I came across a Washington Post article (free subscription) about Jim Zumbo, former hunting editor for Outdoor Life. Mr. Zumbo was coyote hunting and posted a blog entry about assault rifles that stated the following:
"Excuse me, maybe I'm a traditionalist, but I see no place for these weapons among our hunting fraternity," Zumbo wrote in his blog on the Outdoor Life Web site. The Feb. 16 posting has since been taken down. "As hunters, we don't need to be lumped into the group of people who terrorize the world with them. . . . I'll go so far as to call them 'terrorist' rifles."
Needless to say, Mr. Zumbo is now out of a job, no longer a spokesman for Remington, and basically crushed by the knee jerk reaction of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and its membership. The NRA says its members aren't terrorists and don't like being called terrorists. I'll buy that. But Mr. Zumbo didn't call them terrorists, he labeled the weapon a terrorist weapon and questioned why any hunter would use one to go hunting.
The NRA leadership has never impressed me as being more than a bunch of loudmouth gun owners who don't understand the difference between legitimate gun ownership and use, and illegitimate. Assault weapons are not made for hunting anything other than people. Like it or not, that is a fact. Why any legitimate hunter would want to use one in the field is beyond me. It is a damn shame that Mr. Zumbo has been, in effect, crucified for telling the truth.
It also speaks ill of the NRA members who squawked about this. Squawk away folks, but all that tells me is that you prefer that emotional charge you get from having a big, bad, rifle in your hands. Enjoy yourselves and stay away from me.
3 comments:
My own dear male friend dropped his NRA membership, gladdening my heart, after the Columbine massacre. The tipping point for him were the idiotic statements made by then-NRA President Carlton "guns-don't-kill-people-black trenchcoats-kill-people" Heston.
Here, with the morons of the NRA, we have demonstrated the ability of people who have so bought into a particular political stance or manner of life that they can't see the truth in front of their faces, even when the truth happens to be their own children's bodies on morgue slabs, from the latest gang war or school shooting rampage.
The NRA didn't have anything to do with this. Several thousand angry readers did.
In your case, you have equated "legitimate use" with "hunting." Zumbo suffered from the same misconception. The right to arms has nothing to do with hunting or "sporting use."
And, I'm sorry, but we politically-active gun owners (some of whom believe the NRA compromises too much) won't leave you alone. We're fighting to protect your rights, too.
We can't cure your ignorance about firearms, that's up to you. But we will do everything we can to ensure that you have the opportunity to.
Kevin - in view of the picture you choose to use in your post, you make my point for me. And BTW, I did read the WP article and it wasn't just the angry readers, the NRA waded right in and had plenty to say. That those several thousand readers missed the point about assault rifles is not surprising.
You aren't fighting for my rights when you fight for weapons that belong in the military, not in the hands of hunters, sports shooters, or those who buy guns for personal protection. I do understand that legitimate use transcends hunting. However, I see no point in taking an assault weapon on a hunt, other than the emotional charge that comes from having the biggest, baddest toy in your hands.
Zumbo was right, and it's too bad he apologized and said he was 'tired' when he posted. Perhaps he should post more often when he is tired; he may be more likely to speak the truth rather than post the politically correct statements so beloved by gun owners who can't see the forest for the trees.
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