As hunters we have a good story to tell, a true and noble story to tell, but it is not a story that resonates with people or has any chance of creating a deeply felt visceral reaction in the 90% of the population that is neither passionate hunter or equally passionate anti-hunter.
The anti's have access to such a story and approach. The lion things proves that once again. The anti's can show a picture, a video, they can spin a yarn, tell a lie, and get very raw and emotional deeply felt reactions bubbling up from otherwise neutral parties. They have images and messages that people will rally around and get invested in. They can get people passionate in outrage over their cause.
We don't and can't have that type of supporting tactical leverage.
If we have some very articulate guy speak on TV about the benefits and value of hunting, while true and reason for pride, it does not rally people. It does not get people up in arms to join the fight. It's a nice, "I did not know that" ho-hum type of reaction.
Our story is not tangible and personal and the anti's is. The best of hunting does not create a burning fire in the minds of non-hunters to go out and speak on behalf of the sport, but the best tactics of the anti's does exactly that in the opposite direction and it always will.
Face it..........a biologist speaking about why deer hunting is good at the macro (herd) level will never be as powerful or convincing on the "pro" side as the photo of a gutted fawn or a headless buck will be on the "con" side.
A biologist with a PhD can say why bear hunting is necessary, but that message will pale in comparison to the photos of a cub and a caption about "Have you Seen My Mommy" that our opponent will publish.
I honestly don't know how to overcome the two very different ways that the respective positions are told and battles are fought, but I think I would prefer to have their kind of tools on our side vs the current tools we have.
Since its inception, my Hunters for the Hungry program has fed millions of servings of organic protein to undernourished and impoverished people. Millions. That's a real stumper. Rightfully so.
"We don't." -You are correct and that really needs to change. On many fronts, not just hunting.
I have talked to many non hunters in last 4 days who have come up to ask me about the Cecil disastor. Some have been pretty confrontational. All listened to some bullet points of good sense and know preaching.
Any way all the people I have talked to even the confrontational ones were very interested in my side of the story. Even I was surprised at how many admitted they were suspicious that the whole story was a lot of media hype. Not one of these people went crazy on me or argued at all. I think we should give the general public more credit than we do sometimes.
Their station in life is to make you afraid of it, then tell you who to blame for it.
Simply put, a pretty miserable existence.
It's always easier to evoke a feeling than a thought.
Survival in a natural world is too far removed, they are domesticated and literally dependent, helpless. So emotions are how they make themselves feel part of the world, alive. They are so far removed from reality even the emotions are artificial.
Outrage/anger is a very strong emotion and the easiest to create. It can be constructed, nurtured, manipulated. It is perfect as it needs no commitment, leaves few if any scars like the tougher more complicated emotions. It can be easily shared. It can be put on display just as a trophy pic can and for very much the same social purposes. You can SHOW everyone, demonstrate how much you care (more than anyone else of course) by being the most angry. It has become socially acceptable, even encouraged to put outrage on display.
What seems unacceptable is to criticize the reasoning, intelligence or logic of the outrage/feelings. It's the basis for politically correct. The chosen target can be viciously assaulted at will. Lies can be used to advance their cause. All can be used to destroy them. But the "villain" must remain the villain, they cannot counter or question the attack, that is not allowed, not even micro-aggressions using trigger words.... do not dare hurt their feelings. The cultural elite is so far removed from reality they see the world as a movie and have given out the roles all must play..... you are required to stay in your assigned role.
We must refuse to play by their rules. How, I don't know. The narrative must be changed. They must made to defend their emotions, to connect them with reality or admit they are not reality. But as long as they are making the rules, we will lose.
1. Afraid somebody's feeling are going to get hurt 2. Hiding behind political correctness 3. Political agendas (power) 4. Urbanization of society which took people away from nature 5. Computerization and technology
I think some of the ways to try to fix the problem are: 1. Election of pro hunting office holders, and 2. Education and awareness about hunting and conservation (not to be confused Hunter Education)based on scientific facts and not emotions.
