Knowlton gets his black rhino
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Corey is truly a great ambassador for hunting. What a great job he is doing to educate people about hunting as a tool for conservation. Hopefully the TV segment will be handled by CNN as well as the article.
He is a great person who does a lot for the lifestyle we all love. He put his money where his mouth is.
A success for conservation efforts everywhere, and especially for rhino conservation. Bravo.
The article by CNN was pretty good. I wish there was a final paragraph about how the author now feels, but not too shabby!
Congrats Corey...very nicely done! Thanks for being a great representative for our passion!
Mark
Hopefully the Namibian government will follow in time with a piece of how the funds are used and what benefits accrued to the rhinos as a result.
That was well done. I am surprised that CNN was able to do such a good job reporting the hunt. Wish they would have asked the opposing party what they would have Namibia do to save the rhinos. "We are opposed to killing rhinos." No kidding? I would have never guessed that.
Just heard about this on the radio this morning. One of the Chicago main country music station and was supprised at the negative comments from the radio hosts. Some poeople just don't understand.
Great article and well written.
That said. Probably should have never done this. Before you get all worked up like a non-hunter when they see this piece read the rest of my post.
What he is fighting is irrational fear. As soon as people hear "endangered" they tune out any valid argument.
Remember, we are fighting a culture that would rather have species go extinct than have hunting be used to manage or SAVE a species. Just look at the situation in TX a few years ago with Scimitar Horned Oryx.
No one REALLY cares about facts or science. All they really want is to be part of the larger crowed screaming, "You guys are ignorant jerks!!!"
Honestly, this shouldn't be news or a big deal to people if they really wanted to understand how the science of game management works.
I think he has every right to take this hunt but I don't think he's helping the cause much with this hunt.
I respectfully disagree Sage. You are correct that no amount of science, facts or reason will impact the view of the hysterical crowd.
However, I believe that some of the people in the middle, who don't hunt, are capable of understanding the benefit that hunting provides to the species.
Corey carries himself very well and refutes the stereotypical hunter as portrayed by the media.
I am surprised that CNN reported this story as well as they did, as I was surprised by the 60 Minutes story on the Oryx. Perhaps, some media outlets are beginning to recognize the benefits of hunting in game management. We can only hope.
Good article! Thanks for sharing.
The clips I saw online of the CNN television coverage were every bit as good if not better than the article as far as portraying the hunt in a favorable light.
Congrats to Corey Knowlton.
This quote by the PH was priceless and summed up the situation so concisely:
"There will always be activists and that's how they make their money," he said. "They have no clout here in Namibia, because people understand hunting."
Wow, $350K! And we thought people spend a lot of money for sheep tags! That's what impresses me most, that a young man of just 36, with a family and kids, was able to afford such an opportunity. I admire his success.
Congratulations to Corey.
I too, like SDNHTR, wonder how he could afford such a hunt. That much money could finance hunts for a Super Slam and then some! I wonder about sponsorship support or maybe he's just independently wealthy!
Regardless, congratulations...
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Kind oif silly really.
nice job on the hunting portrayal,yes, but in a country with children starving and dying of disease right and left the 350K could have done a lot more good for humankind than it did for a semi-dinosaur and a sport's image.
in the grand scheme of things the impact of 350K in disposable income was sub-optimized.
I am assuming he has a little jingle in his pocket. His trophy room looked like all it was missing was a rhino. I think the story will go along ways to persuade those that aren't complete leftist wackos.
And the great press from CNN continues.
meh.... rifle hunt..... heheheheh....
Good deal for all involved. The wildlife management gets funded, an animal in his last days is fully utilized. And the funds create work for local folks, something they need more than a handout.... don't hand em a fish, teach em to fish. Show the people the value of their wildlife as well.
You'd have to be an idiot to not see how this worked out for all involved. But the world if full of idiots, they make that painfully clear.
To answer one question... Corey's father was very successful in the oil industry in Texas. But Corey and his brother grew up a normal life as his father didnt hit it big until later in life.
Sage...I dont agree with your statement. Yes the PETA and HSUS fan club will not be reasoned with. But there are tons of people who dont really understand nor care enough to do the research to understand.
I talk to people all the time who have no clue about hunting and its benefits. If you calmly explain what we do and how it benefits everyone...and at the same time make sure they understand that HSUS and PETA have a few screws loose...you can slowly turn their opinion or make them at least think about it a little harder.
Well done Corey, and thanks CNN for fair coverage!
PAstring,
I have heard the same solid feedback about Corey. Just a normal guy who happens to be able to spend 350K on a single hunting license. An everyday good ol' joe for sure. I really like him on the Shockey show as well. He seems to get it.
If it pays, it stays
Hunting-haters are anti-human, not pro-animal
My first thought was it wouldn't matter how much money he paid it would be ripped apart as killing an endangered species. Then I read that this animal was deemed a threat to the rest of the animals and was going to have to be culled. They turned a negative outcome into a money making plan. The article then showed pictures of local tribes people that were given the meat. Wide smiles by the recipients. They were very grateful.
