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The people I knew that I heard did things like this did not have a lot of money. They did have access to a grocery store, but hunted animals were a way of extending the budget. I don't know that they did it in excess like these people on any given day, but they did eat the meat and didn't let it go to waste. When you live in certain areas, deer and other wild animals become overpopulated. One of my brother's acquaintances happened to come into possession of a raccoon... not sure if it was shot or hit by a car. This guy and his dad cleaned it and stuck it in the freezer. My family had decent money so it was kind of a 'Wow!' moment for us to hear that the acquaintance did that. We knew our grandparents had eaten wild game like possum, raccoon, etc., back in the 1920's-40'swhen money was scarce, but it wasn't our lifestyle.
I can't fault someone for doing this if they needed the food for their table. The people in the story sound greedy. That was excessive.
Nothing at all as long as it's legal. When it turns to poaching, then I have something against it. I don't appreciate people much when they think they are above the law because of greed.
Well ya but that is not what your original post was addressing.
The people I knew that I heard did things like this did not have a lot of money. They did have access to a grocery store, but hunted animals were a way of extending the budget. I don't know that they did it in excess like these people on any given day, but they did eat the meat and didn't let it go to waste. When you live in certain areas, deer and other wild animals become overpopulated. One of my brother's acquaintances happened to come into possession of a raccoon... not sure if it was shot or hit by a car. This guy and his dad cleaned it and stuck it in the freezer. My family had decent money so it was kind of a 'Wow!' moment for us to hear that the acquaintance did that. We knew our grandparents had eaten wild game like possum, raccoon, etc., back in the 1920's-40'swhen money was scarce, but it wasn't our lifestyle.
I can't fault someone for doing this if they needed the food for their table. The people in the story sound greedy. That was excessive.
The people I know in the Clarksburg/Spelter area don't wantonly slaughter, and nothing gets wasted. As you said, it's a grocery supplement. Deer and turkeys are dripping off the area, and out of season harvest is, generally, ignored by FG. So long as its somewhat...discreet, a d the animals are properly utilized.
Then there's the Mountain People. The woods and a rifle is their grocery store. The time I spent in WV was...enlightening. As I said earlier, to a Western , mule deer and elk hunter, WV is another planet. Out of season hunting out here is close to a hanging offense, while in WV, its a common , even accepted, thing. A LOT more subsistence hunting back there. Its a totally different culture from we Westerners.
I've met some illegal hunters that hunt for food year round, usually they qualify as poor white trash, but they have a 50K arsenal of weapons and ammo, in case the gubmint outlaws guns, so yeah they could go shopping if they were not spending $50 on a box of .22 ammo
Is killing animals for sport all that much fun? I'm assuming these people aren't starving and have access to a grocery store.
Is shooting a wild animal less ethical than eating an animal from a supermarket that was raised in a tiny cage or pen under f fluorescent lights while standing on a crust of its own filth?
And as mentioned, much poaching is done to supplement the diet of poor families as well as for sale. It is illegal, but it is generally done for human subsistence, not bloodlust.
At any rate, poaching is common in most eastern states. Private land makes poaching/exceeding bag limits easy. I am actually surprised it isn't more rampant.
I've met some illegal hunters that hunt for food year round, usually they qualify as poor white trash, but they have a 50K arsenal of weapons and ammo, in case the gubmint outlaws guns, so yeah they could go shopping if they were not spending $50 on a box of .22 ammo
Actually a box of .22 caliber ammo costs about $13.00 for a 50 round box, while my Whitetail Pro Core-Lokt hunting 30-06 big game ammo costs me a whopping $21.00. and my Henry Lever Action rifle cost me new a whole $179.00 on sale 20 years ago. Not 50K!
Is killing animals for sport all that much fun? I'm assuming these people aren't starving and have access to a grocery store.
You would be wrong to assume that about West Virginia. About 18% of WV families live below the Federal poverty designation. The percentage of children living in poor families is 26.6%. Those statistics are higher for rural counties where employment is less plentiful.
Personally, I'm no fan of hunting. But I was born in that Devil's Triangle where Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio meet. I was raised among people who hunt. There was heavy absenteeism in my high school as hunting season opened and the school looked the other way. The vast majority of those hunters eat what they kill. Yes, many of them consider hunting a sport, too, and something they enjoy. But when people are in poverty, they often go out in terrible weather to get food for their families. Butchers in the area will cut up a deer for a small fee and often will hold the venison in their freezers for the customer's future use. And by the way, deer are plentiful in that part of the country; hunting seasons are extended by state game commissions when the herds are dangerously over-sized because otherwise many deer would starve to death.
I don't know a thing about the particular incident the OP has highlighted. But it is wrong for anyone to think that in WV the only reason to hunt is because a person enjoys killing animals.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wpme
I've met some illegal hunters that hunt for food year round, usually they qualify as poor white trash, but they have a 50K arsenal of weapons and ammo, in case the gubmint outlaws guns, so yeah they could go shopping if they were not spending $50 on a box of .22 ammo
Hey, I NEED ten 1911's and five AR's! Cauze the government wants to take our guns.
Besides the government gives poor folk EBT cards, free medical and Obamaphones and subsidized housing. Frees up our cash for 4WD's and ammo.
I got a 500 round brick of .22 for $26.00 at Sportsmans Warehouse last week!
When I was a kid my family fell on hard times. We subsistance hunted and fished for about a year. If it moved we shot it. But we ate it. Back then a brick was like $6.00, about a penny a round.
I still wonder how these guys expected to not get caught with a trailer full of dead deer.
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