By Larry S. Moore

I often look at books and studies relating to hunting, trapping or Second Amendment issues. Some are saved for possible reference; most are skimmed and discarded, while occasionally the author really grabs my attention. Perhaps this is because the author is breaking new ground, presenting the facts and conclusion in a fresh manner, or even just reaffirming values that were passed from my ancestors to me. Rarely does the author combine all these facets into one work. That is exactly what Dr. Randall Eaton has done with his ongoing study of animal and human behavior combined with hunting.

By Larry S. Moore

The FX reality show '30-Days' recently aired a segment entitled “Gun Nation”. The show was filmed in Ohio. It featured a Pia Lalli, a Brockton, MA gun control activist and Ken Ekermeyer, of Leesburg in rural Highland County, who is a gun enthusiast. In addition to the gun activities of shooting and working in a gun store, Lalli went hunting while in Ohio. I was contacted by the producer and agreed to take her hunting. My daughter, Tiffany Atley, and I took her squirrel hunting just after Labor Day 2007.

In case the reader did not see the show, Lalli had a friend, who also happened to be her therapist, killed by a deranged man with a gun. After that she became a gun control advocate. She also embraces a vegetarian lifestyle and is anti-hunting as well. I don’t care who wants to be a vegetarian so long as they don’t attempt to take my freedom of choice to hunt. Lalli might be described as the stereotypical east coast liberal with a sense that the government should take care of the citizens. She has consistently voted for Ted Kennedy. On the other hand, I might be described as a conservative with the ideals that the government should stay out of my life. The words ‘gun nut’ and ‘hunting freak’ have been used by some to describe me. Fair enough. She is a hip-hop dance instructor. I am country or bluegrass music and definitely cannot dance. So the stage was set for one unique day in the woods.

By Chad D. Baus

Each summer, the world's finest civilian and military marksmen and women square off for five weeks of rifle and handgun competition in a variety of formats and events right here in the Buckeye State.

This year marks the 101st running of the National Matches, for which so many shooters have embarked on an annual pilgrimage to Camp Perry, Ohio, on the shores of Lake Erie near Port Clinton.

What thousands of others drive across country or fly around the world for, we are blessed as Ohioans to have literally right in our backyard.

If you enjoy the shooting sports to even the smallest degree, then there is simply no excuse for not making the short drive to the National Matches, whether you plan to go as a spectator, a volunteer, or a competitor.

Governor Ted Strickland and many current and former NFL players participated

COLUMBUS, OH – Governor Ted Strickland enjoyed a day in the field on Saturday, May 10, during the first-ever Governor’s Annual Turkey Hunt. The event, which took place in Muskingum and Coshocton counties, included current and former NFL players who partnered with nationally known hunting guides on an outing with 11 area youths.

The hunt dovetailed with the kickoff of Explore the Outdoors, a statewide effort to promote youth and outdoor recreation. The event also highlighted Ohio’s premier wild turkey hunting opportunities, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.

(Columbus, OH) - Midwest Retail Giant Meijer, Inc. has ended its promotion with the nation’s largest anti-hunting organization.

The leadership at Meijer, a Michigan-based regional chain of retail superstores, has responded to the concerns of the sportsman community and ended its partnership with the anti-hunting group, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), in an online pet photo contest.

Opportunities expand for deer hunters and fall turkey hunters

COLUMBUS, OH - September 1 will again kick off the state's fall hunting seasons - with the opening of the squirrel-hunting season that runs through January 31 - under regulations approved Wednesday by the Ohio Wildlife Council.

Fall turkey hunters will enjoy expanded opportunities. They will be able to hunt the entire season, from October 11 through November 30, with a shotgun, muzzleloading shotgun, bow or crossbow. This new rule adds 35 days to the previous season for fall turkey gun hunting. Nine additional northeast Ohio counties will also be open for fall turkey hunting, bringing the total to 46 counties statewide.

