An election in 2006 proved that most state hunters didn't care much about a Michigan dove hunt. The measure got soundly trounced, and few hunters seemed very upset about it. Folks, believe it or not, but that vote for a Michigan dove season went much deeper than keeping state sportsmen from shooting mourning doves. It was the first big step in a long parade of other items that can and one day will be stuck on the ballot. The next one might affect something you feel strongly about.
How would you feel if it was put to a vote next year to end archery hunting. Or, the next vote may be to prohibit firearm hunting for deer and/or other game species. It might come to a vote to outlaw dogs while hunting which would affect most bird hunters and bear, bobcat, coyote and fox hunting.
Apathy leads to huge losses.
Does anyone out there understand that the anti-hunters whupped us on the dove issue? Why, because many hunters are apathetic. They don't care enough about the dove hunting issue to get involved. They waited for others to fight their battles for them. Read again the definition of apathy as described above.
I know a guy who whined about the dove season being defeated. The man has never voted for anything (including presidential elections) in his life, never discussed hunting issues with anyone other than his other non-voting buddies, and he was most upset when I told him he didn't deserve the opportunity to whine and gripe. That behavior is reserved for those who have enough gumption and guts to vote on important issues.
People who don't vote should have no voice in how a democracy is run. And trust me on this: anti-hunters know that many sportsmen are unwilling to take a stand, and many folks claim to be too busy to vote. Say what? Don't ever tell me that to my face.
Who among these unenlightened sportsmen is willing to wake up and see what goes on around them. They gripe and complain about a possible raise in fishing or hunting license fees, but when the sporting segment of this country needs help to fight anti-hunting measures, where are these folks? They are too busy to care. Apathy reigns supreme.
Stand up and vote out dumb legislators.
Many avoid the voting booth as if the curtains were coated with poison. The day of letting others fight for our causes is over. People who want to hunt, now and in the future, had best realize that forces are underway to eliminate all types of hunting, gun ownership and the privilege to legally hunt with those firearms.
Will the same people who are against legalized hunting want to ban ownership of all firearms? What will happen to our wildlife if the DNR has no money to manage it, which has already happened. Will the United States become neutered like Australia and Great Britain has in recent years? Does anyone really care?
An out-of-control deer herd is entirely possible without hunting. The state has worked hard for years to reduce the herd size, and in many areas, they did their job too well and the deer numbers are way down. We saw the results of this problem last year and again this year when the 2009 herd was down 20 percent from 2008. What's next?
Michigan United Conservation Clubs, the state's largest conservation organization, is trying to fight the good fight. They keep people posted on what is happening, but MUCC membership has shrunk dramatically from 20-30 years ago.
Apathy leads to losses during elections.
Why? The short and ugly answer is public apathy. Sportsmen no longer care about joining groups that will help preserve our opportunity to fish and hunt. They often say they don't have time or money to be a member. And for some that is probably true.
Others have different priorities. Where fishing and hunting was once their good time, bowling and golf may have replaced some of the leisure time activities. Others simply are not joiners.
Where do we go from here? I'm one man, preaching to the choir and to those who enjoy reading about the outdoors and who have nothing against hunting, but I'm only one person trying to be heard. I'm not a one-man army.
Others must stand up and be counted. They must stand and fight the good fight. Are you willing to step up to the plate for our fishing and hunting? If so, prove it!
I've heard it many times at conservation clubs, Kiwanis meetings, or in other places where sportsmen often gather. People actually ask me to fight their battles for them. I'm just one man with one voice, but they must learn how to make their voices heard. Sportsmen must become involved before it is too late.
Hunters of all stripes, whether bird hunters or a bear and deer hunter, must unite under one common banner to endorse all forms of hunting and be prepared to vote on critical issues. If one method of hunting is lost, as happened on the dove issue, anti-hunters will go after the next least defendable hunting method. Will it be bow hunting as many enlightened folks believe?
It could be dog ownership which would hurt hunters who use a pooch for their sport. If they don't support bear and deer hunting, and treeing coons with a hound or chasing bunnies with a beagle becomes the next issue, than it is quite likely their lack of action will help the anti-hunters defeat another hunting method. It will continue to build, like a snow ball growing larger as it build momentum, and soon rather than later sportsmen will face another road block.
The past issue was supposedly about dove hunting. That's nonsense. It was simply the first nail in the coffin of legalized hunting in this state, and hundreds of thousands of people stood by and watched it happen when the could have voted against the issue.
Your favorite issue may be the next to go. 
How sad. And who will feel sorry for you when your favorite fishing or hunting sport comes up on a ballot, and one by one, our outdoor pleasures are taken away from us because apathetic sportsmen don't care enough to become involved? Or are they just too lazy to think for themselves and other hunters?
And what will happen when the federal government comes knocking on your door to take away all of your firearms? Will you care when others trample all over your Constitutional rights to legally keep and bear arms?
Lead by example, and don't follow like sheep. Learn to think for yourself, and start paying attention to those idiots in power who would keep picking away at our rights. It's time all legislators who are against legalized fishing and hunting be voted out of office. Get involved before it's too late.
And please, don't plead that you are too busy to become involved in these issues. Such ignorant pleas will fall on deaf ears.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your comments are welcome. Please keep them 'on-topic' and cordial. Others besides me read this blog, too. Thanks for your input.