Lots of "ideas" all over the place on this one....

It simply articulates how hard it is to manage for "all the people" and in my opinion how good of a job the DNR does when you take into account "all the people". It also articulates between the harvesters and the conservationists.

I saw HH got a mention in the input summary...

You got that right....Trying to please everyone is impossible. But overall, I agree that they do a good job.

They really came out of the woodwork.......coyotes were transplanted by the DNR?!....give me a brake....and to allow center fire rifles in the .243/308/30-06 etc....god, I'd hate to see what would be left of the herd, esp. on the F&W areas and public lands... how many more hunting accidents would occur ?? Indiana dosnt have the room for these calibers.....plus, the "air rifle" crap for deer...sheesh !! ..... The best thing the DNR has done for deer IS the OBR .... *and as for the baiting, is the DNR really that nuts to even consider it ?? The too many deer comments had me laughing.....and free licenses for welfare recipients ?? ... No bag limits on deer ??....LOL..... much I can agree on.... get guns out of the rut, shorten the gun seasons, open coyote year round....reduce antlerless tags in many area's, stop the late season antlerless in many counties...reduce urban to specific cities or towns not whole counties(Porter)....

Some great ideas and some where I was scratching my head and wondering how these people should ever be allowed to hunt let alone own weapons of any kind...

Did like the mushroom license one a lot as well...

But we need more "opportunity"..., lol..

Deer are easy.. management is in the hunter... more weapons don't mean squat!

Dont get me wrong, I still like my firearms...I am and always will be a bowhunter, but that has only helped me should I decide to gun hunt....I could just see a guy with a 10 rnd mag on a .308 on Kingsbury F&W.....LOL....the baiting idea really pisses me off.....The DNR is serious about using it in urban/"reduction" zones....lets just kill 'em all and be done with it.....

I guess I do sometimes question what it takes to simply make most hunters in the field sharpshooters instead of hunters. I think in many regards that is what the sport of deer hunting is turning into. It's not about the sport of hunting deer, but instead the activity of sharpshooting deer.

I don't know if it's about sharpshooting as much as it is wanting to shoot a more accurate firearm or bow.

I carried a smooth bore slug gun for years, then I switched to the more accurate rifled slug gun. It allowed more accuracy @ longer ranges.

When Indiana allowed the pcr, I embraced that change. I found them easier to shoot accurately and the cost of ammo was so much lower that I practiced more and became more proficient on the range and in the field.

Now, if more traditional rifle calibers are allowed like say .270s, I'll likely give that a try as I see that as a step up in accuracy.

It's the same reason most switched from longbows to compounds. Longer range and better accuracy in the hands of average hunters.

and thus the deer kill would rise again....Ive hunted Texas with my .270, killed deer to 275-325 yds with it(which is the extreme range with it)....the idea of the slug guns and MLs and the pcr's is safety and closer ranges, not 400 yd shots with a .308 or .300 win. ........I can make those, I do it with my 22-250 on woodchucks....I was a USMC Sniper, long range shots are not hard to do with the right firearm.. Now, if those calibers would be limited to single shots like the Ruger One or a Handi Rifle, you wouldnt have some guy rat tat tatting the wood/fields on a running deer with a flat top AR style....yea, I know, there are some that do it with slug guns...

I think the general issue though is guys want longer range guns to make it easier because it's really not about learning how to hunt and read the woods and animal but instead about pulling the trigger.

I totally agree ...... as is much in life now .... easier .... they dont have to work for their kill ....

A centerfire rifle tends more accurate than a pcr, just like a pcr tends to be more accurate than a rifled slug gun, just like a rifled slug gun tends to be more accurate than a smooth bore slug gun.

And as far as "rat tat tatting"...if we allow centerfire cartridges, perhaps the trade off for that is limited capacity.....


And as far as the "kills rising again"....that's why there is a thing called "bag limits"....

You could say the thing about scouting cameras that notify you in real time to your computer and/or smart phone or compound bows instead of longbows or traditional muzzleloaders versus inlines w/scopes.

Where do you draw the line and who decides where that line is?

JJas, I agree with your comment. I certainly don't know where the line is drawn. It is part of the continuous redefining of the term hunting. Do I think it demeans and somewhat cheapens the traditional and fundamental of what hunting was generally meant to be, yes. Do I think that the technology march is wrong, not really. But, if todays technology was available "back then", whenever that was, I think the hunters then would have used the technology. But, do I think a guy who targets a deer and harvests it with a stick bow has accomplished something much greater then a guy who harvests a targeted deer with a compound, crossbow, shotgun, rifle, etc, yes. Doesn't make either of them good or bad as individuals or hunters though.

It seems the DNR dosnt care about "bag limits" on deer, at least on antlerless....we can kill over 300 just by moving county to county, yea, I know no one has the time nor availability to do so, but under our regs is is possible, though not probable.....the capacity is why I mentioned the single shots.....plus, there are those who just cant control themselves when it comes to killing deer, that is why this State is in the shape it is in, with lower numbers and counties with lower kills in many locations..... I just picked up a new property lease in Wabash county...looking to the future....It was down over 515 deer from 2012 to 2013....1700/2012 to 1185/2013(EHD ?).....now that is a huge drop, but we have the place to ourselves and look to improve the land and we will not over hunt the place.

I don't disagree. I can totally appreciate a guy who hunts with a recurve or open sighted traditional muzzleloader and I do think it is more of an accomplishment.

I think the same thing about a guy who scouts without using game cameras. Especially the newer models that call your cell phone in real time.

But that doesn't mean using it is wrong. They are legal and as we all know...time and technology wait for no one.

Legal?. There tons of things legal.. ethical? Moral? I guess that now remains in the eye of the wanna be hunters

Let me take a guess where this thread is going :rolleyes:

Not going anywhere with me..I just wanted the "Opportunity" to voice my opinion!..

I'll hunt on.. old school.