A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

How touching....... end up leaving a lot more questions than it does answer anything IMO.

During the first week of February, we received a message from Kyle Crawford about a vicious attack against Mothwing and me by the National Wildlife Federation, PETA and "concerned" hunters.

I asked Kyle to get me the numbers of those who sent e-mails and I would call them. I called every number he gave me on Friday, February 3. Naturally several of the numbers were probably PETA affiliated, some were not available or didn't answer, but I did get to talk to eight or ten actual hunters. I didn't ask these guys to alter their opinion or their passion. I simply wanted them to know the facts from me.

First, I want to apologize to any hunter or non-hunter who has been personally hurt or damaged by my deer hunt at Bellars. The primary inference on the video produced by the National Wildlife Federation is that I shot or was hunting drugged deer and that I
was doing it in a 3-6 acre pen.

1. The Federal Drug Administration asked me for three packages of the meat to test for drugs. I had no idea what drugs they were testing for - I actually thought they might be looking for a steroid maybe used in raising big deer. They tested the meat and found no drugs. Then they asked me if I would give them the rest of the meat. I voluntarily did this and this meat was also tested. I specifically asked the FDA agent at the trial if any drugs were found in my meat and he told me NO-there was none. By the
way, we had already eaten some of the meat and it was perfectly ok.

2. I was not hunting in a 3-6 acre pen. We were hunting in a high-fenced area and the stand that they had me in was within 10 yards of a fence. This fence went over the hill and we could not see how far it went. As I testified in the trial, we went over the hill and never did reach the other end of the high fence. There is no way I could estimate the size of the area. It could be 50 acres, it could be 500 acres. The entire high fence area, as I was told was 1200 acres, but, yes, there were section fences. The fence that is seen on the video is the same fence we were beside. There is video shot in one direction and video shot in the other
direction of the same fence. Bear in mind that the camera was in a different stand than the one I was in. I got in this tree stand at 7AM on this morning and shot the deer at 11:10. That is over 4 hours. It was 20 degrees.

3. Russ Bellar did come out and check on us around 9:00AM. We saw several deer; we even saw a deer go under the fence. The buck I shot was a 6 ½ or 7 ½ year old buck and was chasing a doe. There were literally hundreds of deer on Bellars place. At the time, nothing seemed unusual other than it was really cold. I completely agree with all hunters about shooting drugged deer in pens. This is wrong. I share your same passion and have spent my entire life hunting and have worked diligently to promote,
protect and preserve this great heritage.

Have I ever broken a law or been put in an awkward position? Of course. Should I be singled out and crucified for hunting at Bellars where hundreds of others have hunted? I don't believe so.

From the very first day I was contacted by the Federal Wildlife Department, I have cooperated fully and truthfully. I was always called "a witness and or a victim" by the prosecution and I did testify for the state. This is indeed very hurtful when you have given your entire life to the promotion and betterment of hunting and fishing.

We see on television every day where individuals attack, blow up, kill and maim people all over the world. We call these folks terrorists and wonder how anyone could develop that much hate. Yet with a few seconds of produced video, hate has welled up so much in some as to want to destroy me, our television show, and any company we are involved with.

Again, if I have hurt anyone, I apologize and ask your forgiveness.

By the way, we did not air that hunt on television and never portrayed any pictures to anyone as fair chase, high fence or otherwise. I just learned this week that the picture was on some websites and asked that it be removed. We decided not air the hunt when we learned there was some controversy surrounding Bellars Place.

Yes, had we known then what we know not, we would not have hunted there but that's why hindsight is 20-20. Was it wrong for me to hunt there? Absolutely!

Obviously this letter won't satisfy everyone, particularly those anti-hunters whose desire is to keep this on the front burners and watch Jimmy burn. They love nothing more than making hunters attack hunters. But, to the real hunters who read this, I apologize for any hurt or disappointment I have caused you.

Good hunting, good fishing and May God Bless!

Best Personal Regards,


"A hundred years from now it will not matter what kind of car I drove, how big my bank account was..but that I was important in the life of a child"

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

seems real to me and it is a nice letter but dont let the post get out of hand please

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

So is he saying that there was only one side fenced? I could have sworn that I saw 3 sides....................

Is he sorry for what he did, or just for getting caught???

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

PR ...Damage control .... now he knows how I feel LOL ...

