"Hunting Must be Banned"

[mungojeerie]

Here is a little link to a letter written to the paper and printed in the Maple Ridge - Pitt Meadows Times on Dec 14 2010.

Anyone feeling up to writing a rebuttal?

http://www.mrtimes.com/news/Hunting+...080/story.html

I'd get into this more now, but I have to head back to work...

Cut & Paste of article as follows:

Dear editor,
I was walking with my dog just past North Alouette Bridge on Neaves Road on Sunday, Nov. 28 at 7:45 a.m.
We had just started on the dike path when a shot rang out, and I watched a lone duck flying out of harm's way at a height that no shotgun pellet could reach.
I continued walking with my dog, and I observed a lone hunter carrying a shotgun walking on the path on the other side of the dike. I also noticed that he had no dog in tow.
At this moment, the duck decided to fly back to its original position.
When the hunter noticed this, he immediately dropped to his knee and pointed his gun.
The duck was flying toward me and over my head, at which time I closed my eyes, expecting to be showered with shotgun pellets.
Thankfully, the hunter realized that I would probably have been in dire straits had he fired his gun. I was speechless.
As I walked further up the dike, I came across empty shotgun shell cartridges, as well as a carcass of a duck lying in the middle of the frozen pond, obviously shot but not retrieved.
I thought that any hunter worth his salt hunted with a dog in order to retrieve his game. I guess firing a gun and killing fowl, and letting it rot or be eaten by other animals is fair game for a shotgun-wielding varmint.
I thought that council, other than discussing whether God is going to bless them or not before they talk council business, had better start getting serious about taking care of their constituency.
The Haney of yesterday is no longer.
The population growth, as well as the spread of suburbia, are now demanding changes in habits. It is time to remove hunting from our surroundings.
The dikes are meant for the populace to walk and enjoy what little nature there is left.
We should not have to run into "testosterone-fired" individuals with guns in their hands ready to shoot at anything that moves.
The modern generation does not need to shoot ducks in order to eat.
I can see if you were out in the bush and just relied on a shot-filled carcass for survival, but these days everyone shops at the local stores for groceries.
The time has come to ban shooting along the dikes.
I know that this is the so-called "Holy Grail" for those who own shotguns, but there are gun ranges where you can show your friends how good your aim is. My challenge to council and the populace is to bring an end to this senseless "tradition."
M.A. Muscat, Maple Ridge


Read more: http://www.mrtimes.com/news/Hunting+...#ixzz18DPHBFtD

[fowlweather]

damn right this guy obviously doesnt know what he is talking about. any hunter with a brain will always make an effort to retrieve game, and if he cannot then he should change his strategy on when and where to shoot the game so it is retrievable. maybe the duck died of old age

[fowlweather]

everyone should go to this page http://www.mrtimes.com/news/Hunting+...#ixzz18DPHBFtD
look at the photos, get the real story... its one shell and a pile of feathers probably from where the duck was plucked in field or eaten by a predator. no person would leave a carcass: even though there wasnt a carcass!!just a small pile of feathers

[islandboy]

everyone should go to this page http://www.mrtimes.com/news/Hunting+...#ixzz18DPHBFtD
look at the photos, get the real story... its one shell and a pile of feathers probably from where the duck was plucked in field or eaten by a predator. no person would leave a carcass: even though there wasnt a carcass!!just a small pile of feathers

I have seen bigger piles of feathers when hawks took out one of my chickens. Happened a couple of times when I lived in the Fraser valley.

[c.r.hunter]

I wonder if this ass-clown wants to cull all coyotes and raptors as that is more likely what caused that pile of feathers?

[darrin6109]

we need someone from the site that is a great writer to respond asap!
any takers out there?

[Gateholio]

There's a couple of things to address- Safety is #1. Start by pointing out the statistics on hunter safety and that it's a very safe sport, do some research to determine if any dog walker has EVER been hit with shotgun pellets. Point out that clearly the hunter was cognizant of safe hunting as he held fire when he noticed it wasnt' safe.

Definitely hit the "modern people dont' need ducks to eat and shop at grocery stores" BS by pointing out that you as a hunter supply your family with wild, free range organic meat, as this meat is healthier and lower fat than any other.

Point out that hunters strive to clean up after themselves, including shotshells and IIRC there are yearly :clean ups" done by hunters in the area that target not just dropped shells but lots of garbage left by other user groups.

Are the dikes for people to walk on, or to hold back water? Point out that hunters were there first and are more than willing to share with all user groups, and hunting only takes place a few months per year.

Definitely get some actual numbers of dollars generated by waterfowl hunting groups to fund waterfowl habitat preservation

I'm not familiar with the area but it's possible that some time in the past hunters fought to maintain habitat in that area, too.

Be sure to point out that the "duck remains" in the picture are simply some feathers and bone that are left to return to nature after the hunter removes his free range, unmedicated organic meat.

I dont' know the area, I'm sure some locals cold flesh this out a bit, but these are points I've used successfully in the past.

[Gateholio]

And avoid any reference to how this guy must have just been an idiot or whatever....It wont' help. And I didn't think it was illegal to hunt with out a dog, actually I thought it wasn't terribly uncommon to use waders and/or a boat without a dog in some places? Might want to give an explanation for that.

