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Season Opens in NY: My Hearfelt Plea

BullzeyeBullzeye Member Posts: 3,560
edited November 2001 in General Discussion
PLEASE NOTE: I realize that this diatribe is unneccesary, the total professionalism exuded by the hunters that post here being what it is. But it can happen to anyone.
The season just opened up for shotgun hunting in the Southern Zone of NY (south of the Adirondacks, north of the City).That was all of 3 days ago. And we've already had our first death.Some good ole' boy got a few brewskis in him and decided that rustling in the bushes he heard was worth a shot. That rustling ended up catching a slug in the abdomen from 10 feet away. He had 3 children.My little son watched the news with me and looked up and said "Daddy, that wont happen to you, will it?"So I'll tell you all, from the bottom of my heart, PLEASE remember what your father or big brother or uncle taught you about firearms all those years ago. Those rules still apply.I hate to sound patronizing to a group of experts such as yourselves, but the rules that everyone knows are so simple arent really that simple to so many people.I couldnt count on all my fingers the times I've had to cut my hunting day short and change locations because of people who hadnt been to a hunter safety course since they were 16, shooting up the bush like it was Nam and they were trying to roust a sniper, all while chugging brews and tossing the cans on the ground.I know YOU all know how to be professionals, but it's all the others who make me nervous. So spread the word. Dont hunt with those who act dangerously. And don't drink and hunt. Ever. Save it till later.Make it so that kids WON'T be afraid when their Daddys and brothers and uncles go off into the woods. Make it so that the anti-gun lobby WON'T have any more capitol to use against us.Because no little kid should have to wake up to hear the news that Daddy's not coming home from his trip into the woods.Thats my plea. Thanks for listening.

Comments

  • Free N TXFree N TX Member Posts: 165 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Well put! Although I don't drink beer most of my friends do, that's ok by me, as long as NO BEERS UNTIL ALL GUNS ARE UNLOADED, CHECKED AND PUT AWAY!!I always say "Unload before you get loaded".I have seen guys go nuts when they get a few under thier belt. They hear something "out there" and start blasting away. (That is my que to get the hell outta there ASAP, and I do!!!)Be safe out there in no-mans land and make it home in one piece (no extra holes either). 'Cause somewhere there is someone who loves you and wants to see your ugly mug again.
    I'M PRO CHOICE! I CHOOSE to hunt, trap, eat meat and wear fur!!
  • RembrandtRembrandt Member Posts: 4,486 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hunting is similar to driving a car.....do it sober and defensively. An error in the field is not very forgiving when firearms are involved....nothing good comes from an incident such as this unless it serves as a reminder to the rest of us....
  • mudgemudge Member Posts: 4,225 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Although I don't hunt, a couple of the guys from work invited me to go. Hoping, I guess, to convert me. I wasn't really excited about it but...what the hell. I'll go just to see what all the "HOO-HA" is about. Got in the car with them at 0330 and they had already started on a bottle of Jack-Black. Having been a shooter since I was 8 or 9, my fear of personal injury took over and I thanked them for the invite and told them that there was no way I was going out there with them. They were, of course, insulted. They all came back OK. I still had to work with them but it was never the same after that. I can afford to lose a few friends as long as I don't "lose" a few friends.Mudge the careful
    I can't come to work today. The voices said, STAY HOME AND CLEAN THE GUNS!
  • IconoclastIconoclast Member Posts: 10,515 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Although I'm not religious, a hearty Amen to this - one of the two times I was the target, it was a 'sound shot' & the perp left behind seven Bud empties. This was before lunch (maybe it was his lunch?). He was a dedicated drunk, I'll give him that. Air temp was well below freezing. I've always hoped he got a terminal dose of hypothermia or frostbite before he could endanger another person.
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