I'm sure there are more ways and ideas---
The liberal blames this mindset as greed and soon finds emotional support from other liberals by pointing out the fruits of the conservatves efforts versus the fruits of the lazy liberal effort, for the reason of feeling this way. Human nature, as it has always been, kicks in and starts the subconscious thought that it would be easier to take from the conservative versus earning their own. Then it starts to spiral out of control.
At which point the gap between the two mindsets widens and, the emotional argument becomes easier. Hence, it becomes a revolving door to be repeated again and again. It is based on human nature, not political outlooks. And, most ignorant humans are emotionally driven. Making them further enslaved to their emotions. Top that off with the endless raping of the conservative to finance this ugly weakness of human nature and, you get what we have today. A world wide society that has free time, easy living, and no real responsibility. So the freedom to be lazy liberals and emotional slaves is rampant.
We will never beat it until all humans are forced to be responsible. The best we can do as hunters is get off our butts, find a group of young kids, buy some camping, fishing, hunting, and outdoor gear, and take them to the great outdoors camping, hunting, fishing, etc... It builds a legacy with them and they will never forget it. This modern model of hunting hwere the kid and arent drives to the neighborhood lease, gets in their shooting house, and shoots a deer that must score a certain amount to be deemed a respectable trophy, is killing our hunting heritage. And, we the modern hunter are to blame. God Bless
while some of it is in fact the bias of the media I conduscive to a story that will get "picked up by" the media. The arguments for hunting are not exciting.
Perhaps another message to put out, is a picture of a mangled car from a deer collision....and a "Hunters could save you 15% on you auto insurance policy.", slogan. One of the leading reason for soaring insurance rates, is car-deer collisions...we hunters help keep deer populations at sustainable levels, but without us.....
How many acres of ground across this great country have been bought and paid for by the millions of dollars spent annually by hunters? Do you think non-hunters would have as many trails to hike if it wasn't financed by us? Not to mention that the hunting industry as a whole contributes how many millions of dollars and jobs, to the local, state, and federal economy. I promise you, these are points the average non-hunter isn't probably even aware of...now more than ever, I think they should be made aware.
One final sentiment of mine, is that perhaps we should learn from our anti-hunting adversaries. I read many of these posts, and am left with a feeling that some folks here are simply willing to sit quietly on their hands, and wait for the storm to pass...or get worse. We are hunters, so lets do what we all know to do naturally. How many of you just walk haphazardly into the woods, hoping to stumble upon your prey, and then make a plan on how to get it on the ground? Or, do you study your prey, and gather every bit of knowledge about it...where its preferred habitat is, when it's most active, and most importantly, where it is the most vulnerable? If we all made a concentrated effort to expose these crazy anti's and what they are really about, it would pay dividends for us in the future. If we had the same passion, and conviction they did, we would hold the media, companies, and high ranking officials accountable for the decisions they make in regards to hunters and hunting. The Delta Airlines issue is a prime example of how we hunters can unite and boycott any company willing to comply with the wishes of antis and ARAs. 40 million+ hunters across this country will have a resounding, resonating, booming voice, but we all have to be willing to speak up.
When the "public" can no longer relate to "hunting".....
but hey, ozonics, RAGE, Crossbows, 1000 yard computerized scopes, dufuses on TV naming every deer they get a picture of, WIldGame Inovations, Duck Dynasty.....Tradition????
