Coming to a state near you

[Gila]

Yesterday at the New Mexico DOW Game Commission meeting there was a comment by an anti-hunting group to ban long range hunting and thermal optics. What does thermal optics have to do with long range hunting? Also it wasn’t enough to take away our optics on the muzzleloader, now they are going for in-lines. I haven't heard anything about suppressors yet, but I suppose they will eventually come after those too.

 

[EdP]

To me it is all part of a left agenda to remove all reasons to own firearms. Put an end to hunting, one chip at a time, and there is no reason to own firearms for hunting. Pass laws that prohibit unlocked loaded firearms in the home and those firearms are worthless for self defense in the home. Again, no reason to own them. Chip by chip they will erode the 2A. We have to fight every incremental change if we want to win.

 

[Gila]

To me it is all part of a left agenda to remove all reasons to own firearms. Put an end to hunting, one chip at a time, and there is no reason to own firearms for hunting. Pass laws that prohibit unlocked loaded firearms in the home and those firearms are worthless for self defense in the home. Again, no reason to own them. Chip by chip they will erode the 2A. We have to fight every incremental change if we want to win.

I think you hit the nail on the head. Here we are getting attacked by several different ways at once. Now they want to reduce the success rates in most units because the herds are in decline. So they say, replace the first rifle hunt with a muzzle loader hunt. The thing is long range hunting isn’t even defined like they are going to bargain for yardage or something. Replace the existing muzzle loader hunts with primitive muzzle loader hunts. But then there are hunters in the room nodding their heads. I don’t get it.
The anti-hunters ride share between Santa Fe and Denver….nutz!

 

[mt terry d]

I'm sure our F&G agencies will fight like tigers for us.

 

[justin davis]

The antis are idiots. Don’t even know what they are talking about in regards to hunting or firearms. But bottom line is they want to attack everything and come after everything related to guns and hunting. They are trying to do a bill in Colorado that will ban the private purchase of barrels!!!!

 

[270-300]

Remember, ar 15s shoot the most powerful rifle cartridge on the planet, AND big scopes mean one can shoot anything at 1,000 yards just as easily as if it was 10 feet in front of them.

Wyoming had one of these bills in the state legislature last summer. I remember a lot of arguing about it on here. With year after year hunter decline for decades, i so no reason to cry over harvesting.

 

[Gila]

It used to be that hunts were managed with science to increase the success rates to reach a harvest target to stabilize the herds. Now it’s just throw twice as many tags out there as there should be and raise the difficulty level. That is if a resident here can even draw a tag at all, which is not often.

 

[flyfisher117]

While we argue and bicker about MILS vs MOA and mechanicals vs fixed broadheads. The antis are united in ending anything hunting related that they can. Throw a bunch of shit at a wall and if anything sticks it’s a win for them.

 

[wind gypsy]

Thermal optics are more a poaching/fair chase concern.

 

[Laramie]

I personally wouldn't mind seeing more limited range hunting seasons and areas but I can't support any overall statewide bans just for the sake of making them illegal.

Long range capabilities of modern firearms generally raise success rates thus lowering the number of tags allotted on any given hunt. With the demand far exceeding the supply, limited range hunts offer a way to get more people in the field.

Stating all of the above because I do support some of the pushes by states for more limited range hunting.

From my experience, thermal is only good for predators and hogs. Poachers will poach regardless of weapon options. For that reason, I can't see any legitimate reason to limit their sales or use beyond current laws.

 

[Sundodger]

I am not familiar with the issues/merits your F&G commission or this topic, but as a guy from Washington you have my sympathy.

To give you hope, we were able to get two animal rights activists off our commission and the last three are under investigation. It's not all roses, they are still causing chaos and damage, but we are getting some wins.

We have to be able to hold multiple conflicting ideas in your head at once with this kind of topics. It's entirely possible that the right decision might be to limit some tech in hunting, while at the same time Anti's will use it as a wedge and gain influence and further their agenda. We have had so many examples in Washington I have lost track of.

