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Overcoming our differences: hunters and anti-hunte

As my username implies, I am an avid hunter and outdoorsman. I have been thinking lately about a particular subject that is of great importance to our society and that is the issue regarding animals and the privelege of wildlife harvesting/hunting. I believe that all things were created by a wise, all-knowing Heavenly Father who put everything on this earth for the purpose of filling the measure of its creation, whatever that measure may be. I am studying to be a wildlife manager myself, as I am a person who is also greatly concerned for the welfare and the future of our wildlife, resources. They are a glory to behold and a wonder to experience. I was raised in a home where hunting and harvesting are acceptable and cherished activities that are to only be carried out with good discretion and ethical behavior, that is, following the laws and treating the quarry with respect. I am a firm believer in endangered species management and preservation, but also in wildlife conservation, which implies use, just as with timber and other resources. Let me bring some essential items to the table. It is true that America, as well as the rest of the world, has had periods of time where wildlife were exploited, many to the point of near if not complete extinction. We must realize that that was over two hundred years ago. We have made much progress since then. It is a known but often looked-over fact that the very people who stood up and put their feet down were, in fact, concerned sportsman and hunters who recognized the great error they had committed in overusing wildlife resources and went to the federal government to establish laws regarding seasons, limits, and actual funds for wildlife management. Ever since the creation of the Lacey Act in 1900, the main supporters of wildlife management have always been hunters and sportsmen. I have not seen any people from PETA or ALF or the Humane Society put any funds into the Forest Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, or the Fish and Game Commission, who are the ones responsible for maintaining our wildlife resources. There are many who actively work against hunting because it is thought of as something "inhumane." Is not the slaughtering of cattle for beef or the beheading of chickens for KFC and public use the same? You still have to kill something to use it. Society has gotten so used to being removed from the realities of nature that many forget that the drumstick on their table once belonged to a living animal. We lose respect for things when it gets to that point. It just becomes a lump of meat. We don't value it and we just consider it as simply something we can get the next time it's restocked on the shelf. I value the wildlife that I harvest and consider it an honor to be able to engage in the ecological system and help manage populations. Many people work very hard so that I and my Dad can go out and bring home a couple of beautiful mallards who have been fed by well-kept lands and fit ecosystems--American tax dollars. I am proud to say that the money I pay for my ammunition and gear is taxed to help pay for wildlife management. Hunters are the last vestige of the funding for wildlife management. They are the heart and soul of the program because they value it the most, not for hunting alone, but for being able to see wildlife in their natural habitat and actively, and legally, use the resource (for that is what wildlife are--a resource). I cannot fully explain why I enjoy hunting because it instills a feeling that nothing else can replace. I find it to be a relaxing and an enjoyable experience to be out in nature and see the earth at work. It is an unimaginable experience to see a flock of ducks landing into your decoys after you have worked hard to call them in--and a duck call is not easy to use. There is a silence that seems to fall on the whole earth at that moment. To me, that is the definition of rich. I know that there are those who do not feel the same way I do, and I respect that. There are some who just don't enjoy hunting, and there's nothing wrong with that. We do not all have the same interests. I would encourage all to actively fund wildlife management in any way they can, and for those who are part of anti-hunting or animal rights groups, I would have them remember the real goal of wildlife management and to get the poison out of their veins. Live with the fact that there are hunters out there and respect them for putting their well-earned money into helping manage wildlife as, accept it or not, hunting is a method of wildlife management--possibly the most efficient. If you want to do something, buy a duck stamp and support wildlife management. Go bird-watching and go visit wildlife management areas and refuges. The duck stamp is not just for hunting but gives you free entry into a management area or refuge of your choice whenever you go. Support people like Ducks Unlimited and NWTF and the Wildlife Society. Keep in touch with your local FS ranger and support the government agencies. Do not spend your efforts protesting in the streets but rather start putting your money where your mouth is. Do not judge all hunters by the few bad ones. If we do not do something soon, we will see another huge drop in wildlife numbers, and not because of overhunting, but rather because of people simply doing nothing productive.