[Old and Reliable]

I have read and re-read all the posts here, and there isn't a man who contributed his opinions that I would not share a duck blind or a pheasant swale with for a day- no matter the gauge or make and model of weaponry used. Sportsmanship is a matter of principle and ethics, not arbitrary rules and regs- it is conscience working within us when no one else is watching our actions.

I seem to recall some treatise years ago on how using a smaller gauge shotgun was "more sporting" as it gave the birds we pursue (hopefully with good friends, both two and four legs included) a "chance"-- Huum. I think we all see either to kill cleanly or to miss, and hopefully not to cripple.

If the laws of a certain State allow a 8 bore for turkey, and a sportsman wants to expend the funds and practice to become proficient with such a weapon, that should be his right, any more than the late President Dwight Eisenhower shooting quail with a .410 bore. No hunter or shotgun enthusiast would suggest the reverse- turkeys (or waterfowl) with a .410 and bobwhite quail with a 8 (or 10) gauge-- Common sense in our selection of armament for the clean killing of the certain game we seek prevails-

But there is an underlying thread in such a discussion- I think of the outdoor writer Jim Zumbo and his ill-chosen terms for the M-16 clones some men enjoy using for hunting. If we, as a small niche group, and our brothers with LC Smith, AH Fox, LeFever, Ithaca etc-- interests- do NOT consider ALL legitimate gun owners and fellow shooters/hunters as having a common for- the ANTIS- we are doomed. It won't happen overnight, but I wonder what my now 6 year old Grandson's world for hunting and shooting might be like- 20 years from now-most likely I won't be around by then- who can say.

We need to 'agree to disagree' gentlemen, but in the end, all sit down and raise our glasses (make mine Bushmills or George Dickel please) to the men now gone who gave us such freedoms- Our Founding Fathers, Teddy Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, George Grinnell, James Audubon, George Bird Evans, Nash Buckingham, Captain Paul A. Curtis, Colonel Hal Sheldon, Ray P. Holland, Jack O'Connor, the list goes on- they all left us a great legacy, and we need to stand united with fellow gunners to insure that legacy will still stand for generations to come- IMO