A couple years ago I worked with CNN to coordinate a show hosted by Anthony Bourdain called "Parts Unknown". Among other things, the show was supposed to "explore" the "gun culture" that exists in NM. I was prepped that the take would be very "anti-gun". I agreed to the project with hopes a I could change the tone. As it turned out, Bourdain was very open-minded and CNN followed suite. More people need to spread the right message in hopes that the audience will comprehend. Some people will never allow themselves to accept what we do. I surely support those people though, who try to educate those individuals who have the ability to be influenced.
I had my team pull a word cloud yesterday to see what the public sentiment was around the article. This graphic takes all the chatter online about the article and highlights the words, phrases and hashtags most used.
For the most part it wasn't overly negative. As you can see there isn't any real profanity. That's the good news.
As you can see there isn't one word of Conservation mentioned anywhere.
Like I said, if someone wants to shoot an animal like this and pays the money, etc. I FULLY SUPPORT IT.
Just don't try to make it into a learning experience for the public. They just don't want to hear about it once the word "endangered" comes in.
Look... you will never change the minds of anti-hunters but if this article helps tip a few fence sitters in our direction...it is well worth it.
Corey never loses his cool on Facebook as he receives comment after comment calling him a murderer and other more horrible names.
One of my most favorite comments lately was on a picture posted on Torry Spelling's facebook account. She posted a picture of her hand with Stop Killing Rhinos written on it.
A guy wrote "I am NOT a hunter but I can pretty much guarantee that the people killing Rhinos dont have Facebook or Instagram."
That comment made some people sit back and really think about what they are trying to achieve and how they are trying to achieve it.
It's a great thing for hunting/conservation. But anyone that spends that kind of money for a hunt, has more $ and time than sense.
Rutnut for some folks 350.00 is a lot of money. While for others, 350,000.00 is not that significant. I understand this may be tough for the $350.00 guy to fathom. But is no indicator of how much "sense" either guy has. My guess would be that Mr. Knowlton had a deliberate plan with very specific reasons for doing the hunt.
Just a couple of observations
1. Black Rhinos are ENDANGERED, but it is OK to kill one if you pay $350,000.
2. If no. 1 is true, how many Black Rhinos do we really need?
I got no horse in this race.
-Joe
The rhino was going to be killed by Namibian wildlife officials. If it is easier to understand for some of you, just think of it as Knowlton paying $350,000.00 to become a wildlife officer for a week. I don't know how people can take a $350,000.00 donation to wildlife and turn it into a bad thing, but I hear people complain all the time about auction tags here in the US as well. I applaud someone wanting to spend that kind of money for Wildlife and would bet that those people who do such things do a lot more for Wildlife than those on the sidelines complaining about it.
Animals listed as "endangered" may or may not be. Witness the listing of polar bears as "endangered" despite the fact that they are a nuisance to many villages up north. Politics often plays a bigger role than biology regarding whether a given animal gets listed. That said, black rhinos appear to be correctly listed as there are so few. If a few have to be taken out from time to time why not sell it to the high bidder as most African nations could really use the cash and the jobs that a few hunt will bring.
Perception based from exterior observation rarely mirrors the reality of participation. Corey killed a Rhino , it is what he does , he understands that the reason Corey Knowlton does anything is because he is blessed to have his inclination coincide with opportunity. I think he is one of the few that is driven more so by by passion, with very little emphasis on recognition. I met him in passing for 3 minutes and he seemed awkwardly humble for a person who has done what he has.
If he's got the money and wants to spend it on a black rhino more power to him. My question is would any one have cared if he shot a white rhino? Their population has grown to over 20,000 now. Up from just 100s in the early 1900s.
And the Race card has been played...hahaha
Lol Not exactly what I was going for! I just meant there population is 4 times higher!
I know. Just had to do it. Lol!
People still wouldn't like it if he killed a White Rhino.... But it wouldn't have gotten near the publicity.
What always amazes me is all of these celebrities and wealthy anti-hunters didn't ban together and put their money where their mouth is. I have not seen any of these organizations put feet on the ground to protect animals. They try to do it in the court room... And it doesn't work.
Like Corey said.... He was the one who put his money down to protect a species by sacrificing the life of one.
Tim, thats awesome!!
agree that most wouldn't be happy with the white rhino. Not sure any of these folks can get past the "endangered animal" fact. I would of done what correy did--good for him! Except I wouldn't of invited CNN along on the trip.
"Just don't try to make it into a learning experience for the public. They just don't want to hear about it once the word "endangered" comes in."
^^^^ This sums it up for me. I can care less what or how someone hunts, but I can do without the holier than thou facade that is presented in the article.
No mention (at least in the pieces linked) about HOW the $350K benefits the herd. I'd love to trace that cash after it was handed over to the Namibian gvmt. The efficacy of the notion of conservation hunting isn't whether someone will pay big bucks, but rather lies squarely in the character of game managers and their ability to use the resources wisely and effecitvely, without corruption. IMO, without such proof, the pretense crumbles.
The $350K is a big deal and glad it's for conservation, but I'm curious how the man reached his wealth?
Wonder why he didn't go to Fox News rather than CNN?? Probably the target audience was more appropriate for CNN:)
