A Pig in a Poke
I generated some response with my post about the anti-hunters’ comments over at www.monsterpig.com Many of these comments were beyond venomous - they were downright hateful. You can read more at the original post, here.
This story has divided even the hunting community. Arguments have evolved regarding the ethics of fenced “hunts” and game farms. People have questioned the wisdom in “bragging” (more or less) about shooting an animal, that many times. I’ve read bickering about the age of the shooter, and on and on.
Most interesting to read however, were discussions which focused on the honesty of these “hunters”. Most of us know by know that this “feral hog” was actually a giant, lumbering, former family pet sold to the game farm. Fred. Did Jamison Stone and/or his Dad know that they were shooting a pig that, for all intents and purposes, was tame? Maybe dad knew and the boy didn’t. Maybe they were both snookered by the operators of the game farm….
Like that wasn’t enough controversy, now there is suspicion that the photos were doctored. Now, whenever a picture of a “trophy” animal circulates the internet, its authenticity is questioned, and rightly so. Software like PhotoShop, and a few dishonest people have made people wary of believing what they see. I wasn’t surprised, from Day 1, that people were calling the photos fake. Oh, and the “trick” of positioning the hunter (or fisherman) on such a way to make the animal look bigger is so common that most of us hardly consider it dishonest these days. Today, though - I came across a website that claims to have evidence that these photos have been doctored - FAKES
That’s just great. So, what started out as a cool story about a kid shooting a big hog has turned into “Kid shoots pet pig 11 times with hand-cannon, inside a pen, and then doctors the photos”. Now, I don’t suspect that we will ever know the whole truth, but I know what this story looks like (now) to most non-hunters. Not even anti-hunters, just regular folks that don’t hunt. This story certainly didn’t do the hunting community any favors. What a shame.
