First I want to thank everyone for contributing their thoughts on how to handle the occasional problem reader/commenter like the one I featured in my post Wednesday called “Dealing with Camo-clad idiots“. Everyone was in unanimous agreement that the “killing them with kindness” approach is the way to go, and of course that is exactly how I normally handle things as well as how I will continue to do so in the future.

I really just wanted to have some fun with this one, as I imagine that all of us would sometimes enjoy responding a little more harshly to those whose outdated attitudes are detrimental to preserving our great hunting traditions. And I must say that it was kind of fun! However I have said it before in a 2007 post about how I will deal with any conflict on this site or in our hunting community:

I understand that everyone is looking to take different things away from their time outdoors – and that is what makes this such a great sport. My personal feeling is that if you obey all laws and hunt ethically, you are a true hunter. And that is what I want to focus on in this blog – true hunters hunting.

And I will repeat and restate it here: I love hunting, and I am here to only promote and preserve the sport. I will also never knowingly do or say anything that will detract from that mission.

Now to the question posed by The Outdoor Bloggers Summit in their latest challenge called “Non-Traditional Faces of the Outdoors“ of who really belongs in the outdoors… We all do! And I guess that is why the “locals only” or “stay out of my woods” attitudes really upset me. We live in the greatest country on the planet, full of unbelievably beautiful natural resources along with an incredibly diverse animal population which are both painstakingly preserved for our enjoyment and use. And when our species has spent eons relying on this habitat and its animal inhabitants for our very survival, we would be very misguided to ignore that connection or abandon its continued contributions to our lives as well as our mental stability. We would also be very short sighted to allow anyone or any group to intimidate or block us from this connection or its contributions.

And while I would love for everyone to hunt, I understand that is not a reasonable expectation. However having everyone enjoy experiencing the great outdoors is not. It is open 24 hours a day no matter where one lives. It can be as easy to access as a hike in a local park or as difficult as an extended camping trip deep in the wilds of Alaska. But either way, it is there for all of us – young or old, black, white or brown, christian, muslim or agnostic, etc.

It is there for us to rekindle the connection with our primitive past, to refresh our soul with its amazing beauty and stir our exploring spirit. It is not just for any one person, one organization or one activity. It truly doesn’t matter if you ever pick up a weapon and attempt to harvest an animal. What is important is that everyone finds a way to get out in it, be that by hiking, riding a bike, bird watching, canoeing or simply taking a drive. And anyone or any organization that attempts to limit this ability to enjoy our great outdoors should be dealt with in a reasonable but respectful manner. The preservation of our natural resources as well as our great hunting tradition depends on it.

I look forward to keeping up the fight! Thanks for reading.

Jeff Hunt

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