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

5 acres, 50 acres, 500 acres, how can he not know ow big the place was that he was hunting????

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

lol dd to :D:Dfunny

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Sounds pretty desperate to me. He knew what he was doing when he did it! He not only is a sorry excuse for a "hunter", he is a sorry excuse for a man..............trying to twist the truth and outright lie!

Is there any question about his character? Does he think his words can change what we seen with our own eyes?

PUKE!

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

If Jimmy was told it was a 1200 acre pen then I can see how it would be impossible to know exactly what the acerage was. If there were cross fences somewhere in the property he still couldn't know how many acres he was hunting on unless he GPS'ed the whole thing. No drugs in the meat? Sounds like the PETA people and others saw that they had someone in the public spotlight and tried to make a big story about it. I have no personal knowledge about the type of facility Mellar has, nor do I know how legal the facility was in that state. I assume a jury will or has decided that. To critique Jimmy Houston based on what I have seen thus far is something I won't do. I tried to load the links in another thread, but as I am on dial-up it would not load.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Ding a Ling a Ling - We have a winner - someone thinking with some reasoning outside the confines of the internet :D :D :D

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

IMO.. He's tarnished his image enough, and should be out of the outdoor realm.

He complains that many many other hunters have done the same thing, but he is singled out. Of course. When you're a hunting celebrity, you should use 10 X the caution as compared to other hunters. And when Jimmy accepted to hunt and video this hunt.... well... he just wasn't thinking, to say the least.

Regardless how big the fence was, everyone seen the deer run from side to side, trying to get out, acting like they were confined to a small pen. So who cares on the size of the pen.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Well lets just for a minuite ASSuME that Jimmy thought (duh) that he was on a 1200 acre piece of high fenced porperty ...and lets ASSuME that he had no earthly ideahe was in a shooting pen ... if that is the case I would also have to ASSuME that he did no scouting for himselflike a good hunter would do because had he done that he would have had to stumble over the other fences there.... unless he climbed right inside the gate ;)and if YOU believe THIS story please contact me because I would like to sell you a hunt for the elusive Easter Bunny !

dd

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

A nice letter with damage control as a major focus. He knew it wasn't an ethical hunt but did it anyway. I feel sorry for him because this will haunt him and reduce his TV public appeal. Trying to spin his way out of this mess only makes it worse. When you are a celebrity or public figure one bad move can ruin your reputation. I wish all states and provinces would outlaw canned hunts. In addition, I hope all businesses selling advertising from these operations would take the high road and not do business with them.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

I do not want to start word war ,that't not my thing ,I have watched a lot of huntingwith and high fence hunt's and never sawa hunter do any scouting ,the guide say's get in the blind and we will pick you up later.[&:][&:]

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

He wasent in a blind but atreestand bow hunting ...

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

ncie point DD i never saw it like that

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

like i replied to him.......i still feel he is full of it and the only reason i think he made a statement was cause he got caught...but i also know God does everything for a reason, hopefully he'll become an advocate for fairchase hunting...this is his oppurtunity to do right by the animals we love.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

exactly

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

There's always two sides to every story. He has as much right to state his side as NWF, or annonymous internet posters for that matter, have to bash him.

I noticed a few comments about not scouting in high fenced hunts where a guide's services were rendered. Doesn't that happen in low fenced areas as well? Isn't that why you have a guide, because he's already done the leg work for you. I don't know how many have used guides, I haven't, but I would if I were hunting another state in unfamiliar terrain. That's what they are there for. I hope to one day hunt an elk in the Rockies, and if I ever get that chance, I'll probably have a guide.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

N.T. your right ... a lot of time when you hunt in another state or country you will use a guide and hope he has done his homework ...BUT if I had paid as much as J.H. most likely paid for this hunt ... and was going to the trouble to pay a camera man to film ...and if I was bowhunting ...I would HAVE to have the guide show me WHY I was going to hunt THIS paticular piece of the woods and why this tree ..maybe its just me but if I were going to invest the time and money I would take an hour or so to get an idea what type of terrain I would be hunting even if I was using a guide .. on the other hand if I knew I was hunting in a 3X6 pin and knew the deer HAD to come by me sooner or later during the day I guess a scouting trip would not be needed ...expecally if it was a GUARANTEED hunt ...why scout?

