CALL OF THE WILD….. August 12, 1999 Emporia Gazette Phil Taunton

I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again.....Peter, Paul and Mary

Just kidding! I am just going to Oklahoma to attend the Quail Unlimited National Convention and participate in a round table discussion concerning youth activities and events. Emporia should take pride in its many conservation and wildlife organizations and the supporters who have made a commitment to provide youth with quality educational outdoor experiences. Hopefully these ventures will help the kids keep their feet on the ground, learn about the wonders of Nature, help preserve and protect our environment and enjoy a lifetime of challenging and pleasurable natural experiences.

I will be driving to Oklahoma though. If the Lord wanted this outdoors guy to fly he would have given me feathers. It would be nice to soar with eagles once or twice, but as far as airplanes go, I still prefer the highway.

All that may be changing though since the Wifeus and I are getting up in years and she wants to see an ocean before we cross the Great Divide. But you talk about the Call of the Wild. Road rage and dodging trucks and traffic while driving Highway 50 back and forth to work, is about as wild as it gets. I wish the occasional deer crossing the highway is all I had to contend with.

A friend of mine passed along a newspaper article by Babe Winkelman concerning our right to hunt and fish. I would like to share some of his observations with you. You may visit www.winkelman.com for information on Babe, both of his television programs, series, products, Kris’ recipes, sweepstakes, books and videos. If you are not into cyberspace yet, but have a television, tune into “Outdoor Secrets” on Superstation WGN at 1:00 a.m. Friday night, 9:00 a.m. Saturday morning and 2:30 a.m. Saturday night (All Central).

“Most sportsmen are as nervous about the "antis" (and if they aren’t they should be) as a field mouse watching a great horned owl swooping from the sky with talons extended. Every time we turn around it seems the shadow if one of these organizations is circling patiently, waiting for the opportunity to seize our right to hunt, fish or trap.” Earlier this Spring, supporters of this movement were found on street corners in Wichita and Salina protesting the right to fish and carrying banners saying fish have feelings too.

“If we lose our rights, we have only ourselves to blame. Say what you want about People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and other critics of the blood sports, they at least have the courage to stand up for their beliefs. They have succeeded because outdoor sportsmen have been reluctance to stand up for their rights, heritage and traditions.”

“The decisions affecting this right to hunt, fish and trap won't be made by PETA, Fund for Animals or Friends of Animals. Those decisions will be made by the American public: those who don’t hunt, fish or participate in non-consumptive outdoor activities. This decision will be made at the polls.”

“Just ask the sportsmen in Ontario, who sat quietly while a well-funded campaign by the antis resulted in the loss of Ontario’s spring bear hunt.”

“Ironically, it was a tasteless home video used by an outfitter to sell bear hunts that convinced the mostly urban eastern-Ontario voters to ban spring bear hunting.”

“When it comes to portraying hunting and fishing in the worst possible light, some sportsmen don't really need much help from the antis. We do a very good job all by ourselves.”

“If our image is tarnished, it's because we haven't polished it. If we're thought of being whiskey-guzzling slobs who litter the countryside with our refuge and break the game laws while trying to express our manhood by killing the biggest this and catching the most of that, it's because we've fostered that image.”

“How can we change this image? A well-informed public would be a good starting point.”

“Start by writing letters to your favorite outdoor magazine and insisting that they balance their editorial content with more articles dealing with ethics and conservation and fewer articles about how to be the most efficient killers on their block.”

I try to teach in hunter education classes that as hunters grow older most realize it isn’t the numbers they harvest or ‘limiting out’ that matters but rather planning the trip, being with family and friends or the serenity and solitude of the quest that makes for a truly rewarding outdoor experience. “We need more stories dealing with the plight of wildlife and fewer on how to kill animals or catch bass like the tournament pros.”

“Second, contact your local media. The general public needs to understand that gun-totting hunters aren't much of a threat to the future of wildlife compared to changing land-use practices that offer both game and non-game animals alike less food, water, shelter and space.”

“Stop placing a blind trust in national conservation organizations that are more concerned about raising money than raising wildlife or not fostering wildlife and hunter education. Most of us donate a few dollars to our favorite non-profit organization, attach a decal to the windshield of our pickup and relax, secure in the belief that the future of wildlife is in good hands. That's not always the case. Find out where that organization’s money is being spent and why.”

“Be selective about which organizations you support. Tops on its agenda should be putting productive habitat on the landscape, research and education. If those items are secondary to fund-raising and self-promotion perhaps it's time to stick a different decal on your pickup window.”

Supporting youth-parent/guardian events that teach ethical behavior and responsibilities as well as outdoor education is an important step in the right direction.

“Check out your own school's curriculum and see if an anti-outdoor message is being taught. Attend a school board meeting and encourage the adoption of Pheasants Forever “Leopold Education Project”, Wildlife Forever’s state-fish art project or a Get Hooked on Fishing Not on Drugs Program.”

“We must de-emphasize the harvest and start promoting the social values associated with the outdoor experience. Hunters who pay big dollars for the right to shoot fenced, semi-tame deer, their heavy racks the product of nutritional supplements, only feed the notion that sportsmen care more about collecting trophies than they do about the rewarding experience of the hunt.”

“And it's high time we stop being apologists for the sports we love. Falling back on the economic impact of hunting and fishing in a society is a feeble attempt at justifying our existence. Stop trying to defend our right to hunt and fish in terms of dollars spent to protect wildlife resources. Instead, put your mouth and your energies where your money is.”

Yes, outdoor sportsmen, it’s time to stand up for what you believe in. Get involved. Practice responsibility and ethics when on the waters and in the woods. Help portray our sport as one of the most positive influences in our natural world.