I feel the most important step that can be taken, is for each of us to actively belong to and participate in events held by our state and local bowhunting organizations. One of the best ways I've ever seen to promote our cause, is getting kids involved....and its simple. Set up a booth at a local fair, carnival, or outdoor convention...inflate balloons and stick them to a backstop...have youth bow and arrows on hand, and assist young children with basic fundamentals of archery. It is a recipe for success, and the sheer enjoyment of watching kids pop balloons...it's the coolest thing to them, and a rewarding experience for us to pass on something we wish to continue for future generations. I've had kids ages 3-16 who have never held a bow, tell me a bow and arrow set will be first on their Christmas list. I've had parents ask questions about bowhunting, and disspelled many myths at the same time. Pamphlets and flyers promoting what your state organization and bowhunting does are handed out, and sometimes, new memberships are acquired. This is where the single mother with two kids, who has no clue about what hunters do (besides what NBC tells her), gets some real factual information. This is where hunters are seen as genuine, sincere, passionate folks who give back to their community, rather than blood-thirsty boogey-men, who only wish to take trophies and kill for sport. These are the people who can be educated, and are willing to give hunters a chance. It's the anti's and ARA's who already have their minds made up.
That's it in a nutshell! Great post Kevin. i hope you don't mind if I borrow it.
Just so we are clear there are more than 25 million hunters in America and there are 3 million PETA folks world wide.
Our biggest advantage is we out number them significantly.
You don't want to use social media - well that's your choice but it's there where dumb companies like Delta make their decision.
You want to make a difference then speak up. That's our power.
They spent a lot of time talking about the airlines and trophy hunting. They are finally letting some hunters at least tell their side of the story. This is second time I have seen Nick Pinizzato of U. S. Sportsman Alliance on national television. Seems he is the first one with enough balls to pull his head out of the sand and start defending what we do.
Danner also ran a commercial during the broadcast that was well done featuring a bowhunter. It was a very tastefully done commercial on, believe it or not, a "Morning Show". It really shocked me though. Think about it a hunting boot advertising on a national tv morning broadcast. They are thinking past selling boots on that one guys.
Who is going to pay for all this? We will as it should be. That is capitalism. Those that benefit should pay their own way. Instead of crying the blues and threatening to boycott all who threaten us we need to dig deep and support those who truly stand up and support us.
One last note maybe we should reevaluate who is truly standing up for us in the time of need and not just ducking and weaving waiting for the next membership dues period?????
These problems with our society are only symptoms to a much deeper issue.
Like it or not, the truth is when you tell God to leave, He eventually does. History repeats itself, and calamity quickly ensues.
Take vegetarianism and veganism for example. They believe themselves to be enlightened and kind, removed from the cycle of mammal death. However, their lifestyle displaces habitat, cripples bio-diversity and creates a homogeneous horizon of grain. They destroy more life than any hunter on a given day but they have a free pass on their delusions.
Hunting is visceral on a personal level, for both sides. Its similar to the gay marriage debate. Non-hunters make their decisions based upon their perception of people they know personally who hunt. They are also moved by photos and stories they find disgusting. Its interesting that "nons" aren't offended by dead fish photos, but that's another story.
The best we can do is positively influence everyone we know and come in contact with. Then when they talk with friends they can say things like, "My friends Jim and Susan aren't like that. They eat what they kill and share some with us, and its good and healthy". And we hope they'll vote our way in elections.
Social media is fine if used properly. But just as people who are ambivalent about gays don't want to open up Facebook to see photos of their gay cousin humping his boyfriend, neither do non-hunters necessarily want to see a grinning fool sitting atop a bloody carcass right before breakfast.
BINGO!
What hurts us is anti's are 100% behind one end result to a man.
We on the other hand can't decide on anything. Just read the threads on this site on the simple questions sometimes asked. When is the last time you got a concise answer on anything. Go to a local wildlife management meeting if your state has them. First out of 1000s of hunters 20 show up. Out of that 20 hunters there are 20 different opinions. So F&G makes a decision and all 20 of the involved guys go down to the local club and bitch about it for a year threaten to change it and then history repeats itself. Never changes does it?
The fact that we are still around to bitch shows we have a sound tool for wildlife management or we would have been gone years ago believe me. We only have to buck up and play the part. It is not that difficult but some seem to think so.
