There are pursuits in life that attract the best and worst of people. Those pursuits usually are described or written about with the attachment of great deals of misinformation and unsupported emotional opinion. Hunting is one of them, and the guest column by David Irving in the Nov. 27 issue of The Daily Star is a good example of the hysteria that is attached to the pursuit of deer hunting.
I am a deer hunter. I have been at it for nearly 30 years now. I have spent a lot of time walking in and sitting in the woods. I am a keen and patient observer of the forests, the fields and the waterways, as well as the animals that are supported by them. I have a great love of the outdoors and a great respect for life in all its forms. I contribute to the preservation of a healthy ecosystem by following sustainable practices in my daily living and in the stewardship of land that I own, and I am as avid a practitioner of traditional agricultural practices as I am of hunting game. I have read extensively about the habits and biology of deer, and I have studied the politics of the hunt, from different sides of the issue. Like other pastimes I enjoy, I have pursued deer hunting with an eye to its traditions, history and purpose. The hunting of deer is something that has been passed on to me by those who were here before me. I think it is a component of what has long sustained Americans, and through hunting, I feel more closely connected to where the food comes from that nourishes me.
I have been hunting deer each fall in New York State for nearly 30 years. Like most things I have done continuously in my life, I look back at my early hunting efforts and cringe a little. Time has passed; I am older -- more mature and patient. In the time that has passed since my first foray into the woods to go big-game hunting, though, I have become an astute scout, a practiced observer of game habits and a fairly good rifleman. I spend much of my free time in the woods and fields around my home, and I have been rewarded with seeing much that nature has to offer by blending into my surroundings and quietly watching the flora and fauna that surround us here in New York state.
I am a careful gun owner, and I regularly practice my skills with firearms. I have seen many deer in the field while holding a rifle in my hands, but have brought the sights up for a small percentage of those animals, and have killed only a few. I stopped hunting for a while because for a time I did not have the need for the venison provided by a whole butchered animal. I did not, however, stop going into the woods, or increasing my proficiency with firearms. To me, these are separate pastimes I enjoy that go together with deer hunting. Most of my friends who hunt deer approach hunting with the same quest for knowledge and desire to excel that I have.
Deer hunting is a pursuit that does attract those who seem to go out of their way to give it a black eye. They are aided and abetted by corporate interests that seek to become enriched by selling products of dubious use in the field or beer in orange and camouflage-colored cans. My experience, though, has shown me that the majority of hunters approach hunting as conscientious practitioners of any pursuit do -- with a desire to excel and succeed at what they are doing. Do we color the whole of deer hunting because of the poor conduct of a few, as Mr. Irving suggests? Should it be added to the lengthening list of other banned activities in an increasingly locked-down society?
When I hear or read arguments against deer hunting I find myself wondering about the personal beliefs and habits of those who make the arguments. Do they use personal care products, and have they considered that the testing of these products is done on animals? If they or their loved ones had a serious medical condition, would they have the same objections to a life-saving medication that caused the death of animals in the laboratory before it arrived at the pharmacist's counter? When they buy products manufactured in developing countries, do they stop to investigate whether those products were made in factories that employ humane labor standards? When they propose banning anything that is cruel to animals, do they also propose as vehemently a ban on the abortion of human fetuses?
As with the issue of gun ownership, there is much hysteria surrounding the annual deer hunt. Those seeking information that is less emotional might read "Heart and Blood: Living With Deer in America" by Richard Nelson, a fine book that examines many facets of the deer issue. Mr. Irving and others like him might try calmly engaging the quiet majority of American deer hunters and gun owners. We are a significant part of stewardship and sound practices that sustained Americans long before rampant greed, technology, cheap energy and hubris separated us from the woods, the fields and the waters. The knowledge and skills we possess and pass on will continue to sustain what is left of us long after i-pads, bio-engineering and frozen pizzas are a history lesson.
Michael Kane is self-employed and lives in the town of Kortright.