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

I'd like to know how he could tell over the telephone which ones were "real" hunters when he sure as heck couldn't tell one from a criminal when they were handing him coffee across the fence at "half time".

"Jimmy" are the real hunters the ones hunting $10000 deer inside Bellar's pen or just the one seeing hundreds of deer in four hours from a single stand?

For a guy who just now figuring out how sorry you are about all this you sure figure out quick who the REAL hunters are over the telephone.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

UHHH maybe you should find out what you're hunting in being the "pro" you are?[:-]

came to check on you? LMAO. Did he bring you coffee and shoot the breeze for a few minutes? Tell you what time the big boy should be coming over the hill?
Sorry about that deer getting under the fence. My dog does that all the time too.

Hundreds of others don't claim to be a "pro" outdoorsman and arent' making a lot of money in the industry. You're a fraud. At least you kind of admit you're a criminal too. Stop with the everyone else did it routine. You sound like a 10 year old.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

DD you are the man! I have been trying to get one of the very few federal Easter Bunny tags for about 20 years.

THIS YEAR I GOT IT!

Where can you put me on and how much $$ are we talking? I kind of always envisioned myself doing a self-guided thing but, with your experience I think it would be best if I hired you on as guide. (1 permit in 20 years - I don't want to take a chance!) Do we do the egg hunt BEFORE or AFTER the hunt? I prefer we do it before and call it scouting. I have been told when scouting to not just believe that the Easter Bunny always wears that purple vest because he can be very crafty, sometimes wearing Realtree 3D or Hardwoods.

Oh boy! This is gonna be really great!

"Uncle Matt is stalking on the bunny trail, the bunny trail, the bunny trail. Uncle Matt's gonna be eatin bunny tail, bunny tail, bunny tail."
(can't get that song out of my head)

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Well Matt first of all you got to be vewy vewy quiet to sneek up on that waskelly wabbit ...the Easter Bunny has slipped some of the finerst hunters around ... here is the good Doctors all time hunting hero ...

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

DD, i have a friend;););) that might be interested in one of these hunts, first is it fair chase, is it fenced, will dogs be used, whats the cost, and last but not least, will this hunt be filmed and re-broadcast on tv, if so never mind[:-]

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Many years ago I saw a TV show with Jimmy Houston fishing spawning small mouth bass on Lake Champlain in Vermont. I recognized many of the places he fished and used some of the same tackle and methods he did to catch bass in subsequent years. Since we are about the same age, I always fantasized about meeting up with him and doing some fishing together on Champlain. I was aware that he sometimes did some hunting on his shows and figured that he was a true sportsman and really liked his show. All that has changed and I see now that all his sporting is done primarily for the camera. He has no ethics and I hope he never fishes Champlain again. Jimmy...If you monitor this site, you no longer are any type of hero to me. When your show comes on I will change channels and refuse to use any of your sponsor’s products. That is my decision and one that might be shared by thousands of similar minded sportsmen. If there were no canned hunting operations allowed anywhere then these atrocities wouldn't have happened. To all sportsmen...boycott all companies who promote canned hunting.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

...Deleted by Calhunter...
That's all I've got to say about that .

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

[/quote] I do not want to start word war ,that't not my thing ,I have watched a lot of huntingwith and high fence hunt's and never sawa hunter do any scouting ,the guide say's get in the blind and we will pick you up later.[&:][&:]
/quote]

I dont think I'dlikehuntinga high fenced area. I'd feel like I cheated if Ishot one.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Fella's, at what point do you figure out ...IT'S ENTERTAINMENT.. He's not the guy next to you in the wood's or boat, he's not an idol or hero or anything else except an entertainer who doe's tv show's for a living to give us all something to bitch about in the off season. Let's check out the skeleton's in our own closet before we start condemning someone else. I don't hunt high fences and I don't care what anyone else doe's as long as it's legal. You are more worried about what some tv guy does that nobody takes seriously anyhow" when was the last time you told someone you had to hurry home to watch the JH or hank parker or buckmasters show " get real I'll guarentee that most of us have screwed up and influenced someones life more than JH ever has. I guess nobody is as good a hunter as "WE' are or as ethical or as lawbiding not to mention moral. good lord "we" must be perfect !! P.S. I don't believe I have ever watched a JH show but it can't be any less entertaining than buckmaster's.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Bottom line, he screwed up, got caught & now he must pay the piper!!!!....his name will forever be tarnished and before all is said and done, it will cost him millions on top of millions!!!

