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| Also listed in: Female political bloggers |
Having grown up in suburban central Ohio, I thought hunting was for dirt-poor people and the gun-obsessed. But after living in semi-rural Michigan, where people love to hunt and fish, and Medina County, where deer repeatedly ruined my vegetable garden, I changed my mind. Hunting is OK by me. Tough luck, Bambi.
In Michigan, newscasters report the beginning of hunting season by saying "Only [2-10] people died today as a result of hunting accidents...." Like, It's gun season, Mack, what do you expect? The Meijer stores stock aisles and aisles of guns, ammo, camo, deer musk scent, live bait and lures (judging by the variety of these shiny little hook accessories, fish psychology must be very complicated).
Yes, they love the kill, and if they couldn't fish year-round, I think they'd go crazy. (Erecting tents and shacks on bare ice and inhabiting them for weeks at a time is considered normal -- even admirable -- behavior in many parts of Michigan.)
My stereotype of hunters was blown away once I lived among them. For one thing, a lot of farm families, even older married couples, enjoy hunting together. It's not really the macho bloodsport I imagined, just a good way to enjoy the outdoors.
Another thing I learned about hunting: if you find an empty pint liquor bottle under a tree, look up. That's a hunter's perch. It's called a tree stand.
Here's the twisted thing about hunters: they are ardent conservationists -- some of the most environmentally friendly people you will ever find (drunks and litterers notwithstanding).
I got to thinking about hunting because I recently received a Wild Ohio magazine, published by the Division of Wildlife. The D of Wild is simultaneously in charge of protecting some species and managing the kill-rate of other animals. (It is a government agency, after all. If you're an animal, just make sure you get on the right list.)
Wild Ohio is full of nice pictures and fun facts, such as: "A buck taken in Ohio holds the world record for a non-typical white-tailed deer." Who knew? (Seriously, how non-typical can you get?)
I may not know much about hunting, but at least I know that I don't know much about hunting.
As big as our country is I guess that there still are streams and lakes where the water is safe and clean enough that you can eat your catch, well you people are lucky. Where I live people haven't dared to eat what comes out of our streams in years.
As for hunters, all I can say is that I've worked in a meat cutting business and there is no way in hell that I'd eat any wild meat. We can't trust our beef industry and it's regulated. Half the deer that brought in for cutting stinks so bad that it turns your guts and it never fails how the hunter complains that his meat got switched. Cut it yourself man, that's what a real hunter would do.