Doc

Actually, we already have some fairly active gun hunting activity happening already, and it goes on before and during bow season. And yet the deer do not go nocturnal as witnessed by bowhunting success rates. There is a significant turkey season that also occurs during bow season. We have small game hunters after squirrels and such and others that simply go through the woods shooting trees and simply slam-banging at anything that moves and a lot things that don't. And yet the deer continue to move in daylight hours for bow hunters. Target shooting and sighting in guns doesn't seem to have much impact on deer behavior either. I have seen feeding deer not even lift their heads when shots go off not all that far from them. The primary effect of regular gun season is the massive human stink at every area of the woods. When they start bumping into one hunter after another, gun or bow, they take the hint and slide into full instinctive survival mode. That is what puts them into a nocturnal activity mode.

Basically, it shows nothing. It may indicate that bowhunters are in the minority of all deer hunters, but if we are to be honest , these kinds of unscientific polls with unregulated criteria and an insignificant sampling size tell us nothing at all.

Ha-ha-ha...... why don't you crossbow enthusiasts demonstrate even more selflessness and drop that selfish elitism and instead push for allowing old gunners to use the early bow season as well? Why are you crossbow enthusiasts such selfish exclusionary elitists. I know some old guys that just can't tolerate the snow and cold of the gun season and really are being pushed out of hunting because they are not allowed in the warmer part of the deer hunting seasons. Just imagine how great it would be to give hunters "real choice" in weaponry during all of the fall hunting seasons. What a great gesture of selflessness it would be!

I'm a little partial to some nice grain fed black angus prime rib. I think I'll pass on the "cat, rat, dog, horse" meals and probably never really be missing out on much. Maybe some day if I am on the verge of starvation, I might be forced to get into those kinds of meals. But for now, I have earned a pretty good living over the years that has funded my retirement to the point where I don't have to forage for weird foods that I am unaccustomed to......lol.

So far, no one has posted claiming to be an educated wildlife biologist involved directly in any of the studies of CWD, so this whole thread is lacking in any credibility. Everyone is just parroting this study or that study without having the real credentials to be taken seriously by anyone. Relax guys. There is no one here that is going to have any real impact on the issue. It is not likely that a competition of insults will have any impact at all on the subject.

I love anecdotal arguments. It's as though there is anyone of us that expand their tiny realm of known bowhunters to include everyone, everywhere. Not a lot of credibility in those kinds of statements. It probably says more about the kind of people that you hang around, than anything about the general bowhunter population. But I will say that if we spend all our time and energy hacking on each other, the likely result is that people will quickly assume that neither weapon is a humane hunting weapon. Is that the impression you are trying to push?

I am assuming that you feel that this forum survey is a bona fide scientific study. I am not a statistician or any credible expert on survey taking, but I suspect that most people with that training would probably have a good laugh at our little amateur attempt at a credible survey.....lol.

It's the wonderful world of statistics. Little, teeny, tiny, levels of sampling size magically expanded out to meet the entirety of whatever it is that they are trying to tally up. All of wild game management is based on that same science.....lol.

Sure, that's nothing new. We hear that same sentiment with gun hunters about bowhunters all the time getting first crack at the big bucks and how unfair that is. Hell that's the sentiment that has driven the crossbow craze and their eagerness to shove their way into bow season. That's why everyone wants to elbow their way into bow season. They all want a chance push their way into the early season so they can be the ones that have the first chance at getting "their deer". But you know, when the muzzleloaders decide they want a piece of the pie (and they will), it will be all these new crossbow hunters that will holler the loudest and be very vocal about excluding them. Welcome aboard fellas to the gang of selfish, exclusionary, elitists as you all enjoyed calling us. Or maybe the outcry won't be as loud because we are moving towards an "anything goes" bow season which may well be what you all really want to happen anyway.

What do you intend to use it for? If you are going to use it for its original purpose, simply put an edge on it and a handle and start whacking away. I mean, the metal is all pitted and will never look like new without putting more work into it than it is worth. And really in order to cut wood, it doesn't need to look like new. If you want to display it as some kind of keepsake or memento from the land, leave it alone and put it on display the way it is.

That's an interesting question. We're worrying about the elderly being deprived of the bow season because of their unfortunate infirm condition. Why do we insist on putting any restrictions on their ability to have their choices as to what to use and when to use it. Just some more exclusionary thinking......right?

"Yank some fish lips"......Ha-ha-ha-ha! I guess I am ready to yank a few fish lips too.

There was a picture of this lady on TV, and I have to say that if ever there were telltale physical features that indicate the insanity of a bat$hit-crazy person, she's got it all.....lol. But then if it were generally known she was an animal rights nut-case, I guess that wild crazed look has to be expected and probably wasn't a real tip-off that she was a potential mass murderer.