Stay vigilant, clear headed, and focused not emotional. We, as stewards of the resource, need to be the adults in the room.

 

[Gila]

I personally wouldn't mind seeing more limited range hunting seasons and areas but I can't support any overall statewide bans just for the sake of making them illegal.

Long range capabilities of modern firearms generally raise success rates thus lowering the number of tags allotted on any given hunt. With the demand far exceeding the supply, limited range hunts offer a way to get more people in the field.

Stating all of the above because I do support some of the pushes by states for more limited range hunting.

From my experience, thermal is only good for predators and hogs. Poachers will poach regardless of weapon options. For that reason, I can't see any legitimate reason to limit their sales or use beyond current laws.

There are plenty of people out there hunting with a rifle who can’t hit the broadside of a barn at 200 yards. Some of them and not just a few, admit they have not even zeroed in their ammo. I see more wounded elk and deer during archery and muzzle loader seasons than any rifle season. This forum does a great job of educating hunters and encouraging them to get the right rifle system and train with it. But the number of hunters who train and shoot enough to make a probable kill at long ranges is still very small in comparison I should think. I am just basing this on my own observations while out hunting.

 

[Gila]

I am not familiar with the issues/merits your F&G commission or this topic, but as a guy from Washington you have my sympathy.

To give you hope, we were able to get two animal rights activists off our commission and the last three are under investigation. It's not all roses, they are still causing chaos and damage, but we are getting some wins.

We have to be able to hold multiple conflicting ideas in your head at once with this kind of topics. It's entirely possible that the right decision might be to limit some tech in hunting, while at the same time Anti's will use it as a wedge and gain influence and further their agenda. We have had so many examples in Washington I have lost track of.

Stay vigilant, clear headed, and focused not emotional. We, as stewards of the resource, need to be the adults in the room.

In NM our problem is to be able to be stewards of the resource. We have passed legislation that will modify the make-up of the game commission. But residents have been kicked to the curb. The probability that residents will draw ANY big game tags is very low. Years and years…or longer.

 

[Sundodger]

In NM our problem is to be able to be stewards of the resource. We have passed legislation that will modify the make-up of the game commission. But residents have been kicked to the curb. The probability that residents will draw ANY big game tags is very low. Years and years…or longer.

I am not at all informed at all what NM is dealing with, but it sounds like you are putting a lot of different issues into the same bucket and describing it all with emotional language. I am not saying they don't all have some common threads, and it isn't infuriating, but I would implore you to research, focus, and strategize otherwise the anti's will pick you apart.

Maybe do a little Stoic reading, some meditation, and dive into the details. I have seen it time and time again here in WA, well meaning sportsmen fired up for very good reasons get disregarded (often brushed off as raving lunatics) because they can't focus and communicate. Find their weakness, know your own, know the game, and strategize to win.

We don't have the luxury of making mistakes anymore.

 

[Laramie]

There are plenty of people out there hunting with a rifle who can’t hit the broadside of a barn at 200 yards. Some of them and not just a few, admit they have not even zeroed in their ammo. I see more wounded elk and deer during archery and muzzle loader seasons than any rifle season. This forum does a great job of educating hunters and encouraging them to get the right rifle system and train with it. But the number of hunters who train and shoot enough to make a probable kill at long ranges is still very small in comparison I should think. I am just basing this on my own observations while out hunting.

A certain percentage of people will be terrible, regardless of the season and weapon.

There are zero studies, that I am aware of, proving your claims of more wounding during muzzleloader and archery seasons. I may be an outlier, but I have exactly one wounding loss in 40 years of hunting with a bow. Guiding, I haven't had a single wounding loss. My muzzle loader experience is limited but the three deer I shot at all died. I believe that the majority of primitive weapon users are people like myself that put considerable time into being proficient with their weapons. Not all, but most.

Again, I am not in any way against long range equipment, but I do see reasoning for limiting the seasons where that equipment is allowed simply because success rates are much higher- meaning fewer tags can be made available per capita.

I have a 6.5 PRC with a dialing scope that I love to shoot and hunt with at what I consider long ranges.