It never fails to amaze me that there are those who call themselves fellow hunters that stoop so low as to steal another hunters property in the form of tree stands, ground blinds and the most often stolen item, trail cameras. Once again someone stole one of my trail cameras. This is the forth one I have lost over the past three years along with a brand new out of the box Kill Zone ground blind and two tree stands. This last camera was a brand new Cuddy Back Black Out that I paid $149.95 for. To add insult to injury, I also bought a Cuddy Back Lock Box to mount the camera to ensure it would not be tampered with or stolen. Well a crowbar of something was all it took to bend the shroud up so that a set of bolt cutters could be used on the lock. All they left on the tree was the empty lock box only because I am sure because they did not have a power drill to unscrew the lag bolts that held the box to the tree or they would have stolen that too. Actually I have not be able to get back to retrieve the box due to my working schedule and I really expect that I will find they came back and got that too.
Such actions by anyone are simply pathetic, let alone a crime. I am by no means the only one on this site who has fallen victim to having property stolen but once again adding insult to injury these items have not been on public ground but rather on private land with limited access. If anyone reading this post has even taken any property not belonging to you I hope karma bites you in the butt. Over my many years of hunting I have passed by hundreds of tree stands, blinds, and cameras left in the woods by other hunters and never once did the thought cross my mind to touch that hunter’s property. I have even heard stories of how some people justify taking the property of another by saying ”Someone took something of mind so I am taking something form someone else to get even.” How sad is that statement?
As a hunter education instructor for over 40 years I used to enjoy those times when we had formal classroom training. During those sessions I would always spend time trying my best to teach ethics to new hunters. Hopefully those students took those lessons to heart and did not fall prey to the “I’m just getting even” mentality. I guess I am just venting here but I hope that some thought provoking comments might just change someone’s mind and make them think twice before ripping another hunter’s personal property off. The cost is considerable but the principal is far more important. So I will step down off of my soap box and just say thanks to all of you who have passed my property or the property of other hunters and left it alone. I believe that the vast majority of hunters are good with good ethics and you are to be commended. To those who might not be so ethical, I hope one day you will see the error of your ways and think of how you are hurting you fellow hunters when to decide to steal their hard earned equipment.
Such actions by anyone are simply pathetic, let alone a crime. I am by no means the only one on this site who has fallen victim to having property stolen but once again adding insult to injury these items have not been on public ground but rather on private land with limited access. If anyone reading this post has even taken any property not belonging to you I hope karma bites you in the butt. Over my many years of hunting I have passed by hundreds of tree stands, blinds, and cameras left in the woods by other hunters and never once did the thought cross my mind to touch that hunter’s property. I have even heard stories of how some people justify taking the property of another by saying ”Someone took something of mind so I am taking something form someone else to get even.” How sad is that statement?
As a hunter education instructor for over 40 years I used to enjoy those times when we had formal classroom training. During those sessions I would always spend time trying my best to teach ethics to new hunters. Hopefully those students took those lessons to heart and did not fall prey to the “I’m just getting even” mentality. I guess I am just venting here but I hope that some thought provoking comments might just change someone’s mind and make them think twice before ripping another hunter’s personal property off. The cost is considerable but the principal is far more important. So I will step down off of my soap box and just say thanks to all of you who have passed my property or the property of other hunters and left it alone. I believe that the vast majority of hunters are good with good ethics and you are to be commended. To those who might not be so ethical, I hope one day you will see the error of your ways and think of how you are hurting you fellow hunters when to decide to steal their hard earned equipment.
