Can your hunting rights be bought?

[idelkslayer]

Nicely said and couldn't agree more.

No offense taken what so ever. Shooting a deer from my deck is work, not hunting. Even if I bow hunt from one of my stands, same sediment. The thought in my head when I draw back is "man this now means some work" rather than an adrenaline rush like it should. It is absolutely why I explore elsewhere.

To further agree and expand on both of your comments. One thing that "hunting with a camera" cannot replace is reaching into my freezer and pulling out a white package of meat. Hunting is camping, hiking, sight seeing, landscape photography, marksmanship, killing, backpacking, butchering, meat processing, cooking, and eating all wrapped up into one activity that can span the entire year. Without the harvest I miss out on a significant portion of whole activity. One thing that other outdoor enthusiasts and especially antihunters that love the outdoors don't understand in the connection to the landscape and animal that comes from knowing that you are feeding your body from those landscapes and animals. For those of us who are religious it goes further and connects us directly to creation and the God who put it here in a way that isn't replicated by the meat aisle in the grocery store. How do you put a price on that?

That said, one tag doesn't take away my ability to hunt for the year. I wouldn't fault anyone who looked at this opportunity and thought they could do more for their family with the money than they can with the 40 lbs of bear meat. There have been times in my life where $2000 would make a big difference, whereas it would take more than that to tempt me now.

 

[RidgeRunner76]

My hunting rights can never be bought. A whole lot of you need to check your headspace. This is how they win when you willingly give up.

 

[rjthehunter]

My hunting rights can never be bought. A whole lot of you need to check your headspace. This is how they win when you willingly give up.

If I'm giving up a tag for more/different hunting opportunities, I'd say you're wrong.

 

[RidgeRunner76]

If I'm giving up a tag for more/different hunting opportunities, I'd say you're wrong.

Why give up anything? Those opportunities already exist

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Interesting story.

Last time i was working down there (2017ish) there were black bears climbing on my tonneau cover multiple times a week because they could smell dog food in the bed of my truck. When i looked into it it was clear there were plenty of anti bear hunting feelings in the area. After the game agency told us there was nothing they could do I bought a paintball gun and tried to get the bears as colorful as possible.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Bears are meh.
Make the topic interesting.
If you drew a Bighorn sheep tag and could sell it, say for something similar to the money generated by State raffles, would it raise an eyebrow?

Yes it would raise an eyebrow and i'd be against those tags being sellable. But I'd damn sure sell a sheep tag for six figures!

 

[LuketheDog]

$2000? Not even in the ballpark I'd better at least get enough to buy a new truck to drive to another hunt or take a nice guided Alaska trip...

 

[rjthehunter]

Why give up anything? Those opportunities already exist

If someone would give you 20x what the tag cost, why wouldn't I? I can buy more hunts with the $. Simple math.

 

[NR_Hunter]

I’m not giving some bunny hugger the satisfaction for $2k. Not sure how much it would take, but $2k ain’t gonna be even close.

 

[Drake4]

I'd sell my Montana mule tag for $25.

 

[westbranch]

I'd sell my Montana mule tag for $25.

That barely covers a burger and a beer these days.

 

[Treeshark]

I'd sell my Montana mule tag for $25.

Don’t you toy with my emotions like that.

 

[RidgeRunner76]

If someone would give you 20x what the tag cost, why wouldn't I? I can buy more hunts with the $. Simple math.

To each their own I suppose. Careful what you wish for. I know here in CO it's becoming a thing to take tags from legit sportsman. Not over the top yet, but its happening.

 

[BuzzH]

I buy tags every year just to throw them in the garbage...so yeah.

 

[rjthehunter]

To each their own I suppose. Careful what you wish for. I know here in CO it's becoming a thing to take tags from legit sportsman. Not over the top yet, but its happening.

As others have said, the # of tags will just continue to rise if they're not seeing the harvest numbers they want.

I agree it could be a slippery slope, but the extent antis would have to go through to get tags (general or LE) and not use them would be ridiculous. I suppose it could happen, but would the few who are dumb enough to do it actually matter in the big picture?

 

[gouch]

I doubt that paying a few people to not use their bear tag is going to significantly reduce the number of bears killed. Most of the people who take the money are going to be people who drew a tag but for one reason or another can't get out to participate in the hunt. So, they wouldn't have killed a bear anyway. The rest of the people who would take the money weren't really that serious about going bear hunting and would be unlikely to kill a bear even if they did go. Again, no bears are saved.

If that anti bear hunting group has money to burn, I say, let them burn it.

The bad part is that they say they are going to harass the hunters. I hope Florida has laws against that and enforces them. Even if they do try and harass hunters though, they will probably fall short in their efforts. Many years ago, a group got together around here to harass elk hunters. On opening day, they all drove up to the Prospect Bar and Grill. the closest watering hole to elk country that they could find. It seems they believed their own stereotype about hunters and assume they would all be gathered together at the bar, so they could go up there and wave their signs and yell obscenities at all the hunters. All they found was a few local rummies and a juke box full of old country songs.

Little did they know that real elk hunters take their own booze with them to camp.

 

[Bigjay73]

Everything has a price

 

[RidgeRunner76]

Everything has a price

Out of respect for Randy, I'll digress. Situations like this are literally $20 away from making Kurt's window sticker thread..... Indeed, almost everyone has a price.

 

[recon6036]

$2,000 ….naw! Add another zero…

 

[WildWill]

I doubt that paying a few people to not use their bear tag is going to significantly reduce the number of bears killed. Most of the people who take the money are going to be people who drew a tag but for one reason or another can't get out to participate in the hunt. So, they wouldn't have killed a bear anyway. The rest of the people who would take the money weren't really that serious about going bear hunting and would be unlikely to kill a bear even if they did go. Again, no bears are saved.

If that anti bear hunting group has money to burn, I say, let them burn it.

The bad part is that they say they are going to harass the hunters. I hope Florida has laws against that and enforces them. Even if they do try and harass hunters though, they will probably fall short in their efforts. Many years ago, a group got together around here to harass elk hunters. On opening day, they all drove up to the Prospect Bar and Grill. the closest watering hole to elk country that they could find. It seems they believed their own stereotype about hunters and assume they would all be gathered together at the bar, so they could go up there and wave their signs and yell obscenities at all the hunters. All they found was a few local rummies and a juke box full of old country songs.

Little did they know that real elk hunters take their own booze with them to camp.

Exactly 99% of the people who would take the 2k for their tag weren't gonna kill a bear anyway. All this does is burn up anti money.