Hey James,

I for one.....remember saying something an awful lot like that! A brother-in-law....in particular! Though he was not by any stretch the only one like that I've known!

But the hunting world is full of people that won't accept the fact......that they don't shoot very well....especially when they get off the bench. And of course when "things go wrong".....it must be the equipment.....and or "needing a bigger rifle". Truth of the matter is in most cases if you are having difficulty killing deer cleanly with say a .270 Win, a .308 Win, a .30-06 Springfield, or a 7mm Remington Magnum. You should probably try a .257 Roberts.....instead of a .300 RUM! Most hunters don't want to hear it....and fewer still like to be told that from field positions they couldn't hit the broadside of a barn....shooting from the inside. But, that is what many of them "need to be told". Many still think a sling is the "thing you carry it with", (and that is all it's for)! Nuff said bout that dead horse!

I think Cooper is "happy with who he is".....and pretty much has decided he will say what he thinks.....and let the chips fall where they may. In his own words, "he has seen the elephant", knows what has worked for him....and in his experience.......and is little concerned with experimentation for the sake of experimentation. And he decidely has a dislike for what he considers "marketing new things just for the commercial sake of marketing". Though he recogonizes the financial realities involved with such reasoning......he doesn't agree that everything new is necessary! I figure at his age.....he has earned the right to have a strong opinion.......so the only choice left for me is to read.....or not to read!

Long live men with strong convictions.....and the willingness to voice them! (Even when they aren't always in total agreement with the way we see things.)

Dave