Besides uniting and supporting our backers on a national level we need to get off the electronic devices and get out in the communities and talk like a grown up to the people that are willing to listen. Right now there are a lot of people that want to listen because this has their attention. I have talked to several people as I stated earlier in this thread and I promise everyone left with a clearer picture of hunting than they had before we spoke. What they do with that who knows.
I did not and never have ran into the big bad boogeyman out there. He exists and I am sure I will bump into him one of these days but for the most part he is on the social media making himself look way larger than he really is. IMHO
What hunters truely need is a group that will promote us to society and the good we as hunters do as a whole for wildlife and how we contribute to society like Hunters for the Hungery. How we as hunters feel and won't tolerate those that abuse the hunting laws for their own gain. Instead of always being on the defense and defending ourselves against false accusations, misleading information, let's face it in a lot of instances out right lies. Hunters/Hunting Organizations need to go on the OFFENCE nationally and teach society what we do and what we have done. We as hunters need to be willing to donate the money to the organization who is willing to step forward to do this, because it will cost 100's of Millions of dollars: TV ads for national TV, radio ads, magazine ads (NOT hunting magazines), school education, billboards, ect. It won't be about the weapon used, but hunting as a whole. Take the fight to the animal rights activist, not us waiting to see where their next punch is coming from and have to defend against it, because of the ingnorance of society. DANNY
When we name call people who disagree with our hunting what are we to expect in return ?
For all who paint brush the anti's as being liberals or all liberals as anti's do you really believe there are no "conservatives" who oppose hunting.
Being opposed to hunting or any other issue cannot be defined as one segment of our society.
I know people who are conservative, moderate, liberal, Republican, Democrat, Independents, who are opposed to hunting and do not understand why we hunt. They believe strongly in their view regardless of the issue be it hunting or anything else.
Hell, truth be known we all know someone like this.
Personally the most offensive to me is an arrogant staunch right wing conservative! He does not hunt nor is he interested in hunting.
If it isn't his idea, if you don't agree with him or capitulate to his view then you are a "liberal" It's his way or the highway. He isn't able tell me what should happen to those who do not agree with him and his extremely small and narrow view of the world. He just knows he is "right"
This said, he is still my friend. Laughable but still my friend ! I can only try to help him understand the necessity for hunting. The personal pleasure the thrill of being in the out of doors.
Emotional topics can become irrational and volatile for some. Common sense rarely prevails.
The name calling, the labeling, paint brushing of other people only alienates us farther from those who might be swayed to our side.
We must as hunter's be good sportsmen and diplomats for our sport. When we aren't we give those who are on the border of understanding why we hunt a shove to non support.
PAbowhunter1064's Link
Bushwacker's Link
http://www.tmz.com/2015/08/03/american-hunter-kills-defenseless-african-animals/?adid=hero1
We are in trouble with a segment of the nonhunting population because of a biased media that is more than willing to present and paint us as either wealthy white elitists that believes our money entitles us to hunt or they present us like Elmer Fund slob hunters. both build on the stereotypes that we presented by our own actions all too often.
If we want to survive we first have to look towards ourselves and make changes in our own house that will pave the to a better perception from non hunters.
1. We must become unified. Look at what has happened here in the last couple of days on threads that were started trying to notify and unify our group what was going on as a result of the lion kill. Before they got started good the court of public opinion convened and the jury was already rendering decisions. Also, character assassinations were unnecessarily attempted. Without unity of purpose we will fail.
2. We must promote our message in a positive sense. I have listed some suggestions on another thread and I will list them here. The enemy is closer to our door than we think. Just like the war on terrorism. The war is not just "over there", it right under our nose on our home soil. Here are some of my suggestions: Focus messages on some results:
A. Show what happens to meat when it legally taken by a hunter vs meat left to ruin by poachers.
B. Show how poaching is so damaging- black market sales, loss of game numbers (short& long term), loss of revenue for a country which could benefit jobs, roads, education and provide food for the hungry.
