M
MN Public Hunter
Guest
Dude, seriously put down the bottle...lol
Does the outdoor channel hurt the image of hunters?
- Thread starter Mature Buck
- Start date
JohnCushman
Well-known member
S'all good
sbhooper
Well-known member
James Riley
Banned
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2015
- Messages
- 1,821
Thoughts regarding some non-hunters and why they are not anti-hunters:
Many probably reserve judgment on hunters because they've done a little thinking about their own place in the food chain. They love meat and leather and they have an inkling of what the animals they eat and wear have to go through on their way to the table and shoes. It's not guilt or hypocrisy. It's reserving judgment on another, unless and until such time as they get around to a deeper investigation which they know will probably never come because they are busy living their other life.
If they see a T.V. show it might get them wondering about the subjective motivations of the hunter, vice the quality of life of the animal.
The hunter could be an asshole, or he/she could be a good person. They may perceive the "look at me" guy/gal on T.V. as an asshole but they also probably know some folks who are a little more spiritual, or at least private in their pursuit of wildlife. Besides, they know T.V. better than anyone and, like politics, it tends to winnow the wheat from the chaff, keeping the chaff. It's the nature of the beast. Hunters on T.V. don't represent most hunters any more Kim Kardashian represents women. Non-hunters know this.
So, the non-hunter might also think of the animal. The prey could live a great, free, natural, albeit tough life, and then die at home, in the field; a death no worse than what would happen naturally (freeze, starve, ripped apart by coyotes, etc.). When compared to the life and death of livestock they eat and wear, it might not seem so bad.
After all, what's better: Eating the cleanest food, drinking the cleanest water, breathing the cleanest air, running up and down mountains all day, fighting and f'ing and doing what you evolved to do? Or getting roped by the neck, thrown, tied, castrated, tagged, branded, polled, shot up with steroids and antibiotics, shocked with prods, standing around on three feet of your own shit all day, covered with flies, breathing flatulence, drinking tepid water, eating rotten corn, only to be run up an ally where you watch the guy in front get whacked, smelling the blood, and then you're next?
It may have taken a while for me to write all that, above, but it's a nano-second's worth of thought upon flipping through the channels and seeing some woman in pink kill a deer. The non-hunter may run through all those thoughts in short order before moving on to the Kardashians, another nano-second of thought about that, then moving on to some other show of more interest. If they really were taken aback and repulsed by what they saw the pink woman do, then they would have some more internal reflection to engage in about their own place in the order of things. Heaven forbid anyone should think about that! Next channel.
Anyone who's ever followed the life of a beef from cradle to plate will see a distinction between that animal and wildlife akin to the distinction between a slave and a free man. Life can be tough for both but our respective contributions to their misery will vary, and in the end, one is still free and always was. Who is the non-hunter to look down his nose at me? Generally, they don't. And they know why. Meat tastes good and leather shoes are awesome.
This brings us back to subjective motivation. Hunting is an evolutionary dance. And when it comes to long range hunting, wearing pink, or any other division, from archery to optics and electronics, the questions should be asked and answered personally, subjectively, in the mind of each hunter alone: 1. What have I contributed to this dance with my prey; and 2. Did I allow my prey to contribute anything that livestock could not provide?
In other words, did I dance on their floor? Were they allowed to teach me anything? And did I listen and learn? If not, then I too am a non-hunter. I'd never look down my nose at those who dance.
But I'd much rather dance. And I want a good partner. And I want to be a good partner.
Many probably reserve judgment on hunters because they've done a little thinking about their own place in the food chain. They love meat and leather and they have an inkling of what the animals they eat and wear have to go through on their way to the table and shoes. It's not guilt or hypocrisy. It's reserving judgment on another, unless and until such time as they get around to a deeper investigation which they know will probably never come because they are busy living their other life.
If they see a T.V. show it might get them wondering about the subjective motivations of the hunter, vice the quality of life of the animal.
The hunter could be an asshole, or he/she could be a good person. They may perceive the "look at me" guy/gal on T.V. as an asshole but they also probably know some folks who are a little more spiritual, or at least private in their pursuit of wildlife. Besides, they know T.V. better than anyone and, like politics, it tends to winnow the wheat from the chaff, keeping the chaff. It's the nature of the beast. Hunters on T.V. don't represent most hunters any more Kim Kardashian represents women. Non-hunters know this.
So, the non-hunter might also think of the animal. The prey could live a great, free, natural, albeit tough life, and then die at home, in the field; a death no worse than what would happen naturally (freeze, starve, ripped apart by coyotes, etc.). When compared to the life and death of livestock they eat and wear, it might not seem so bad.
After all, what's better: Eating the cleanest food, drinking the cleanest water, breathing the cleanest air, running up and down mountains all day, fighting and f'ing and doing what you evolved to do? Or getting roped by the neck, thrown, tied, castrated, tagged, branded, polled, shot up with steroids and antibiotics, shocked with prods, standing around on three feet of your own shit all day, covered with flies, breathing flatulence, drinking tepid water, eating rotten corn, only to be run up an ally where you watch the guy in front get whacked, smelling the blood, and then you're next?
It may have taken a while for me to write all that, above, but it's a nano-second's worth of thought upon flipping through the channels and seeing some woman in pink kill a deer. The non-hunter may run through all those thoughts in short order before moving on to the Kardashians, another nano-second of thought about that, then moving on to some other show of more interest. If they really were taken aback and repulsed by what they saw the pink woman do, then they would have some more internal reflection to engage in about their own place in the order of things. Heaven forbid anyone should think about that! Next channel.
Anyone who's ever followed the life of a beef from cradle to plate will see a distinction between that animal and wildlife akin to the distinction between a slave and a free man. Life can be tough for both but our respective contributions to their misery will vary, and in the end, one is still free and always was. Who is the non-hunter to look down his nose at me? Generally, they don't. And they know why. Meat tastes good and leather shoes are awesome.
This brings us back to subjective motivation. Hunting is an evolutionary dance. And when it comes to long range hunting, wearing pink, or any other division, from archery to optics and electronics, the questions should be asked and answered personally, subjectively, in the mind of each hunter alone: 1. What have I contributed to this dance with my prey; and 2. Did I allow my prey to contribute anything that livestock could not provide?
In other words, did I dance on their floor? Were they allowed to teach me anything? And did I listen and learn? If not, then I too am a non-hunter. I'd never look down my nose at those who dance.
But I'd much rather dance. And I want a good partner. And I want to be a good partner.
Last edited:
Ben Long
Well-known member
'No one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.' Forget who said that, but it rings true.
DRAFTSTUD
Well-known member
Dang, I like Sherik, but I knew it was a cartoon when I turned it on. John
MJE2083
Well-known member
+1 for sure
appaloosa
Well-known member
I quit paying for the outdoor channel years ago. 90% of the content is total junk. I just buy the shows I want to watch, or watch them on YouTube.