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

He is also an easily recognizable figure to many non hunting americans. Now, it's obvious you don't care, but the truth is there are many people seeking to take away our right to hunt, and when someone does something unethical or morally wrong (or illegal) it looks much better for us if we condemn it ourselves, before we are associated with it.

Quite frankly all that tells me is YOU believe many of us have skeletons in your closet. I haven't broken the law when hunting, haven't shot a deer in a pen, and haven't had to go to court because of my involvement with the illegal killing of deer. My closet is clean.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Theplain truthis that Jimmy Houston has the outdoorsman's dream job. He had the gear, the time, the best hunting in the world,fishing all summer - hunt all winter.Staying on topwas simple: Don't do anything stupid, and haul in the dollars.

So what does Jimmy Do? He hunts in a deer pen and gets caught doing it - Stupid.

So now, he's scrambling to repair his tarnished image before the inevitable collapse. Nice knowin' ya, Jimmy. Have a nice retirement.

Sorry, Jimbo, but there are 5 Million of us who would eat your lunch in a heartbeat. NEXT.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Hey Jimmy does this mean anything to you



"L"

Heres your sign

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Here's his wifes statement........... even funnier than his letter.

[:-][:-]

I have been very disappointed in the e-mails and chat room attacks all of which has turned into a vicious campaign to destroy not just Jimmy's integrity and reputation, but to actually try to destroy a life-long career.

This has been a campaign that seems to have been launched by a group called the National Wildlife Federation". Who is the National
Wildlife Federation; what is their agenda, and what do they actually believe? Does anyone know? In "the video", the man wearing the camo shirt introduces himself as a part of the National Wildlife Federation and having produced the video to inform you the hunter.... He then goes through the various clips-showing Jimmy Houston in the first hunting clip.

It shows Jimmy in a stand...shows some deer coming by..shows Jimmy holding a bow, however it does not show him actually killing a deer. The National Wildlife Federation representative then goes on to show other clips involving other hunters in various hunting situations; he not only does not identify these other hunters, but has put the sequence together in a manner, I believe, to implicate that some of these other hunters are actually Jimmy..I can assure you they are not.

From the content of many of these posts, I am convinced that many of you have gotten that impression - if not, then you have chosen to not just accuse but deliver the "gospel" as such.

Who are the people in the other video clips? Who are the other hunters?

Does anyone know or care? "No, let's destroy Jimmy and Mothwing Camo!" seems to be the outcry by the barrage of posts that have appeared. It seems interesting to me that there have been many posts indicating that the writer of the post would not "buy anymore Mothwing Camo"; would not buy any more camera cases with Mothwing Camo on them; that "they have a whole wardrobe of Mothwing camo, but would not be buying anymore". Guess what??? Mothwing Camo has actually not been available for consumer
purchase until just very recently and I mean very recently, so I am comfortable in saying that these are all false statements in an attempt to hurt not only Jimmy but Mothwing Camo.

Why? Because Jimmy hunted at Bellars? I don't think so. In fact if you will look closely at the camo that Jimmy is wearing on "the video", you will find that he is not even wearing Mothwing..It wasn't available when the video was shot in 2003.

Should you boycott the company that made the camo that he is wearing on the video?

Does it not seem interesting to you that the other hunters on the video and even those that were listed as having hunted there are not identified?

Many if not most of those were much "bigger fish" than Jimmy. There was even another company associated hunting show that was there when Jimmy arrived at Bellars in 2003. Has anyone attacked them?


Jimmy was invited to hunt at Bellars. He actually squeezed the hunt into a very busy schedule. It was very cold and if memory serves me correctly before the day was over a winter storm moved in and they drove home in a snowstorm.

He actually hunted all morning from daylight until after 11 in very cold temperatures..and it was not in a 3-6 acre pen. The video that was shot that day on that hunt has never aired until the National Wildlife Federation has chosen to use it. I believe that there have been some posts that indicate that this show was aired..wrong.

I can go on and on but I won't. It would be impossible to deliver an explanation or an apology good enough to satisfy most of you because you don't want to hear the truth. To those of you whose lives have been adversely affected by knowing that Jimmy hunted at Bellars three years ago..I apologize.

