The Daily News

There’s a scam going on in North Dakota and the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is being duped.

Either that or they don’t bother to research issues before they take a stand.

Or, they’re joined at the hip with the high-fence hunting lobby.

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On Jan. 29, the NRA-ILA issued an alert warning North Dakota residents that an anti-hunting organization was gathering signatures for the purpose of placing an anti-hunting initiative on the ballot this fall. The alert went on to say the group responsible was cleverly calling itself North Dakota Hunters for Fair Chase.

The NRA-ILA press release then launched into a diatribe about the dangers of initiated measures.

True, such political maneuvering is a double-edged sword but it’s curious that an American right as valued as voting would come under fire from the NRA.

Then came the real damage. It was claimed that the Humane Society of the United States, the world’s largest anti-hunting organization, was supporting the initiated measure. That claim was followed by three quotes from Wayne Pacelle, president of HSUS. The problem is those were long-standing quotes from debates of long ago and having nothing whatsoever to do with North Dakota.

Since they don’t appear to care much about facts at the NRA-ILA offices, let’s look at a few.

First, North Dakota Hunters for Fair Chase is a group of dedicated outdoorsmen who are working to end the practice of high-fence hunting in North Dakota. They’ve been working hard to eliminate this stain on the face of hunting in North Dakota.

They took their cause to the legislature but failed, so they’re going straight to the voter through initiated measure.

This group, and their cause, is endorsed by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the Mule Deer Foundation, the North Dakota Chapter of the Wildlife Society (a group of wildlife management professionals), the late Tony Dean and a large portion of North Dakota’s hunting community, including this hunter. Anti-hunters? Not even close.

If, as NRA-ILA claims, The Humane Society of the United States does, in fact, support the initiative it is certainly an unsolicited and unwelcome endorsement. I searched every nook and cranny of the HSUS Website and couldn’t find a single word about the North Dakota initiative. It lists many other issues but nothing regarding any endorsement of the measure to ban high-fence hunting.

It could be true. If so it’s strange move by HSUS. While they could take some satisfaction in duping the NRA-ILA, they could actually achieve a result counter to their overall goal. If their offensive and unwanted association with North Dakota Hunters for Fair Chase causes enough doubt, the initiative will die and the hunting of captive animals will continue in North Dakota.

I seriously doubt that’s what HSUS wants but the NRA-ILA is helping to bring this issue to that exact conclusion with their uninformed stance.

The press release says high-fence hunting is a long-standing tradition in North Dakota, which is pure bull. There’s nothing whatsoever traditional about hunting animals wearing ear tags and being held in enclosures.

That’s a ridiculous claim and says something about the high-fence lobby and the NRA-ILA for buying into it.

The NRA-ILA ends the press release by advising citizens not to allow “…Wayne Pacelle and others to further pursue their ultimate agenda of banning all hunting” by not signing the anti-freedom petition. Whew! That’s some serious propagandizing!

Finally, they direct readers wanting more information to the website www.ndpropertyrights.com.

Suddenly, it makes sense. The NRA-ILA has also been duped by the high-fence/property rights lobby.

Private property rights are important but there are many laws and regulations that govern what a landowner can do with or on their property. We all live by those rules and no one has free reign to do whatever they please.

To be sure, there are many facets to this issue, but the end game is quite clear in my opinion. If you’re a North Dakotan you either want your state to end up looking like Texas, with unrestricted baiting and rampant high-fence hunting preserves , or you don’t.

Each hunter/voter has to make that clearly black-or-white decision. Just know that this is NOT an anti-hunting initiative. HSUS has nothing to do with it no matter what they, or the NRA-ILA wants you to believe. This initiated measure will, provided it makes it to the polls in the fall, help maintain the integrity of hunting in North Dakota.

INDOOR ARCHERY

Three Rivers Archers held a meeting last week and one of the developments to come out of the meeting is the club will be holding indoor shooting starting next week.

You can shoot your bow in the comfort of Richard’s Elementary school on Thursday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. The school is located just south of St. Catherine’s Living Center on north seventh street in Wahpeton. It’ll cost you $3 per person to shoot.

Not bad for a couple hours of entertainment masquerading as practice!

SPRING TURKEY

Don’t forget the deadline for the spring turkey lottery in North Dakota. Applications must be postmarked by Wednesday, Feb. 10 , or you can apply online at gf.nd.gov as long as it’s before midnight Wednesday.

If you had an apprentice hunting license in 2009 you must pass a certified Hunter Education course to apply for a 2010 turkey license. That’s because these on-time licenses expire on March 31 and the turkey season opens on April 10.

Comments

For Hank... wrote on Feb 15, 2010 1:39 PM:

" Hank,

What is deceptive in the article? The author states that the quotes are real, but have nothing to do with ND. I searched the Humane Society website and the author spoke the truth. Although the HSUS has supported similar legislation at the federal level, they have NOTHING about the North Dakota initiative.
And frankly, why would you fight this legislation? If you are such a poor hunter and poor sport that you resort to fenced hunting, you are not a hunter, and you're certainly not a sportsman. "




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Phillip wrote on Feb 11, 2010 5:58 PM:

" "It's the people who send membership money to the NRA who are being duped."


EXACTLY. "




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Hank wrote on Feb 11, 2010 12:32 AM:

" This is an open attack on property rights. I notice that you bury that little fact in paragraph 17 / 18.

You are deceptive regarding the HSUS support of your initiative. "It lists many other issues but nothing regarding any endorsement of the measure to ban high-fence hunting." Anyone can go to the Humane Society website and search for "game preserve" and find that they are soundly in favor of your exact type of inititive.

HSUS also quotes and draws inspiration from the exact people Fair Chase quotes: Jim Posewitz, Aldo Leopold, Theodore Roosevelt... "




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RichStein wrote on Feb 10, 2010 9:45 AM:

" I vote for they didn't bother to research the issue. All the NRA wants to do is keep its members in a constant state of agitation. Sending a never ending stream of "they're coming to get your guns" alerts is part of this strategy. It's the people who send membership money to the NRA who are being duped. "




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