Originally Posted by
KodiakHntr
And I will say it again; you have to stop preaching this narrative. Hunting for food is NOT the only reason people hunt. It should not be the only acceptable reason to hunt. If you make the argument that "organic meat" is the only acceptable reason to hunt then that gets shot in the foot right quickly, because you CANNOT certify that an elk from the forest hasn't eaten something treated with a herbicide or pesticide. And if the only reason you hunt is for "organic meat" then the only way a person gets "organic meat" is from a farm where every single aspect an animals life is regulated and has a clearly documented chain of custody.
I have said it before, and I will say it again, everyone has reasons to hunt, not all of them are about meat. The reason the grizzly hunt got shut down is because people don't like the idea of someone killing charismatic mega fauna. It wasn't because people don't like the idea of it not being eaten, it's because they have the emotional belief that it is morally wrong to kill an animal.
The reason you and Jesse got trashed on here is because you (whether you understand this or not) directly contribute to the hunt being lost through tacit agreement.
People with that view and speaking point give validity to that belief by saying "you know what, you are right. The only reason us HUNTERS think something should be killed is to be eaten and we agree with you".
We all directly play into the demise of the hunt, by showing agreement with people who are reacting emotionally. You fuel that emotional thought and feed into the passion by saying that you AGREE with them, and you won't stand up against them. Any and all of the work that you have done, is negated the second you start agreeing with them and saying "yeah, you are right. That guys reasons to hunt aren't as good as MY reason to hunt, so I will agree with you and not stand against you. I will stand against people who share some of my beliefs instead, because I think you might win and I want you to like me and let me do MY stuff as long as I can". (And I type that full well knowing exactly how active you are in the WSSBC, and all fo the work and money you have contributed. I've even stood and talked with you in Kamloops about your donation rifles and work done)
By agreeing with someone that the motivation behind hunting a grizzly was wrong (which is exactly what you are doing when you say 'yup, not taking meat bad, only hunt bear for meat'), you indicated that you agree with their emotional viewpoint, and gave them information and passion to push for the entire hunt to be closed. When you did that you in effect said "hey, yeah, you are right, grizzly hunters are a pretty small portion of the hunting community and we won't complain if you shut down the entire hunt, because their motivations to hunt bears is wrong and we don't like that either."
Read that again ,and really think about what it is you are doing by stating that the only acceptable reason to hunt an animal is for meat. And no matter on how you INTEND that to be understood, someone who is emotionally invested in having NO ONE kill a cute fuzzy animal for any reason sees that as an opportunity and agreement with their viewpoint.
Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the motivations behind trying to partially agree and negotiate to retain some segment of something, but that is the wrong track to take. Give an inch, and they will take a mile. This is exactly why we will end up losing sheep hunting, elk hunting, cat hunting, wolf hunting. People agreeing with the emotionally charged and saying "yep, you are right. The only reason anyone should hunt is for meat". And THAT is a losing battle, and here is why:
-NOBODY hunts a sheep for meat. If a person wants meat a whitetail doe is exponentially easier to access, hunt, and process. That is the lowest cost most widely accessible fastest renewing meat resource we have available, with the possible exception of rabbits.
The meat off of a ram is secondary to the entire experience. Being out there, being in the mountains, the effort required to get into sheep country, being able to do and experience something that not everyone has the drive or capability of doing, that is what makes a sheep hunter. Sheep hunting feeds the soul, not the body. People hunt sheep (or cats, or grizzlies, or goats) for the experience. NO ONE looks in the freezer Friday evening and thinks to themselves "getting pretty bare in here... I better head out for a Stone in the morning to put some meat on the table".
I think what a lot of people forget, or refuse to critically think about, is that dealing with people who are anti hunting is that you aren't dealing with anyone who is focused on rational thought. The fact that you hunt, or I hunt, does not have any impact on that person's life in any way, shape, or form other than my activities offends them emotionally. Think about that for a second. Something that I do, offends someone to the point that they feel it should be illegal, even though it doesn't affect their life at all. My activities have no impact on them living their life, other than they don't like it.
Where else have we seen this played out? In recent history gay marriage has been illegal. Why? Because gays were actively trying to go around marrying straight folk against their will? Nope, because people didn't like the idea of other people doing something that they didn't want them to do.
What do we see now? A very vocal minority that has forced everyone to recognize their rights as individuals. It was easy for emotionally charged people to make it look like there were only a few deviants and to make gay marriage illegal, because they were quiet and kept to themselves. Now that segment of the population that was formerly viewed as a tiny minority is loud and proud and people are very cognizant of the fact that it could be anyone out there that they know and it isn't persecuted anymore. (Or at least not to the extent that it was anyway).
Porthunter isn't wrong in his stance or approach to social media. Everyone needs to come out of the closet about hunting. Make the general public realize that a LOT of people they know hunt. We see it here all the time "None of my neighbors know I hunt or own guns".
Where I live it is assumed that EVERYONE owns guns, and everyone hunts. No one bats an eye at seeing antlers or legs sticking out of a pickup. We, and by we I mean people living in more urban areas, need to be more visible. Show people that it is the neighbor that they chat to while cutting the lawn or walking into their apartment building isn't some crazy meth cooking hillbilly who is likely to start a gunfight on the street when they see a demon sneaking up or someone who will kill their poodle just to watch it die because they were overcome with bloodlust.
Hiding in the shadows isn't going to do anyone any favours any more.
And I sincerely hope you don't take this as an attack on you or anything you have worked/are working for, but I sincerely hope that you read this and look introspectively at what you might be giving tacit approval to when you say things like "Every Hunter should preach and say they only hunt for Sustenance"
And I have no doubt whatsoever that some folks are going to be offended by this entire post (although I'm betting it is likely going to be the "meat hunting is the only acceptable reason to hunt" crowd) and some folks are going to be nodding their heads, and some folks will be vocal in agreement.
I'm going to end this post, with the statement that hunting to feed your body is not the only valid reason to hunt. It can be your reason, but it doesn't have to be MY reason. My reasons are varied, and personal. And all of my reasons are valid, to me. That doesn't make them less or more valid than your reasons, but I respect your reasons to hunt. Show me the same consideration please.
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