Well we are almost at the end of 2015 and here is my summary of the year.
Personally I have had a great year and made a lot of new friends and learned a lot about an industry that I truly love.
I have had some amazing highs such as receiving my DSC2 at the beginning of the year and my first SWARO scope at the end of the year (thankyou to my lovely wife Dawn), I also started reviewing expensive and brilliant hunting products for Bushwear, Laserware , Thomas Jacks and John rotherey Wholesale (Bisley) giving me access to a lot of products that just are out my price range and normally I would only be able to look.
One thing though I have noticed is a few LOW points in our community such as the "land reform bill" in Scotland and terrorist attacks culminating in the EU asking for yet more European legislation in regards to Firearms and obviously the new licensing for airguns in Scotland (which in many regards I agree with), but, putting aside the politics that none of us can control there is one big LOW that the industry has not addressed and that is the division between us all.
From 2016 we will start to see some of the biggest changes that there has been in recent years in regards to the sports that we love within the UK and specially Scotland as well as the rest of Europe, however, during a point where the industry should stand together we have some major divisions still in place.
Personal political agendas are no place right now. I have always said that our biggest enemy is ourselves and the attitude we show when things don't go our own way is wrong, spitting the dummy out the pram never actually helps our way of life.
It is time that we all stood together but the problem is there are so many different ideas that every debate turns less and less healthy and there is already enough myths and lies in the industry. So no matter whether you are a Airgunner, Shotgunner, stalker, Plinker, landowner, pest controller, gamekeeper, Paid Syndicate member or just a follower of fieldsports in general it is actually time for a collective community supporting our own way of life no matter what method you use to hunt instead of the divisions between us. Even the organisations that are supposed to represent us are divided in their views and representation. It truly is sad to see.
On a personal note I have learned a lot from people already in the business and had a lot of support but there is still a lot of selfishness and jealousy, just for example, I offered out the odd night with me lamping with me for the craic and what did I receive in return comments such as "You should offer a wage" and "if you cant do your permissions by yourself I can take it off your hands" so I stopped offering in general. It is attitudes like that that spoil what we do as a community.
We now live in a world where the justification for hunting has very few defences and each year those defences become fewer and fewer. We live in a world where if we want to eat we got to the shop so the justification of hunting is really not there in the eyes of the majority of the population of this country and frankly we are a minority and division in our groups makes us even more isolated.
I am not asking for love and peace but a bit less division would be nice and most of all a little more manners.
Sorry for my thoughts of the day but I think it was relevant.
Personally I have had a great year and made a lot of new friends and learned a lot about an industry that I truly love.
I have had some amazing highs such as receiving my DSC2 at the beginning of the year and my first SWARO scope at the end of the year (thankyou to my lovely wife Dawn), I also started reviewing expensive and brilliant hunting products for Bushwear, Laserware , Thomas Jacks and John rotherey Wholesale (Bisley) giving me access to a lot of products that just are out my price range and normally I would only be able to look.
One thing though I have noticed is a few LOW points in our community such as the "land reform bill" in Scotland and terrorist attacks culminating in the EU asking for yet more European legislation in regards to Firearms and obviously the new licensing for airguns in Scotland (which in many regards I agree with), but, putting aside the politics that none of us can control there is one big LOW that the industry has not addressed and that is the division between us all.
From 2016 we will start to see some of the biggest changes that there has been in recent years in regards to the sports that we love within the UK and specially Scotland as well as the rest of Europe, however, during a point where the industry should stand together we have some major divisions still in place.
Personal political agendas are no place right now. I have always said that our biggest enemy is ourselves and the attitude we show when things don't go our own way is wrong, spitting the dummy out the pram never actually helps our way of life.
It is time that we all stood together but the problem is there are so many different ideas that every debate turns less and less healthy and there is already enough myths and lies in the industry. So no matter whether you are a Airgunner, Shotgunner, stalker, Plinker, landowner, pest controller, gamekeeper, Paid Syndicate member or just a follower of fieldsports in general it is actually time for a collective community supporting our own way of life no matter what method you use to hunt instead of the divisions between us. Even the organisations that are supposed to represent us are divided in their views and representation. It truly is sad to see.
On a personal note I have learned a lot from people already in the business and had a lot of support but there is still a lot of selfishness and jealousy, just for example, I offered out the odd night with me lamping with me for the craic and what did I receive in return comments such as "You should offer a wage" and "if you cant do your permissions by yourself I can take it off your hands" so I stopped offering in general. It is attitudes like that that spoil what we do as a community.
We now live in a world where the justification for hunting has very few defences and each year those defences become fewer and fewer. We live in a world where if we want to eat we got to the shop so the justification of hunting is really not there in the eyes of the majority of the population of this country and frankly we are a minority and division in our groups makes us even more isolated.
I am not asking for love and peace but a bit less division would be nice and most of all a little more manners.
Sorry for my thoughts of the day but I think it was relevant.
