Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children. Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance.”―Theodore Roosevelt, founder Boone and Crockett Club

The overwhelming majority of hunters truly care about and respect wildlife and the game animals and birds we hunt. The question is, where does this respect come from, and more importantly is this the image we are projecting?

For most hunters it was an early fascination and curiosity for wildlife in our youth that drove us to learn more, get close, and eventually take up the hunt.

We’ve all seen it—a group of hunters sitting around a table for a meal or afterward around a fire back at camp or maybe after opening morning in a local café, gathered at a deer check station or at the taxidermist. Mood is jovial and expectations high.

While all the buzz lately has been about public land access, let’s not overlook the undeniable reality that many of us will be seeking to obtain or maintain permission to hunt private land this fall. It’s simply a matter of logistics and percentages.

High-fence hunting is one of the most complex issues faced by our wildlife conservation community.

There is no question that as a small segment of society, hunters should stick together. There is enough outside pressures and criticism on hunting for hunters to be divided among ourselves. Hunters have a long history of sticking together, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for differences within our camp. But it also doesn’t mean that bad behavior should get a free pass.

The opinions as to the true origins of the term “the real McCoy” vary throughout history, but it is commonly held to mean “the real thing” or “the genuine article.”

Hunting is not for everyone, which means some people will oppose it. Anti-hunting sentiment is nothing new, nor are the attempts by some groups to end all hunting by smearing hunting in order to enlist more non-hunters to support their anti-hunting agenda. What is new is “anti-hunting” has become “anti-hunter.”

The term “sport hunting,” emerged at a time in history when our society had awoken to the plight of wildlife, and commercial market hunting was rightfully being rejected. Sport hunting was used to describe hunting for personal reasons and not for profit; a form of hunting with an honor code that defined the rules of engagement based on the quality of the hunt, not the quantity of game taken.…