C. Show how/ how much sportsmen fund toward conservation projects. Show results from the conservation projects.
D. Show how a country in Africa reaps monetary benefits of sport hunting- employment of people, funding education projects, conservation projects, food for people, etc.
E We don't do a good job of telling our story- just showing off trophy animals (which is turning the general population off and turning the antis on). We understand, but the non-hunting public doesn't.
Agriculture today employs less than 4% of the population, farmers and ranchers are thought of as cruel and land rapists. Even the western hunters complain about cattle eating grass on Federal lands. Hunters and ranchers do not even get along anymore, let alone hunters and city folks. Many hunters hate outfitters...who take people hunting. There is no turning back, competitive hunting divided the ranks.
We are forever a liberal society and hunting and trapping does not resonate no matter how hard we try. There are more voters who do not hunt, than do.
Just the way it is folks, you will not change it with dead animal pictures, crossbow recruitment and APR's. It is only a matter of time, but we can slow it if we clean our act up.
You are correct you WON'T change the Anti's. BUT you/we can influence the majority of the None Hunters. REMEMBER there is a HUGE difference between the two. DANNY
The problem here isn't hunting vs non-hunting. The problem is with peoples perceptions. They do not want to believe that their meals had lives once too and many had names. Their meals were actually more devastating to the environment then having hunted wild game. The factory farm fed zombies do not see they are the ones destroying the wildlife and the wild habitats. They chose to have someone else do their dirty work so they can feel disconnected from it and not accept the lives it takes to feed them and their families. Hunters cling onto our lifestyle because we know that it is more natural and better for conservation and the animals.
The world needs to wake up on who the real enemy is and that's the majority. The majority will now push their agenda towards only factory farmed foods and it will tip the scale on nature. The worst part about it is these folks think they are doing the right thing when in fact they separate themselves from the reality.
Number 1: Eat what you shoot. Number 2: Don't support canned hunting. Make it die a quick death. Number 3: Be smart. Don't do stupid crap that puts hunters in a bad light. Like this dentist. He should have known what was going on. If something doesn't seem right, it probably isn't. Back out. Make sure you book hunts with reputable outfitters/PHs if you want to go on a special hunt somewhere. Number 4: Did I say eat what you shoot? This, to me, needs to be emphasized or we will die a quick death. This is what our "on the fence about hunting" friends will think is justifiable. Number 5: Be smart II. Know why you hunt and why it is important internationally. Be able to articulate why hunting is good.
But if we hunters, continue to do as we have always done-nothing-then the antis can win.
It is not about touchy feely commercials or stories. It is about the vote. But to get a hunter to actually do something other than comment on forums such as this, you just about have to stpe on his foreskin.
The truth is, most of the hunting shows on television today have no business seeing the light of day. And, they won't if we all turn them off instead of just complaining about them. That is just one example.
So I guess it doesn't bother you from your comment that you may lose your hunting privilidges because they influence Non-hunters (read that as voting masses) more than we try and influence them because they have the money? If you have kids its doesn't bother you they may not be able to hunt because of their political power to influence? Do they have power over you as a individual? Depends on how you look at it. They create a situation where I can't hunt then yes THEY have power over me creating a situation where I can't do what I have done for a long time. From your comments Hunting really doesn't mean that much to you does it? For you it is just something to do, you can live with it or without it.
Bowriter,
Anti's can't hurt Hunting do you REALLY believe that? Got news for you, if it wasn't for people like the USSA and other hunting organization you'd be lucky to be huning now. Anti's bring frivolus law suites for states to spend monies they don't really have to defend against their suites. They try and sneak legislation in many states to nickle and dime against hunting. You get enough nickles and dimes you start losing real money on in this case hunting privledges. Ask the state of Maine about how many times Anti's have and still are trying to do away with Bear hunting. No matter what the voting public tell them they keep coming back trying for that one time win forcing money to be spent, hoping to beat down the public or legislature so they don't have to be bothered with listening to them anymore. DANNY
Mint's Link
I ended it by telling them that hunters have proven over and over again that we care so much about wildlife that we have taxed ourselves ( as opposed to every other group that wants everyone else to pay for what they want changed )and helped save habitat for wildlife than any other group.
