“Most assuredly we must all hang together, or, most assuredly we will all hang separately” Benjamin Franklin, an important quote from the founding of our great nation, by one of the wisest of our Founding Fathers. For those who chose to use history class as a time to catch up on their sleep, Franklin was referring to the fact, that by drafting and sending the Declaration of Independence to King George, all of the signers were committing a crime punishable by death. That their only hope for survival, was to put aside their differences, stick together and support one another. A situation we as hunters, shooters, and anglers now find ourselves in whether we realize it or not.

Don’t start shaking your head yet! How many times have we overheard or even said comments like “aww he harvested that buck with a crossbow, it doesn’t count!” Or “Using a crossbow isn’t real bow hunting.” It isn’t limited to the archers how about “Inline black powder guns aren’t really muzzleloaders”. Last time I checked when I load my Optima, I still had to stuff the bullet down the barrel with a ramrod. Another hunter controversy near and dear to me, that has been raging here in my home state for the last five years, is the hunting of deer with hounds. A group of Jonny Come Latelies are clamoring about our tradition of using hounds to hunt deer. I wont get into the details of this argument now (I’ll save it for a later article), but we as hunters are an opinionated lot! The problem is the prevalent attitude that if you don’t hunt the same way I do, then YOU are wrong. Nevermind, the fact that your method of hunting is completely legal, since it’s not the way I hunt, it’s wrong. Brothers and Sisters, if we continue to perpetuate this mindset, I promise you WE WILL ALL HANG SEPERATELY!

As we continue to fight amongst ourselves, we provide the antis with ammunition, and they pounce on it time and again. Here in my state, fellow hunters are finding that the humane society and PETA are siding WITH them, in their efforts to ban hunting with hounds. There is something seriously wrong with this picture! As a hunter anytime PETA agrees with you, it should be a serious wake up call! It should chill you to your very soul! Afterall these are the same folks that show up at your kids school and tell them that if Mommy or Daddy hunts, then they are murders! What has happened, regrettable though it is, is that our enemies, the antis, have come to their senses. They realized that they cannot take us on as a whole. So, they are coming after us one small group at a time. That is the same way wolves and coyotes hunt. A small pack of wolves doesn’t stand a chance against a herd of deer. So they single one member of the herd out and go after it, then the next time they pick another victim, single it out and kill it. Pretty soon the herd is gone.

Folks this is our wake up call! To quote another famous American, Mr. Jeff Cooper from his 1998 wake up call book “To Ride, Shoot Straight, And Speak The Truth”. “I shoot smallbore rifle targets, but have no interest in pistols or I shoot quail with my shotgun, but have no interest in shooting skeet"…these attitudes are dangerous (insert Franklin quote previously mentioned here!) To further quote Mr. Cooper “I do not shoot skeet, but I am vitally interested in the freedom of the skeet shooters to enjoy their sport. I do not hunt woodchuck, but I am vitally interested in the continuance in the right of chuck hunters to take to the field.” Or in my own personal case (my apologies in advance to my water fowling brethren), I do not hunt waterfowl, to be truthful I despise it. I have had countless morning hunts interrupted by having inconsiderate duck and goose hunters rain shot down on me, as I deer hunt. I’m sure the feeling is mutual, at least in regard to one set of duck hunters. I know it is, as my hounds literally chased a deer INTO their boat one morning! I’m not sure who was more surprised, them, the doe, my dogs, or me. However, as much as I despise them, and their sport, I do support their right to pursue their quarry. To the point that both my son and daughter are members of Green Wing, and I do make the occasional donation or attend a benefit dinner for Ducks Unlimited. Furthermore, I began bow hunting using a genuine Apache Indian Longbow, something I have no wish to return to! However, I support the right of the traditionalists to head into the woods with their longbows and hand made arrows, in search of deer. I’ll be the guy in the modern climbing tree stand with the crossbow.

Sorry folks, I've been there and done that! I also fully support getting women involved in the outdoors. My favorite hunting buddy happens to be my 14 year old daughter! Antiquated though it may be, I have heard folks make the comment that women have no business hunting, fortunately for them my daughter wasn’t paying attention at the time.

Folks, it’s time to put aside our differences, and realize first and foremost that anything that draws more people into hunting, and gets more people involved in wildlife conservation is a good thing. You may not consider it sporting to deer hunt with a crossbow, but if it brings more people to our cause, then it’s a good thing. Safety in numbers and all that is what it means! My state legalized crossbows 5 years ago. All the traditionalists were running around, screaming the sky is falling, and said that in a few years there won't be any deer left. Five years later my state is STILL struggling to get our deer herd under control.

Despite long seasons, liberal bag limits, earn a buck programs, and the deadly crossbow, our deer population is still growing unchecked. If you say “they can ban hunting with hounds because I still hunt, and hearing dogs barking annoys me.” They will. Then you say, “I only use a flintlock, let them ban inlines.” They will. You say, "Let them ban crossbows and compounds, I’m a true archer I use a recurve.” They will. Then you may notice for some reason you're seeing fewer deer. It's strange, you say. Well all those guys that had their method of hunting banned are no longer walking about the woods stirring the deer up. Then one day, you find out that while you hunt with a recurve, the longbowmen said “Only long bows are truly sporting for archery hunting; you should ban everything else!” They did. Peta said bow hunting is cruel and inhumane. The deer suffer needlessly, and there aren’t even sights on a long bow, so how can you aim without sights? This should be banned….and they will. Starting to realize, if we stand by and allow our fellow hunters to lose their rights, it won't be long before we are fighting for our rights, and it might just have been handy to have those other folks standing next to us. I hope so!

William W. Moore

Comments(2):

1. We must hang together

   Totally agree Mr. Moore, I don't think how people take or pursue game is anyone else's bone to pick as long as its a legal method. We must stick together is our sport and hobbies before the noninformed make the laws and the decisions for us.

   Tuesday, December 28, 2010 brad

2. A great article and some great points for us all to think about.

   Tuesday, December 28, 2010 clyde