Deer hunters can again buy additional antlerless deer permits at reduced prices for hunting in an urban zone, participating in a controlled hunt, or hunting during the September 27 to November 30 portion of the archery season. Deer hunters with antlerless permits can hunt in Zone C until December 7. Cost of the antlerless deer permit remains at $15.

By Larry S. Moore

According to a Minneapolis Star-Tribune story, Dr. William Cornatzer, a Bismarck physician and hunter, alerted health officials after he conducted tests on venison using a CT scanner and found lead in 60 percent of 100 samples. The North Dakota Health Department confirmed the results on at least five samples of venison destined for food pantries and told food pantries in the state to throw out donated venison. Officials in Minnesota and Iowa followed with similar alerts, asking that venison in those states not be distributed.

This story is concerning, but the tone and purpose is a total outrage. Yes, as a hunter and someone who has donated venison to local food banks, I am outraged. There are so many ways this lead could have ended up throughout the meat. However, taking it to a national level is simply the anti-hunters (or anti-gunners since their behavior pattern is the same) using another unfortunate situation to attack hunting. This is another attempt at hysteria by animal rights groups who have not been able to ban lead or hunting in any other attempts and so are attacking this area.

By Jack Kiser

It's an increasingly rare event in our culture for a hunter or fisherman to experience or even see cultural images or reminders at all beneficial or in any way even inferring even a hint of positivity towards the American outdoors tradition.

The precipitous decline in sales nationwide of hunting and fishing licenses continues to fuel and propel the politically correct cultural armies of the popular media and public school systems that continue to regularly batter and tarnish the images of our outdoors hunting and fishing traditions.

Those who still cling to viewing such acknowledgments as ridiculous, a fabrication of a fading culture or the whining of the last of the gun owners, can quickly have their faux bewilderment skewered with one question:

When is the last time you remember an outdoorsman -- let's say a hunter portrayed in any TV sitcom, drama or documentary -- as anything other than a foaming-at-the-mouth idiot or a dangerous, lurking menace to anyone or anything around him?

Buckeye Firearms Association is pleased to announce passage of Senate Bill 209, which will, among other things, create mobility-impaired access lanes on various public hunting lands of the Ohio Division of Wildlife.

In late February, after accepting testimony from Buckeye Firearms Association's Bob Harsanje and Larry S. Moore, the House Finance & Appropriations Committee voted to amend HB473 into Senate Bill 209, an omnibus fiscal bill that already includes some other natural resources provisions. The amendment, proposed by State Rep. Peter Ujvagi (D), was supported by SB209's primary sponsor, Sen. John Carey (R) and by Dave Graham, Chief of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.

The bill also will allow mobility impaired, licensed individuals to hunt from such lanes with a special permit via electric-powered all-purpose vehicles or in a stationary road vehicle.

"Mobility impaired hunters deserve the same rights to enjoy their pastime as any other Ohioans," Ujvagi notes. "This plan will help clear some of the obstacles in their way."

Passage of this bill, which received unanimous support in both chambers of the Ohio legislature, was a long-time in coming.

By Larry S. Moore

The upland game rabbit season has been pretty tough on me this year. My oldest female Beagle, Lucky, is 14 and has not been able to hunt. She is just too slow in her old age. My male, Hank, has encountered some heart issues so I am not running him very much. He is 10 and I was really hoping for a couple more years in the field with him. Both dogs jump at the gates and bark to go with me. My wife says it is just pitiful to watch and listen to them whine as I leave. So I have taken just them on a couple of extra trips close to home. It wasn't about bagging any rabbits but about them getting out. I am not sure if it helped them or just made them feel worse when I left them home the next week. It did my soul good to see them hunting again. However, I missed them even more the next week.

What do the beagles have to do with disabled hunter access? It is about as close as I can come to imagining what it must be like for the impaired hunter wanting to get into the field. Access is limited unless there is private land to hunt. Special hunts offered by National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) Wheelin' Sportsmen or Safari Club International fill quickly, may be on dates that are not convenient or may require long drives to south-eastern Ohio. So the impaired hunter is left at home unable to enjoy the bounty and beauty of the Ohio outdoors.