Please know that when you attack Jimmy in a manner attempting to ruin his career, you are also attempting to destroy me, our
family and our employees. Jimmy has spent a lifetime not just making a living but encouraging others to hunt and fish and exalting those sports.

He has spent many days taking ill children fishing from "Make a Wish"; "Hunt of a Lifetime"; "Brass ring Society"; and other similar
organizations. Some of these wishes have even been fulfilled during tournament practices. He receives may calls asking him to call a dying or seriously ill friend; he recently flew to New Orleans to join a group from New York that was rebuilding a fishing deck for a five year old cancer patient. He did not actually do the rebuilding - it was his privilege to spend the day with the little boy. This story was actually covered by CNN, but I sure haven't seen anything posted on here about that. No that is a good deed. He left home around 4am and got back well after midnight...is this the evil person that deer hunted at Bellars and is now being persecuted for it on your posts?
http://www.newyorksaysthankyou.org/video/nystk_slidell02.wmv
http://www.newyorksaysthankyou.org/video/nystk_slidell01.wmv


For almost 20 years Jimmy has worked his schedule around activities of the Fellowship of Christian Anglers. The annual Kids Day event held on Lake Tenkiller; the FOCAS tournament; and the Christmas party held for Cherokee County Nursing Center are all events that are built into his schedule.

You can bet your boots that over 80 old people at the nursing home in Tahlequah could care less that he hunted at Bellars. They know that he takes the time to visit them every Christmas. He speaks at many churches and children's camps...many of those added to an already crowded schedule, making his schedule, without a doubt the busiest for a pro fisherman.

He has emceed the St Judes tournament in Louisana for the last 12-13 years. During that time that tournament has raised $2,861,000 which has been personally delivered to St Judes by the tournament founder Charles Williams. Jimmy made a lifetime commitment to Charles to help him with that tournament in honor of Charles' daughter, Heather, who died of leukemia. Again, many times, this is squeezed into a tight schedule, but he will fly from anywhere to be there.

Just this past year, Jimmy also hosted the residents of a local Veterans Home for a day of fishing at his personal home and lake. He not only provided the tackle and bait, but baited hooks and fished with these veterans all day. I really don't think they care that he hunted at Bellars either..they just know that he has opened his heart and arms to them and allowed them to enjoy catching a tub full of catfish.

I could go on but I know that this is not the stuff on which scandals and smear campaigns thrive.

While most of you are determined to destroy or at best taint Jimmy's reputation and image, I am comforted by the fact that God is granting Jimmy the grace and strength to endure the maliciousness that has been thrust upon him in a manner that only God can be providing. His "One Year Bible" in the NLT version provided us proof that God is walking him through this fire. Please allow me the courtesy of reading the following. He is actually a few days ahead in his reading..I think he is actually where God planned for him to be.

The Psalms for 2/17 is from Psalms
35:17-38 and reads as follows:
17. How long O Lord, will you look on and do nothing? Rescue me from these fierce attacks. Protect my life from these lions
18. .19. Don't let my treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat. Don't let those who hate me gloat over my sorrow. 20. They don't talk of peace. They plot against innocent people who mind their own business. 21. They shout aha aha! With our own eyes, we saw him do it. 22. O Lord, you know all about this. Do not stay silent. Do not abandon me now, O Lord. 23. Wake up. Rise to my defense! Take up my case, my God and my Lord. 24. Declare me not guilty! O Lord, my God, for you give justice. Don't
let my enemies laugh about me in my troubles. 25. Don't let them say, "Look, we got what we wanted! Now we will eat him
alive." 26. May those who rejoice at my troubles be humiliated and disgraced. May those who triumph over me be covered with shame and dishonor. 27. But give great joy to those who come to my defense. Let them continually say "Great is the Lord, who delights in blessing his servant with peace." 28. Then I will proclaim your justice and I will praise you all day long.

I take comfort in knowing that God will prevail no matter how harsh the written word.

I know one thing the National Wildlife Federation has succeeded in doing - that is pitting hunters against hunters. Was this their original intent?

Is this not the MO of most of the anti-hunting groups? In the process of making their stand on high fence operations known they have used Jimmy Houston as the bait and bullet. I have just discovered that the NWF is indeed a group that is opposed to HUNTING. Don't think for a minute that their desire is not to inform - it is to destroy hunting period.

