Keeping Hunters & Snowmobilers Off Land

[roneb]

Originally Posted by Wood & Creek

This attitude seems to be pretty common in N. MN, so if your not comfortable with that sort of backwards mentality then it may not be a good place for you. I live outside of the Twin Cities and vacation up to Boundary Waters once a year. I think N. MN is so amazingly gorgeous but I could never live with the anti-environmental, hick type of mentality that seems to flourish up there. I was really surprised to learn it was that bad, but the story of the local Ely kids shooting guns telling the "treehuggers" to go home really drove it home for me. In fact, weren't they screaming and going on about how it was "their land?" I'm scared of the locals up there!

Good luck to you, and no offense to the nice locals who don't fit this description, and who I know exist!

As liberal and progreesive as I may be, I still grew up in small towns and was raised on venison. These last couple of posts show what is wrong with extremism.

The eco-treehuggers want to paint hunters as murdering, blood-thirsty,and wasteful. But many of these crazies never get out of the city to actually experience nature and can't accept or admit that in almost any state in the union the vast majority of conservation funding comes from hunters fees. Most hunters really are hunting for food. And shooting a deer you've had to work to get and then saying a prayer over it is a lot more humane than what you'll find at any cattle yard in the world.

Now the flip side: As a responsible hunter I have seen idiots show up at hunts drunk, fire their rifles in the air, take an ill advised shot that left the deer wounded and us having chase it to put it out of its misery, and argue that their AR-15 or similar is a "fine deer rifle for brush". Don't any of these idiots realize that their behavior and arguements endanger the very way of life they claim to want to lead! BTW, these are seperate incidents - NO WAY I would've gone into the woods with the drunk hunters!

[Wood & Creek]

LOL, sorry to upset the beehive, I knew that comment would ruffle a few feathers. I'm not saying hunting itself is absolutely horrible. It just seems to go hand and hand too often with that scary, I'm gonna do whatever the **** I want no matter who or what it hurts mentality. Are there good, decent hunters out there? Sure, probably quite a few. My grandfather hunted with a bow and arrow and I respected that. I personally could never kill anything, and am also a vegetarian so I don't buy meat at the grocery store either. I don't mind if people eat meat, I'm not an in your face preachy type of person. I do like to try to surround myself with like minded individuals though, hence why N. MN probably isn't a good fit for me.

I was born and raised in MN and around the Twin Cities there are quite a few people like me, MN having fostered this mentality (in reference to why dont you move with the communists LOL.) There seems to be a huge difference in thought between N/S MN. Minnesota tends to be a very progressive state that votes democratic and also cares about the environment, shown in such ways as our overwhelming support for renewable wind energy. I have MN to thank for my values.

I was raised hiking, camping, canoeing ect. in Afton and on the St. Croix river. The outdoors were a big part of my upbringing so I don't feel like a "city" person in any way, nor do I or have I ever lived in the city. I still actively enjoy the outdoors and camp, hike, snowshoe, whitewater kayak ect. I am a senior double major in Environmental Studies and Anthropology so I study the interaction between people and the environment and N. MN is a very interesting case.

I'm bringing my 5 yr old to the BWCA for her first time this year. It would be nice not to have to fear for her safety and second guess bringing her because of the anti-environmentalist extremism up there. I think it's fair enough to forwarn people that this sentiment does exist there before they move.

[roneb]

For the record, W&C, I never really had you pegged as an extremist. Your posts have mostly seemed very well thought out. I do believe the world is not black and white; so extremism on either side doesn't do anyone any good in the long run. And definitely get that little one out to the BWCA. Time with family outdoors is the best thing ever!