I would say, yes, we have lost focus. But, it is not so different from anything else in life. (How have we come to a place where Mom and Dad both work 9-5 [or longer], spend little time together in the evening, put the kids to bed and pop on the tube for a couple hours? Is that living??).
We have a system (or industry, but it’s all a part of the system) dictating a “norm” to us. We have become dependent on big agriculture and just being able to waltz into the grocery store to buy whatever food we want or can afford (prices are steadily climbing). That affects our attitude towards hunting, whether you realize it or not. There are some very useful and beneficial products out there, and hunting has come a long way in that regard. However, there are many, many more products out there that are designed for one thing, and one thing only: making you believe that it will help you kill a bigger buck. There is less focus on woodsmanship and raw skill, and a whole lot more focus on trickery and making hunting, well, less like hunting. “People can do what they like as long as it’s within the law, blah blah blah…,” but the fact remains is that the average hunter today is very influenced by the industry’s heavy marketing, and is barely a shadow of what yesterday’s hunter once was.
I am preaching to myself, here, BTW. I am not above the influence, but I try to remain mindful of it.