To our sponsors who have been contacted and/or mentioned, we want to say how very sorry we are that this has turned into a Jimmy Houston witchhunt. We have always considered our association with our sponsors a great privilege and honor and will always represent them with dignity. We consider our sponsors to be the best in the industry and have already been assured by some of them that they have not lost their faith and trust in us and will ride out the storm with us. To you, we say a heartfelt thank you.

To those have posed in our defense and/or support, I say thank you from the bottom of my heart. You cannot imagine how much those have meant. It is like finding a life raft in a stormy sea.

To those who have called with words of encouragement...thank you. It is difficult to defend oneself from nameless and faceless attackers.

The only one identified in this battle is Jimmy. To those who are having fun being involved in this and wallowing in this mud bath, may you never have to endure such persecution.

Again, if you have been eternally affected by Jimmy having hunted at Bellars three years ago, I am sorry. If you are just enjoying the hunt and chase, then I would respectfully ask that you let it go..enough is enough. Lets all use this energy, time and space doing something that will bless or build up someone or something.

I must mention that we have just been contacted by a church where Jimmy is scheduled to speak wanting to know if they need to provide extra security for him in light of the attacks posted on the internet...how sad that this has reached this point. May God have mercy on those responsible.

Thank you for your time and patience in reading this long post. I am disappointed and hurt, but not bitter or broken by all of this. My prayer and belief is that God will prevail and provide a result that will glorify Him.

Respectfully submitted,
Chris Houston

By the way, to the post from Florence Alabama that mentioned that he observed Jimmy being ugly to me for not catching fish at Pickwick Bassn' Gal tournament...shame on you. I have been married to Jimmy over 40 years and he has never been ugly to me for not catching fish. Sure he may have been disappointed on those days I didn't catch fish, but never ugly. The only reason I even fished the Bassn' Gal tournaments was because of his encouragement and support, there has never been a bigger supporter of
women in fishing than Jimmy.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Well I do feel bad for her and her family ... but I stand by my remarks about him. I appreciate the fact that they are Christian people ...I wonder if she remembers this ...not to start arguing religion ...

Luke 12:48 - But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

dd

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

I feel bad for them all too. Bad situation but it was caused by Jimmy and nobody else. He has done lots of good things in life which is admirable and will probably survive this with a little paint chipped off. The measure of what he is worth will bethe path he takes in the future. He has an incredible opportunity to make it right by coming out against all forms of canned hunting. I believe all things happen for a reason and now he can do the right thing. It takes courage to admit you are wrong and even more to do something about it. Jimmy if you read this, and you probably will, step up to the plate and do all sportsmen a favor. Use your name and position in the sporting world to take a stand against canned hunts. Turn this bad part of your life into a positive. If you are able to do that I will be the first person to shake your hand if you ever get back to Champlain.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

I have read more than I can think about this issue. Personally, I don't agree with what he did and wouldn't do it myself. However, he made the decision and I believe full well he knew what he was doing. On the other hand people hunt high fences all the time. Regardless of size, high fence is still high fence. The deer are bought and placed on the property where they can't leave. It just doesn't take as long to get them in a smaller area. He did what thousands of people do every year. Granted, he is in the spotlight and should have known better that much I understand. What I don't get is why he just couldn't have come out and said sorry, I screwed up. Rather, he takes the low road and tries to justify his actions with excuses. I find this more antagonizing than the fact that he actually did it. Both him and his wife try to perform damage control and play the general public for fools with their statements. I think if he would have just owned up like a man most of us would still not have liked it but at least respected him a little more.

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

First off, I have never met nor ama friend of Jimmy Houston, his wife, his company or anybody that even knows him. I've been posting on this board for a couple of years now and my views are pretty well known. I am a 100% fair chase hunter and I use bow, Muzzle loader and rarely rifle. The only fences in the area whereI hunt are 3 strands of barb-wire. I personally don't hunt over corn, but lots of folks around here do. While my situation is nothing like Jimmy's, I am in a very visible position where I live, workand hunt. If I as much as sneeze illegally, shoot 2 mins before shooting hours or 2 mins after, orin any way get even close toshading any rule or regulation, everyone would know andevery time someonegot caught for anything, the excuse would be "well ........ did it!, whether or notI actually did that particular thing or not.I pretty much exclusivly deer hunt and when I do fish, it is mostly salt water. So far, I have with held comment and observed this situation develop. I offer the comments below as my opinion and my opinion alone.

