Well, I guess what you’re saying then, is that you would rather leave your youngster at home watching television than taking them alongside with you on a hunting outing with a crossbow. That is just truly heartbreaking.
Bucky... why is the ONLY answer give them a crossbow? Take the kid with you!!!! Let them help scout, hang stands, read tracks. So they have to shoot a deer with a crossbow during archery season ... which is illegal in 47 states to learn hunting? Bull crap... let them shoot their crossbow in crossbow season (like in Maryland) or during firearm season like every where else.
Guys, no one is arguing that a crossbow IS a gun, and hard as you try and you can't make a crossbow a bow. They are different. All this theoretical crap aside... ask the guys in Mississippi what is archery equipment is. Here in New England? .. yup, you guessed it .. BOW ONLY!!!
So you can tell all of us people who "don't get it" we rot all you want... you STILL DON'T GET TO USE THE DAMN THINGS DURING ARCHERY SEASON!!!!!! You can rationalize it a thousand times that they "should" be allowed, but at the end of the day you'll still get fined or lose your hunting license if you drag one into the woods during archery season.