Tuesday, July 28, 2015

"No adult man should enjoy hunting"

That is a quote from Gary Paulson via the podcast Barnes and Noble: Meet the Authors.

(Here is a link to the interview by the way, which is really, really good as it dishes on Paulson's early life growing up in TRF and his dear friend/father figure, Nuts Myers, whose death was the inspiration for his book (now out of print) Winterkill.  The podcast is #103).

He is talking about how hunting - as he sees it - is a rite of passage for young people, up to age 13 or so.  Then you should "hunt" with a camera and seek to preserve wildlife.

Personally, as someone who has relatives and friends who hunt deer, fowl, and maybe a bear once in awhile, I don't see the harm in hunting "small" game, but killing large game?  Especially of the endangered (or soon to be endangered) kind?  Well, I find that pathetic.

I think that is done because the hunter has a small penis and is trying to compensate.  Well, I'm taking that from Freud.

When I read that a dentist from Minnesota was responsible to killing a lion simply for its head, well, I think he is trying to compensate for other issues . . .

The sad part is, this lion brought in far more money via tourism to the park than the rich dentist paid to "hunt" it ($50,000).  Unfortunately, he is not the only coward.

This guy makes Francis Macomber (of the Hemingway classic "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber") seem like a downright hero.

I see now that I'm not the only one to make the Freudian link.

The Big Dogs on KJ108 had a bit on it recently.

Here is Kimmel on it too.




And, of course, the jester of all things old, white, redneck and pissed off, Ted Nugent has to sound off.

Hunting is essential.  I wouldn't argue that point.  But endangered animals?  Maybe when all of the stories about the overpopulations of rhinos and lions and all the savaging of the population that they cause, then they could be hunted as we hunt deer.

If you want to hunt a legit lion in the wild with a bow and arrow.  Awesome. Just don't bait it and lure it out of its sanctuary.   If you want to try and reel in a great white from surf board - or at most a canoe - I'm all for it.  But don't chum for them and then kill them from the safety of your boat.  I wouldn't call that sport.

There are two sides to every story.  Here is one that looks at the negative aspects of big game hunts.

And now I just found this wonderful quote -

“Our indifference or cruelty towards fellow creatures of this world sooner or later affects the treatment we mete out to other human beings. We have only one heart, and the same wretchedness which leads us to mistreat an animal will not be long in showing itself in our relationships with other people. Every act of cruelty towards any creature is ‘contrary to human dignity’.”

-Pope Francis

2 comments:

Safety-Lady said...

While I don't agree with what the dentist from MN did, I happen to have colleagues who have gone on big game hunts in Africa. These men are good, kind men and, as far as I know (although I haven't checked), they have penises of average size.

Big game hunting is a sport and it's something they enjoy and it's legal. (I’m not talking about poaching of endangered animals which is wrong). But these men pay dearly for the privilege to hunt large animals and the money they pay goes to the game preserves in which they hunt. This money helps to support the environment the animals live in as well as the local economy. The villagers get the meat from the animal so it doesn't go to waste. There are a limited number of animals that can be taken.

As far as your quoting Gary Paulson, I think it's fine he has his own opinion about hunting but to say "No adult man should enjoy hunting" indicates that if a man happens to enjoys hunting, he's either: 1) not an adult... or 2) he's wrong to do so... That's totally unfair. Just because someone doesn't happen to agree with hunting doesn’t make it wrong for someone else to do. It’s statements like his that help to polarize society.

TeacherScribe said...

I just found the quote from Paulson intriguing as he was someone who has hunted and written about hunting extensively.

I am just not a fan of big game hunts - in this day and age when so many species are endangered, even if the money goes to the villages and preserves. That doesn't mean that I don't think these hunters aren't kind and caring people. I actually feel badly that the dentist's practice is suffering dearly as a result of this negative publicity as he thought he was doing everything by the book (apparently, his guide was the one responsible for bating the lion out of the park). After all, how many of us could wind up in a similar situation that would go viral quickly and then paint us in a negative or unsavory light?

I just can't see spending a fortune to hunt exotic animals. However, I am well aware that there are folks (our father being one) who would find it foolish for an adult to spend money on action figures and Legos and other pieces of memorabilia.