all the time and killed lots of game. I hunted 2 states with gun and bow and averaged 6-7 deer a year for 17 years. I guess the killing part of it got me. I use to like the killing part but now I have much regret.
I like being in the woods and experiencing the sights, sounds and smells. I love everthing about hunting leading up to the shot. But when I walk up to that dead deer, I wish I never shot it.
I just looked at this WHA as something that interested me.
I don't expect you guys to understand.
I can see that you guys are worried in the future of hunting and I guess that maybe this WHA might not be a good thing. You make some valid points.
Sigh...where to begin...OK, first, there are less lands to hunt every year due to development, and more cities and people with "alternative lifestyles".So yes, there are less hunters---simple mathematics used here will clearly verify that, it's a no brainer that there would be less numbers. But guess what?Overall numbersmake no difference to the truehunters themselves who enjoy the lifestyle and heritage called hunting--it ONLY makes a difference to those who are looking to make money from the sport, that is one of the veryfirst arguements they usein fact. My entirefamily, and many other hunting families all across the countryare firmly rooted into this lifestyle that is called hunting, and the traditions are being passed as we speak to future generations. The future of hunting is VERY intact with those who live it and whodo not everwish to smear the heritage itself, and/or morph it into something it is not.
BASS turned fishing into a glorified three ring circus, and that is NOT how I or any of my true hunting bretheren wants to see our heritage publicized as. Nor did it increase fishing numbers of regular Joes--- but instead simply thenumbers of yahoos looking forfame and glory and money and going 100MPH up and down lakes looking for a hotspot.If we were to turn the WHA proposal into reality and it wasaccepted,anti hunters would soon see blunting as a non-lethalalternative and thus would turn their full fury on real hunting and true hunters--they would soonfeel there is no need to ever "Kill" anything ever again, and hunting as we know it would all butbe destroyed. If Farbman and Co think for one second that this farce is going to help hunting in an way other than possibly filling their pockets, they are sorely mistaken. I also cannot believe with the overwhelming response against the WHA that this guy and his cronies would continue on without regard for hunting and it's participants, IF they actually cared anything about the sport itself to begin with.
Ifanyone wishes to be aconvertbunny hugger, then go be one as that is your individualchoice. But as someone who used to hunt and harvest game as depicted in the quote above, I would think that one could remember why theyhunted, stillunderstand the true essence of it, andwhy others want to continue on without someone trying their darndest to screw it up! Hunting is hunting. Period.It is a lifestyle, heritage, and tradition that has been passed down thousands of years, from generation to generation. We cannot everbe so selfish to think thatWE have any right to mess with that in any way, shape, or form, just because we are feeling a little remorse or think that we may be able to capitalize and make money from it, "if we change this around".... That is plain blasphemy..I think every hunter "has a moment" of respectwith his harvest, sure,but that is alsoa natural part of hunting as well.
To sum up,as plain as I can--
"For those of you who understand, no explanation is necessary."
"For those of you who do NOT understand, no explanation is possible. "
That's it.