Chris

Works well for me.

Oh, those animals get eaten... every last scrap of them... and I mean... every. last. scrap. I saw a bull elephant reduced down to steaks for 15 or 20 villages in the course of four hours. By the time they were done there was nothing left but a patch of red grass. The bones are reduced to bone meal to fertilize the gardens and even inedible bits like hooves (in the case of antelope) are saved... for gelatin I guess... it wasn't made clear. Everything is used. To be clear, the vast majority of my hunting is for food... but I do love, love, love a good African safari. I can understand folks aversion to it, but it is an adventure like nothing else in this world. When conducted ethically under fair chase conditions, the results are a positive net good for the locals, for conservation purposes and it provides a great vacation for me.

That is exactly my point Peace. Lions and other predators are not endangered by hunters, but by poachers and / or farmers who kill them to protect their livestock. When hunting is allowed and (according to my PH) 70% of the trophy fee (50k and up for a maned lion) goes to the locals then you can bet the locals will protect those animals from other farmers and poachers alike.    Also, lion hunting is massively regulated. Any reputable operation will only hunt older lions that are no longer breeding.   So, if hunting lions doesn't harm their breeding populations and in fact provides an economic incentive to expand and maintain their habitat... well I don't understand the objections. I can't accept an emotional argument that hunting these noble beasts is wrong. It's not, these hunters do more than anyone to conserve the lion population.   If you don't buy the article above, then look at what's happened to elephant populations. In countries like Namibia where they are hunted, the populations have grown and dramatically expanded. There is an economic incentive to let these terribly destructive animals live and flourish. Namibia welcomes hunters and it's wildlife prospers because of the money pouring in. Drive through the country side and you'll see game animals everywhere. Contrast this with countries like Kenya that banned all hunting. Now you can't find game in Kenya except in a few protected parks.    Again, this is counter intuitive, but it's a very straight forward proposition: Trophy hunting, conducted responsibly and in accordance with the law, fosters conservation. 

Ok, folks. Huddle up. If you want to save the lion from extinction you must allow them to be hunted. African tribals HATE lions with a deep and burning passion. Lions prey on cattle and cattle are wealth, status and food for these people. Without the economic incentive to keep them alive that is provided by hunting, the lion would quickly disappear from all but a few parks. It seems a touch counter intuitive, but lion hunters pour huge amounts of money into those communities providing an economic incentive to keep the lions around. Don't believe me? Maybe you'll take this guys opinion a little more seriously... he's the Director of Wildlife for Tanzania: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/18/opinion/saving-lions-by-killing-them.html?_r=0 Hunting and conservation go hand in hand.

Two of my favorites. In my mind, both are must reads for anyone who may face a combat situation.    On Combat by David Grossman (also On Killing by the same author) - If I can recommend only one book, this is it. From the book description: "On Combat looks at what happens to the human body under the stresses of deadly battle the impact on the nervous system, heart, breathing, visual and auditory perception, memory - then discusses new research findings as to what measures warriors can take to prevent such debilitations so they can stay in the fight, survive, and win."   Achilles in Vietnam by Jonathan Shay - This is my current read and it is utterly fascinating. The author looks at the root causes of PTSD in Vietnam vets by comparing and contrasting the soldiers experience with Homers Illiad. Specifically with the story of Achilles and his descent into beast like behavior and madness. 

.308. It'll drop any North American game and all but the biggest African game with the right bullet.

  The Chinese have been moving into African mining interests with a vengeance. It'll be interesting to see how they react to nationalization of their assets. I'm not very familiar w/ politics in the region though. Anyone know what the relationship between China and EFF is?

I travel in Africa regularly and I have to say that the racial tensions in SA were much worse than what I experienced in Namibia. The transition from white rule has not gone well. Don't believe me, look up the history of Rhodesia... now Zimbabwe. One of the biggest problems (as explained to me by both Boers as well as the tribal folks) is that Mandela and his crew focused heavily on education to bring the tribal population into the industrial age. The folks that came after him are more wrapped up in ideology (socialist revolution) and have ignored the educational aspects. Essentially you are looking at having a populace that has only existed at a pre-industrial level trying to operate an industrial and information based economy w/o the education needed to get up to speed. That is setting yourself up for failure. I really hope that SA doesn't go the way of Zimbabwe. Both the boers and the tribals are fascinating people w/ a warm and welcoming culture... they've just got a really serious hate on for each other.

BWAHAHAHAH! Un-Cancelling my subscription. So glad G&A stepped up.

These gentlemen express my thoughts in a more articulate manner than I am capable of:   http://lonelymachines.org/2013/11/04/the-metcalf-thing/   http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/11/robert-farago/guns-ammo-supports-gun-control/   And the brietbart article that puts it most succinctly: http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2013/11/05/Guns-Ammo-Editor-All-Constitutional-Rights-Need-Regulation-2nd-Amendment-Included   I'm not boycotting advertisers, but I am cancelling my subscription to G&A while explicitly citing the editorial as the reason. G&A can print anything they want, that's their right, but I won't purchase a publication that, to my eyes, is providing "ammo" for our opponents.

Yep. Cancelling my subscription. This guy is a quisling and needs to have his platform taken away from him.

Clever. I'm going to give that a try.

that's insane.

Good looking pup. Congrats.

Yup. Drunkards promise if ever I heard one.

Amazon has quite the selection as well. Not sure how the prices compare, but availability looks pretty good. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_n_0?rh=n%3A3375251%2Ck%3Aar+parts&keywords=ar+parts&ie=UTF8&qid=1383053997&rnid=2941120011

I'm well stocked from pre-panic so I'll jump on this bandwagon. Anyone in the Nashville area w/ a kid they want to take hunting and needs some .22, let me know and I'll hook you up.

They are moving some out west of Nashville. I think the weather has been keeping them from being too active during daylight hours though. I usually will see at least a doe w/ yearlings (and some w/ fawns) every time I go out. Haven't gotten any of them closer than 50 yards though. Might need to move my stand. Couple of young bucks are sniffing around but no sign of the big boys. That's ok though... rut will kick in before long and where the does are, the bucks will soon follow. 

I wouldn't pay that much for a cooler but the Yeti's are muuuuch better at keeping things colder for longer. I've seen Yeti's side by side w/ Coleman coolers on long trips and after a day or so all the ice in the Coleman had melted... The Yeti still had ice after five days. Worth the money? Not to me, but if you really want ice in your drink on a long excursion, they are hard to beat.

I've got one in my safe and my brother hunts with one all the time. Great gun.

Decent zombie movie... nothing new or great, but it didn't suck. It had NOTHING to do with the book, which if you like zombies is freaking awesome.

If you want something that doesn't scream tactical, I recommend the LL Bean Continental ruck sack. They've got a waxed cotton version that's in the 120 range but there's also an updated version made w/ nylon in the $60 range. I've used the waxed cotton version for years. It's been to Africa on safari multiple times and goes hunting with me every year. A really tough bag with enough room to hold everything I need. 

  Truth.

Good post. Well done.

An AR pistol you say.... hmmm. Don't have one of those yet. Need to do some research... Quick! To the internet!