The real issue are the non-hunters as they comprise the largest group, even being larger than us and the anti's combined. It's them we have to win over.
Most of the non-hunters I know and have talked with overall want to see us as hunters do two things.....
1. Not waste anything (if you hunt for food that seems to be a big plus with them, especially if you cut it up yourself. To them it's like people who raise a big garden and can/freeze what they grow).
2. Give the game "a chance" or in other words "sporting". Now here's where it gets dicey and where preception really takes over. I've personally heard non-hunting people remark about things like trail cams as not being "fair".
This, IMO is where the challenge is going to be.
In all likelyhood, one hunter, driving around with his tailgate down and a dead deer in the back of the truck does more harm than a PETA ad. Then, add in one of the tasteless outdoor shows and we do the anti's work for them.
I first debated an ARA in 1968, just before the CSU college rodeo. I haven't debated one since and won't. You are not going to change their mind, their vote or their belief so why bother. When it also becomes their job, it is even more futile.
I just worry about my side of the street and let everybody else worry about theirs.
That said, what hurts hunting the most here isn't the actual hunting, it's the slob behavior that unfortunately is sometimes part of it. Trespassing, shot up signs, etc. do more harm that the PETA ads ever do.
This is farm country. The largest building in town is the CO-OP grain elevator. People here eat a LOT of meat, and due to the background of many of the people they know where meat comes from. So the killing of game isn't the issue.
BTW...I would have loved to have seen that debate!!
Divide a piece of paper into two sides. On the left, list the one reason a state should ban hunting-there is only one. On the right, list the four reasons a state should support hunting-there are four. If you can't quickly list them, you do not understand the situation.
Now, you will notice, number one on both sides cancel each other out. That leaves no reasons for banning hunting and three for supporting it.
That should allow you to understand why I am not all up in arms about anti-hunters and various idiots. Most members of Congress understand this. In most states, to ban hunting, requires a constitutional ammendment and that requires a vote by the public. But first, it must get on a ballot, usually a process taking at least two years. Hunting, unlike horse or dog racing cannot be labled as sinfull and therefore, will not get church support.
So, calm down and have another deer sausage.
(Love that photo, only wish you had pics of the meat being distributed, too.)
Instead of the hero shot, I wish the woman would have showed all of that giraffe meat being distributed to poor local families.
John, the antis have hurt hunting in many areas...lions in California, the use of hounds on bears and lions in several places. Closing spring bear hunting.
It's taken 15 years, but I'm pretty proud of the overall feelings towards hunting in the newsroom where I work. Most dig right in when I bring game to dinners, or a huge batch of gumbo when it's super cold outside.
As one woman said, though. "You know, there are whole lot of us out here that support hunting as long as the animal is being shot to be eaten. Just shooting it for the head, though..."
Look at what they've done to trapping in a lot of areas.
As bad as this Cecil thing makes us look, and it does make us look bad, it won't last for long. The general public is bombarded by news. The Cecil story exploded and got the masses riled up, sure, but the attention span is short and Cecil will soon be bumped off the front pages of peoples facebook walls by the next outrageous story.
Cecil will soon be replaced by some "racist cop" or a child molesting priest, or a crooked CEO. 90% of America couldn't even find Zimbabwe on a map and a month from now people won't be able to tell you if Cecil was a lion or some guy that got that got shot by a cop in St. Louis.
The trophy hunter is in search of game with large sets of horns, antlers or skull size in hopes of getting into the record books, Dunn said. To do that, they are hunting animals that are near the end of their lives.
If you're going to throw a photo out there...make it tasteful, make it "all about food", and talk about the adventure, not the kill.
Maybe someone "on the fence" will be inspired enough to think about a new hobby...we need all the support we can get.
Best of Luck, Jeff
