(29 October 2013, 22:37)Midnitemo Wrote: Mort & Charles.....do huntsmen really shoot anything that moves in the states, over here nobodies finger goes near a trigger until a species has been recognised a decent backstop has been evaluated and all aspects of a safe shot considered.
Absolutely not! We have the same safety requirements common sense requires everywhere
Those tales are mostly myth and folklore spun around the invasion of urban hordes into the Pennsylvania and New York farm country back in the early 1900s.
You will find some fools in every population but hunting over here is more safe than skiing, skateboarding or driving to the corner market. Fewer people killed or injured in total.
Each person in the nation as far as I know, is required to attend and pass a hunter safety course before they can acquire a hunting license. The course is normally 10 hours of classroom training and a live fire exercise.
Due to the wearing of the safety orange we require for big game season, if a hunter is killed while wearing approved colors the shooter is automatically charged with murder. Every incident involving "hunting accidents" involving the orange has resulted in a conviction since the colors became legally required. When wearing 500 sq/in of orange it is virtually impossible to mistake a target.
When I am doing normal woods bumming I wear an orange hat. I keep an orange baseball cap and an orange watch cap in each vehicle.
SHTF has not started as of yet and I intend to be obvious.
Most of my woods time is spent in local wildlife management area hunting preserves and national wilderness areas, so I take it for granted that other hunters are present. Even if I do not see them I sure intend for them to see me.
Our small game seasons last from August until February, spring turkey season goes into the spring and some species of varmints are shot year around. That means hunters are in the field almost year around, so I wear orange quite a bit.
Two weeks ago I spent several days camping in the middle of some of the best bear hunting country in the nation and I felt quite safe. Except for the fear of the dogs running a burin through the middle of the camp!