alex maiolo wrote:

Christopher J. McGarvey wrote:

Chuckb wrote:I don't own a gun for the very same reason I don't own any power saws or a motorcycle.

I keep trying to imagine why guns have been lumped in with power saws and motorcycles.

Because in it's own way, each is a dangerous tool (plus there's the testosterone thing...)

-A power saw is made for cutting wood, but you can cut off a finger.
-A motorcycle is made for getting you from a to b, but you can get hurt, probably easier than if you were in a car
-A gun is made for killing stuff. Target practice is practicing so you can kill stuff really well. You can put a hole in a piece of paper with a pellet gun.

If that's the case, then why were staplers, steak knives, that ball and cup toy, flamethrowers, etc... left out?

Christopher J. McGarvey wrote:

alex maiolo wrote:

Christopher J. McGarvey wrote:

Chuckb wrote:I don't own a gun for the very same reason I don't own any power saws or a motorcycle.

I keep trying to imagine why guns have been lumped in with power saws and motorcycles.

Because in it's own way, each is a dangerous tool (plus there's the testosterone thing...)

-A power saw is made for cutting wood, but you can cut off a finger.
-A motorcycle is made for getting you from a to b, but you can get hurt, probably easier than if you were in a car
-A gun is made for killing stuff. Target practice is practicing so you can kill stuff really well. You can put a hole in a piece of paper with a pellet gun.

If that's the case, then why were staplers, steak knives, that ball and cup toy, flamethrowers, etc... left out?

-Stapler - hard to get hurt with that.
-Steak knives - fair enough, I guess, but not as quick to cause permanent damage as a saw, motorcycle or gun.
-Ball and cup toy - no comment.
-Flamethrowers - illegal.

You get the idea.


-A

MrFood wrote:I dearly wish it were possible to hunt 'big game' in this country. (Is that the correct phrase?)

Some of you 'Mericans have mentioned that you occasionally hunt or used to hunt. What did this entail? How far would you have to go from your homes? Did you make entire weekend camping trips out of it? What did you get? Did you butcher it yourself? How hard is it?

I'd definitely give it a try. I'm sure I'd be absolutely terrible at it but hey ho....

Big game hunting isn't very common here. I always though of that as killing dangerous beasts more for fun than food. Some people hunt bears. I think that's fucked up.

Small and medium game are more common - birds, deer, etc.
Depends on where you live, what's in season, and what's legal, but most people can get to hunting land within an hour or two. Some people can just walk out their front door.

You need a license, which can vary in cost, but most people can afford it. There is public land and sometimes people will let you hunt on their farms.

When I was a kid, we shot quail and mourning dove. It's a quick death, and they are delicious.
I never cared much for deer hunting, but my friend who do it will not go unless they have takers for the meat. I'm one of those takers.

In the UK, property rights are very different than they are here. I love your footpath system, but water and land rights are tough over there. In the US, almost every stream or river is public. You can't cross anyone's land without their permission, but if you get into a trout stream from a public road, you can fish up and down the whole thing and nobody can do a thing about it. People will comment from time to time, but it's within your rights to keep fishing as long as you don't walk onto their land.

In the UK, land owners own to the middle of the river, creek, etc. Technically you can't fish past the middle of the stream unless your neighbor says it's OK.
That's why Fly Fishing is much more exclusive in the UK than it is here. Like golf, you need access to expensive land.

You can hunt on National Park land in most cases, as long as it's hunting season. Many farmers are cool with you hunting on their land, even if you barely know them. It's nice to give them some of what you bagged. If you do, you'll have a place to hunt for a long time.

The reason I hunt(ed) is because I think everyone needs to know where meat comes from. Death is involved. Naturally, even though I try to buy responsibly raised meat, I know it's not quite the same, but I feel like being willing to kill and clean something makes meat eating a lot more OK. I certainly think about it a lot.

If you're even in the US, in season, I'll take you bird hunting. I haven't been in years, but honestly, getting outside is the best part. I often came home empty handed. Just as bad is bagging only one quail, which isn't enough of a meal for a kid.

-A

UncleLed&theZepTwins wrote:I recently inherited several antique firearms and I've been trying to determine the best way to sell them. If it was vintage guitars, I would know exactly how to get the best prices and who would be most likely to buy them and what to expect. But how does one go about selling a $10K rifle? Who buys that sort of thing and where are they? I could get some low-ball offers from dealers, but... I'd rather just find a collector.

if you want i can put you in contact with my dad, who's been collecting and selling antique firearms for most of my life. he'd be able to direct you to the best sites, people and/or publications for the kinda stuff and may even find you a buyer depending on what you've got (or take something off your hands if its something he's interested in). lemme know, he loves to talk guns.

Alex-
we need to hang out.

I do not nor have I ever owned a firearm. I do not intend to own one in the forseeable future either. If it becomes necessary, then perhaps I will own one, though I hope to God that society never degenerates to the point where deadly force is needed to get through the day.

My father is a retired federal law enforcement agent. Because of the fact that he was intimate with a variety of different firearms and they effects they have, he taught my siblings and me how to properly use both a semi-automatic pistol and a revolver, specifically the law enforcement version of the M9 Beretta and the Ruger .357 Magnum.

As an adult I feel fortunate that he did this, because as a result I have a healthy fear of guns, yet I know how to use one when it becomes necessary.

MrFood wrote:Although, yeah - I always kinda wondered how quick one would tire of having dear every day until it was gone. How do you store that much animal anyway?

In this freezer, you will also find vegetables from the garden and fish caught in Spring.

The freezer on the porch is a classic bit of the redneck home.

MrFood wrote:That's what I'm talking about. I would like to try dear hunting (that's what I thought was meant by 'big game', I forgot you have animals bigger than yourselves over there). Although, yeah - I always kinda wondered how quick one would tire of having dear every day until it was gone. How do you store that much animal anyway?

you don't, you get your freinds to take about 1/2 of it, you will be suprised how many freinds you have when your giving away free meat...

Alex pretty much posted my own thoughts and experiences on hunting (though I also did some squirrel and rabbit hunting; rabbit hunting without dogs is damn near impossible).

I've found that the thought of shooting an animal is much harder for me now than when I was a kid, but I agree that it's important meat-eaters recognize that death is life. That's the cycle. It's not a comfortable fact, but it's one that should be faced. It's also the primary reason I find trophy hunting to be so detestable.

I have a feeling a hunting outing with ringo, Alex, Mr. Food, and me would produce a hell of a lot of glass recycling carnage but not a lot of meat.

Mr. Food, if you want a moving, wonderfully eloquent encapsulation of the southern US hunting experience, find a novella by Faulkner called "The Bear." It's not the sort of hunting I condone and part of a bygone era, but it will tell you a lot about the core of the experience.