Post your letters here!

[Gateholio]

One more point that i must stress:

It's important to "explain" hunting but what get's stuff banned is SAFETY ISSUES. Doing osme research and proving that it's not a safety concern is the number 1 thing. Because if you can demonstrate that there is no safety concern, then you can come to the conclusion that they "just dont' lik hunting" and that is an emotional response, so it can be easily argued against. Here is a letter I wrote recently when we had a "safety concern" brought up. Feel fre to plagiarize.


Editor’s note: This is a copy of a letter sent to Whistler’s mayor and council, Lil'wat Nation/Mount Currie council and Squamish Nation council.

First, I'd like to clear up some erroneous and misleading information regarding bowhunting in Whistler that was included in the recent newspaper articles, then I'll make some comments regarding hunting. The Pique article included a photo of a mother bear and her two cubs with the caption: "Under current rules, this family of bears is vulnerable to crossbow hunting." This is completely false. It is unlawful to hunt any bear less than two years old or any bear in its company. I also read that "the wounding rate for animals shot by bows is significantly higher and they often suffer slow and agonizing deaths." What actual statistical evidence is being used to support this claim? Modern bowhunters are generally very efficient and humane, and suggesting that it is common that deer or bear are being wounded and left to die agonizing deaths simply isn't true.

I saw it stated that bowhunting is a "huge safety risk for residents and visitors" and this is also false. There is no evidence to support any claims that bowhunting is a safety risk for pedestrians or cyclists also using the area. In fact, bowhunting has been used extensively as a wildlife management tool in eastern parts of North America in and around suburban areas because it poses such a small risk. In all of Canada, incidents of bowhunters shooting other outdoor enthusiasts is virtually non existent.

Every day the Whistler Medical Clinic receives patients that have injuries (or even deaths) from mountain biking, skiing, boarding, bar fights, motor vehicle accidents etc. Has there ever even been a patient in Whistler due to a bowhunting mishap? I have been working in Whistler for 24 years and I've never heard of a bowhunter shooting a cyclist or hiker. Clearly, the most dangerous activity in Whistler is not and never has been hunting, and there is no evidence to support banning bowhunting would make Whistler a safer place. Although banning biking, snowboarding and driving cars might!

The main big game species hunted in the Sea to Sky corridor are blacktail deer and black bear. Both deer and black bear are plentiful in this area. Hunters take a relatively small amount of animals and there is no conservation concern for these species populations. Both of these species provide excellent, free range, unmedicated, organic meat to hunters’ families. Both species have meat retention regulations: There is no strictly "trophy" hunting of these animals; all the meat must be retained. We hear quite a bit about "sustainability" in Whistler, and hunting wild game for food is possibly the most sustainable method of obtaining food in Whistler!

Hunting in the Sea to Sky corridor has been taking place for a very long time. First Nations people have used the area constantly for centuries and still do. There are relatively few bowhunters that hunt around the edges of the RMOW (I've never seen a hunter at Lost Lake and I don't expect to). There is no evidence to show bowhunters are any sort of risk to the public, and suggestions that bowhunting is a huge safety risk should be viewed with a great degree of scepticism because of this. There is no conservation concern for deer or bear in the Sea to Sky area. Rather than a discussion of banning bowhunting, instead it should be encouraged as a sustainable method of obtaining the very best healthy, organic meat for your family.

A little education and some signage for hunters and all other user groups can go a long way toward mutual understanding, and would be a preferable route to take rather than banning an activity under very questionable pretences. The Pemberton Wildlife Association would be happy to help implement an education plan endorsed by Whistler Council.

[Dano]

I'll try and get a letter written tonight but I'm off on a holiday and won't be back to confirm it was me who sent it (when they call to confirm).
Good points gate, I'll bet more people get bitten by dogs than hit by pellets! Also, there are plenty of areas closed to shooting nearby (just a few km's from this spot), why wouldn't the writer go there if they are concerned? Probably too many people with dogs there......
Maybe we need to keep dog walkers etc out of the hunting area for their own sake? It's only a 3 month season so 75% of the year it will be open to everyone!(a little sarcasm there but not really too far fetched).
They found an empty shell, and a clump of feathers (probably not that close together). The shell shows someone fired their gun there and that they didn't pick up their hull. The dead bird shows some preditor or raptor had a meal there, that's it. Connecting the two is just speculation.
We should go to Safeway to get our meat? How many people have blood on their hands so the writer can have their Christmas dinner? I bet the fisherman in the Alouette don't bother the writer as much as the hunters. One could easily buy fish but most people aren't bothered by the fact fish are killed during fishing. It's mostly a gun thing from what I have seen.
The writer showed some knowledge about shotguns and pellets, and I liked that they felt we have a tradition of hunting. Too bad our traditions and hunting heritage don't hold any value to them.
Dano
P.S. For some reason, I think this may be the same person who wrote a letter 2 years ago. I think it was about a similar incident and that section of the Alouette is now closed to shooting. Someone shot a duck and they didn't think their daughter should have seen it die.