I can fully understand how the pinkos of the left would argue against organized gun rights advocacy groups, but I see gun owners making that argument for them as simply being too cheap to put their money where their mouths are. There is only one way to fight the leftist gun-grabbers, and that is to support our gun advocacy organizations and provide an organized front. Why do you think the anti gun forces view the NRA as the devil incarnate? because when it comes to gun rights and 2nd Amendment issues, they are damn effective. I believe that the only reason we have guns in our homes today is because of the NRA. Why hasn't the NRA accomplished even more? It's because almost all gun owners are too cheap to part with the few dollars for membership. They would rather fraudulently pretend that as unaffiliated individuals they are really going to do something to protect the 2nd Amendment on their own. They are not really fooling anyone but themselves. They have decided to do nothing.

Does the world really need another law to force people to go through legal and bureaucratic hell just to own a gun? What's the matter with people that would make excuses for such citizen abuse?

Ha-ha-ha..... our Naples in western NY is still suffering from some pretty cold weather.

We have snow in the forcast over here on the west side of the state. And I haven't heard the phrase "above normal" with regard to the temperature in a long time. I want to go fishing for bullheads...C'mon...give me a break. Winter has been going on long enough!

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned!"

Growing up on a rather remote farm location, I learned to entertain myself rather early in life and spent all my non-working time wandering the hills and simply observing. Then I got involved in trapping around age 11. That is when I really started learning to pay close attention to animal habits and movements. It also provided a lot of opportunity to observe potential prey animals for future hunting activities. Also, at a very early age, I got into archery and soon saw the hunting opportunities and possibilities. I subscribed to every bowhunting magazine available (it seems there were more of them back then). I learned a huge amount from those magazines.

What a great feeling it must be to know that you have spent your career doing a job of service for others. Congratulations and thank you. Now it is time to do some things for yourself.

Look, I would like to present a lot of bluff and bluster and pretend that I will hunt until they pry that bow or rifle from my cold dead hands ....lol. But there have been changes over the years that have hinted at significant erosion of my physical abilities. Yes at 74, I am still able to climb that old "killer hill" out back when I decide not to take the ATV. It takes a lot of stops along the way that are each getting a little longer, but eventually I make it. The climb is done a lot more slowly and with a lot more pain as joints and muscles remind me that time marches on. I remember when I used to still hunt for many more miles than I should have with absolutely no idea of how I would ever get a deer back home if I got one. Now, ATV access determines where I hunt. Sure, I can still drag a deer without the ATV, and even did so a couple of times this year, but I'm not so sure how wise that is anymore. Let's face it, the human body does have a finite shelf-life. We do what we can for as long as we can, but as I turned the corner on 70 and am on my way to the next decade, there are some doubts that begin creeping in and some realities that can't be ignored. The end is in sight, but so far I choose not to look. I have no way of predicting just when hunting will stop for me, but there are plenty of signs that it will happen some day and it may not be as far off as I would like to pretend. I can only say that I will continue as long as it is possible. It gets down to simply putting one foot ahead of the other and getting as far as I can go. It's my way of trying to cheat father time but we all know that it really is a losing battle.....lol.

Yeah, in spite of this stinking prolonged cold weather, yet another sure sign of the end of winter is all over my front lawn. Gobs of winter deer hair is being shed. I hope they know what they are doing ....... lol.

Do you think that weaponry technology has topped out and that everything that can be improved or invented has been improved and invented? I think that there will always be challenges that require some basic line that should not be crossed. Everybody thought that the idea of full auto weapons had been put to bed decades ago. And then some wizard came up with the bump stock. Another challenge not covered by current law. Is anyone concerned about armed drones? What law will cover that when they become commercially available? Yes I have another line drawn at remote controlled weapons. No, I don't believe that it is true that, "current regulations are sufficient to handle any technological advances that may pop up". No, we are not done with regulations on privately owned weaponry, and yes there will be things that come up that are not adequately regulated. And no, I am not afraid to do a bit of independent thinking on where I draw lines.

I must admit to occasionally getting overly passionate about some issues. Imagine having a political discussion with Hillary or Bernie......Ha-ha-ha. Could that drive you up a wall and into an absolute rage? I would say that when you commence a discussion about politics, or other sensitive issues, anything can happen. All people have an irrational spot when it comes from trying to change opinions that are diametrically opposed to our own. For me it happens quickly when I am talking with anti-hunters, or gun control advocates. I will say that it is very likely that he will calm down and resume your friendship at some point in the future. I guess I would suggest that you avoid any political discussions with him in the future ..... lol.

But the question was phrased specifically a bit more personal and individual than a discussion of what has historically been made illegal or heavily regulated. I was asking each member where they draw the line. I have heard some that would argue that even the heavy restrictions on full auto weapons should be dropped. Fans of bump stocks might be prone to argue this. There are those who think that any weapon that the military has should be available to citizens as a hedge against tyranny. We had a member a few years back that was a big fan of militias that made that argument very passionately. At the other end of the curve, there are those that would outlaw all privately owned weapons completely. And there are others that are pop up everywhere along that curve with every philosophy represented. The question posed by the original post was not what choices have been already made for you, but where each member personally would draw their own line. I'm not sure I am being clear, but it was not meant to result in a recitation of past regulation of weapons laws. Simply looking for an opinion of where people come down on the weapons regulation subject and why.