Another nail in the coffin of the tradition hunting in WI...
Im less concerned about the poaching/non registration of deer than I am about how the State of WI year by year has whittled away at the culture and "tradition of hunting" in the State all in the name of convenience.
The traditional 9 day gun deer season (the foundation of hunting is the State) no longer is what it used to be and the economy has suffered for it. What we used to call a state holiday and what was recognized in the state as just that is gone. What often seemed more like right's of passage - tagging deer, socializing as you registered them, the group camaraderie of contact with other hunters and the spin off benefits hunting brought to the state and local economies are a fading thing...Talk to any bar, gas station, store owner or other local businesses and you'll hear the same thing - where are all the hunters, where have they gone? It's easier for the general public to support something that benefits them, something that is familiar and believed to be a common practice... This is just another thing that has driven hunting back into the shadows. What was an open family tradition across the state is now a rich man's sport, built on convenience and conducted more and more in secrecy. I have agreed with the relaxing of some regulations; like not having to have the carcass transported exposed to the general public. But despite having less hassles to deal with the path the State has taken in the last decade has done nothing to really "better" hunting in the state. I had hopes deregulation would increase deer numbers and though these efforts appear to make hunting less restrictive and inconvenient I think the tradeoffs have left us with something less that what we had before.
I always hated back tags too... but now I'm like bring it all back!