Columns
Look past hysteria surrounding deer hunting
- Big Chuck D'Imperio
-
-
Safety Patrol D.C. visits never get old
I asked Cam Morris, head of Eastern Travel/Oneonta Bus Lines, how many years her company has been handling the Safety Patrol trip to Washington, D.C.
Continued ... - My pal Brucie, savior of Sidney's hospital
- Catching a whiff of 'Vermont Vapor'
- Selections from the virtual mailbag
- Recalling days of 'Doughnut King'
-
Safety Patrol D.C. visits never get old
- Cary Brunswick
-
-
We've become our own worst enemies
The past month has been marked by a seeming unprecedented number of man-made tragedies, as distinct from those caused by violent outbursts of the natural world, such as earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis.
Continued ... - Plenty of blame to go around for Bangladesh horror
- Obama is going against his word on Social Security
- Reflecting on a Florida trip
- Those magnificent spies in their flying machines
-
We've become our own worst enemies
- Chuck Pinkey
- Guest Column
-
-
Records seizure is an insult to free press
Distrust of government secrecy has been elevated to an exceptional level with the disclosure the Justice Department covertly examined two months of Associated Press phone records to determine who leaked details to the AP about a foiled terrorist plot.
Continued ... - The evangelical view of same-sex marriage
- Manor's fate will be Otsego board's legacy
- A closer look at our economy - Part II
- Use fracking to fill budget gaps
-
Records seizure is an insult to free press
- Lisa Miller
-
-
A view from above
Fire towers in the Catskill Mountains have always been destination points, built to capture some of the region’s best views. These sentinel stations served an important role for the earliest possible sightings of forest fires in the remote mountain ranges. But the fire towers and those who manned them fulfilled a multitude of other roles as well.
Continued ... - Being a parent is a constant learning process
- Healthy doesn't have to mean expensive
- A family era ends with close of Potter series
- Independent stores make up for loss of Borders
-
- Mark Simonson
-
-
General Clinton Canoe Regatta got a new home in 1972
Ever since 1963, when Charles Hinkley and a group of Tri-Town businessmen came up with the idea for what we know today as the General Clinton Canoe Regatta, people lined the shores of the Susquehanna to watch the canoeists as they made their 70-mile trek from Cooperstown to Bainbridge.
Continued ... - Sunday movies in Oneonta finally shown in 1934
- Politics, fitness and landmarks dominated local news in May 1968
- Local people sought income in many ways in 1933
- Local windstorm in 1983 caused tense moments
-
- Rick Brockway
-
-
Kids have sparkle in their eyes
When I was in my teens, old Bill Naatz told me about a stream north of Lake George where a man had panned out enough gold to make his wife a wedding band. It was all rumors, but to his grandson and myself, it sounded like the makings of a great adventure.
- People make the outdoors even better
- Turkey season has ups and downs
- Spring air isn't always the freshest
- Adriondacks keep growing and growing
-
Kids have sparkle in their eyes
- Sam Pollak
- William Masters
-
-
Schreibman tops Chris Gibson on women's issues
As the time to vote draws near, we need to remember how money can run politics more than we can. Raising funds is a prominent (if not the dominant) task of getting elected. Raising issues is also crucial, but those efforts are subject to distortion and fear-mongering.
- Republicans feelentitled to allthey can garner An entitlement is a legal benefit available from the government to individuals who are within a defined category of recipients, such as needing insurance for unemployment or health services.
-
Romney focuses on self; Obama emphasizes unity
Mitt Romney criticizes President Obama for saying a person's success is rooted in his community, and is not all his alone. Romney belittles this with his belief in individual initiative. He is better at the put-down than the push-up.
-
Romney shows little regard for common man
The Republicans in Congress have voted over and over, 33 times, redundantly and uselessly, to rescind what they call Obamacare.
-
Scouts' gay ban creates problem where none exists
The Boy Scouts of America's "emphatic reaffirmation" of its vow to exclude any and all homosexuals from its hallowed ranks is ill-considered and pathetic, especially in view of its having reviewed the matter for two years.
-
Schreibman tops Chris Gibson on women's issues