Last night my wife made a comment about a young girl from Louisiana, Britney Spears, and how stupid she was for letting her child ride in her lap while driving her SUV. My wife, normally a very sensible and understanding lady, was angered and upset about this lapse in common sense by the young mother and was very quick to jump on the "burn Britney at the stake" crowd. I looked at her and said, "If people, the press,followed youor me around, filming and reporting on every step we take, every decision we make and our every waking moment, don't you think that maybe we would be caught in a "stupid" moment a couple of times over the past 15 years? Even something as bad as this?" The look on her face said it all. She knew what I knew. That every one of us has probably done something that we aren't proud of (maybe something embarrassing, immoral, illegal, or just plain stupid) and had someone been there with to let the world know, we might well be embarrased, or worse.

Some folks have much more to loose than others and their personal choices have greater impact on their lives and the lives of those around them than on other folks. Perceptions, whether true or not, can be more real than reality and have just as severe a consequence as reality. Some people live in glass houses by choice, others live there due to thier occupation, hobby and/or are put there by those around them. Often, those folks fall from grace in large part because they are vulnerable, sometimes it is because they are stupid.
Jimmy screwed up, period.
Personally, I think a few anti-hunting groups are using him and his name to gain publicity and to fan the flames (much like a certain group of radicals are doing regarding cartoons lately) What better way to get notice for your cause than to use a well known celebrity to highlight your mission. My personal opinion is that all this "stuff" is playing right into their hands. Don't get me wrong, Jimmy is as much a goat as a victim here. He, on purpose or not, with knowledge or not, threw that rock inside his glass palace.

We live in a country were a person is innocent until proven guilty. And, as an American and Christian, I thought we were all proud to forgive those when they admitted wrong. The man came out and said he was sorry, his wife came out and said theywere sorry, what else do you want? You and I can't really judge whether or not he is sincere based on an email or letter, can we. Personally, I have to give him the benefit of the doubt. Would it make you happy if he lost his show, his job and went bankrupt? Just how far and how long to you want to punish the guy? I think allot of what we are seeing is nothing more than plane ole folks being jealos, is that any better than shooting a deer in a pen.

Now, all that said, my guess is that there is far more to this story than meets the eye. Could an over eager producer put his boss in a "sure thing" environment to make a good film fast (without Mr Houston's knowlege), I wouldn't put it past one. If you were famous, what better way to get publicity for your business than to put a well known outdoor sportsman on a stand for a sure thing kill of a monster buck? If somebody invited YOU to a hunt and put you on a stand, would you know you were in a 3 to 6 acre enclosure? Kinda depends don't it. You and I WILL NEVER know the whole truth. That lies somewhere between what we have been shown from the courts, what Jimmy says and what "Bubba" heard down at the local hardware store. Bottom line, the truth is only as good as the media it comes from.

The videos and info I have seen looks very bad, but I've seen the media and special interrest group do some pretty convincing things to make situations appear as they are not and to mold perceptions in the way they want. I am not saying Jimmy is innocent, I'm not saying anyone needs to shed a tear, forgive and forget Jimmy, what I am saying is that we are all better off dropping it. All we are doing is giving anti hunters more publicity, hurting our cause and I think Jimmy has suffered enuff. My guess is that get guy has pleanty of $$ and if he never did another show would live comfortably hunting and fishing for the rest of his life. Some of us need to get over that, no amount of dragging over the coals is going to change it.

If you wouldn't have done what Jimmy did, great, you are a better man than he is let it go at that. If you don't want to watch his show any more, don't. But, let's let this horse rot and go away like it needs to do. The more we stir up the stink, the more it sticks to our hands.

I am sure some folks will disagree with my opinion, that is great, it is what this country and board are all about. I would appreciate not being totally burned at the stake like Jimmy for it.
R
Hank

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

You have absolutely no class!

The guy F'd up. Stop acting like a bunch of ol' hens and pretending likehe's the only "spotlight hunter" that's hunted behind a fence.

You tear apart his letter to the public (mainly us hunters) , then you tear apart his wifes letter. If he wouldn't have responded at all you would have pounced on that as well.
Sounds like he was damned either way. :eek:

RE: A letter from Jimmy Houston.....
 

Yeah pretty much