The facts are......
1. Crossbows meet all archery definitions. No one here can argue otherwise with any facts to back it up.

2. Crossbows have the same effective range as the typical compound bow does.

3. Crossbows, in one form or another, have been around longer than any other form of bow other than the long bow so, if compound bows qualify as primitive weapons then crossbows certainly qualify as primitive weapons. I know that the first crossbows used sinew strings, wooden limbs, wooden arrows, etc,... etc... Well, so did the original long bows. Today's long and recurve bows that use carbon fiber risers, fiberglass and carbon laminated limbs, glass reinforced tips, carbon and aluminum arrows aren't exactly "primitive".

4. Tradition is a personal inheritance passed down from one family/generation/person to the next. Not all families have the same traditions. Not all families want the same traditions. Crossbows are steeped in more tradition than any compound bow out there. If someone wants to continue the tradition of hunting with self made bows then more power to them. Who am I or any one else to tell them otherwise? If some family wants to start a new tradition of hunting with crossbows then more power to them. Who am I or any one else to tell them otherwise?

5. More and more states will continue to allow crossbows in archery season and with good reason. Hunter numbers are declining at a drastic rate. If crossbows can get more people in the woods and introduced to the hunting lifestyle then great.

6. The "slob hunter" argument is just plain silly. Anyone can post all the stories they want to in order to try and validate their position on either side of the argument and it doesn't prove anything except there are idiots out there hunting with crossbows, long bows, recurve bows, compound bows, muzzle loaders, shot guns, center fire rifles, pistols, spears, knives, and every other form of hunting tool out there. There are idiots driving cars, flying planes, teaching our kids, etc... etc...