Sportsmen's Monthly 2016 May | Page 12

Small ball : Death by 1,000 cuts
Animal-rights organizations don ’ t try
Eliminating mountain lion or bear hunting
to score a touchdown on every play .
with bait , hounds or traps in one state
Instead , they ’ re content to spread the
sets a precedent to stop the practice in
field , use the clock to their advantage
other states . By dividing sportsmen , their
and pick up first downs ; a small advance
offense picks up one small victory and
on the East coast and a bigger play on
then another before going for all three
the West coast eventually add up to a
in another state or returning to original
winning strategy and advancing their
states to take practices not covered in
agenda by preying on the ignorance of
their first offensive attack . Urbanization ,
urban voters and sportsmen ’ s apathy .
time and money are on their side .
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2004 2014
1996
1996
1996 : Fighting a Mult-Front Offensive With approximately a $ 150 million average yearly budget , HSUS can afford to self-fund ballot-box campaigns while sportsmen must cobble together grassroots support . In 1996 , HSUS simultaneously pushed bear initiatives in four states . At $ 2-5 million per campaign , an issue is easily lost due to the inability to purchase PR airtime .
Map Legend
Best Defense : teamwork & Preparation Anticipating exactly when , where and how the animal-rights movement will attack hunting , fishing and trapping is tricky . We often know which states or court rulings they ’ ll target , but when exactly they ’ ll make a play and on what grounds is often ambiguous . To counter their offensive tactics , sportsmen need to :
Work as a team : An attack on trapping , hounding or bait hunting is an attack on general hunting , including deer hunting – don ’ t let their offensive play of division by method of take or species slowly conquer all of us . Defend methods of take at the ballot box even if you don ’ t participate in them .
Mountain Lion Initiatives Black Bear Initiatives Rejected Initiatives
Collect funding now : Sportsmen in every state need to create a fund now for the impending end-around play coming from HSUS and other groups in the future .
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Potential Initiative
May | 2016
SPORTSMEN ’ S MONTHLY
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