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As we have seen more strict lockdown procedures in recent days many states are not allowing nonresident hunting and fishing. Not only could this be bad for hunters and fisherman, this also trickles down to local economies being hit which include outfitters, guides, local hotels, restaurants and other tourism based businesses. Montana currently has a stay at home order but outdoor recreation is exempt. Outfitters are canceling spring hunting and fishing trips that are scheduled for the near future as they are classified as nonessential business. This is going to be a hard hit on the seasonal workers that rely on these trips to pay off their boats or other financed equipment. Because of the uncertainty, outfitters aren’t taking people fishing or hunting and clients are also canceling ahead of time. Luckily under the Covid stimulus signed by President Trump, a number of provisions are set to cover outfitters to bridge the financial gap via loans, while guides may claim unemployment.
Currently, the largest threat to the industry is uncertainty. This is all new territory so nobody knows what is really going to happen. Every outfitter is in limbo until restrictions are lifted. Unfortunately, May, June and July are the biggest months in the fishing industry and this revenue can’t be made up for later in the year. Another concern is if clients will have the resources to rebook trips even after restrictions are lifted. The owner/outfitter of Stillwater Anglers in Columbus, Montana says “The million dollar question is, for whatever you want to call normal is going to look like, when is that going to return?” Everyone is very hesitant to book trips for the summer.
However, cases of Covid have been slowing down the last couple days and people are becoming more stir crazy because most areas have not seen the doom and gloom effects that the mainstream media is trying to push. The number of deaths from Covid has also been uncovered as not real Covid deaths as well. As more and more fake news is being uncovered I do believe President Trump will lift restrictions and things will get going again. Let’s be real, how long can you have stay at home orders in place when largely, the effects of the virus are not being seen? Business and life must go on, and destroying the economy over Covid-19 is simply not worth it.
Wow why don’t you just come right out and say I’m a trump supporter. I’ve lost someone to covid-19 and I do place a higher value on human life than the economy! It may not be real where you live, but it’s real where I live. But then again maybe our President should just fire a few more people and that’ll make it all go away. Hunting and fishing is very important to me but it can wait if it means doing the SMART thing and saving a few more lives I guess you don’t watch the news and see how many tens of thousands of people that says killed but then again that’s right our President says it’s all fake news !
Without the economy you have no life!!
It’s a balance that needs to occur.
I would much rather be alive and poor than rich and dead and if you ask my friend that died he would agree.
Perfectly stated Paul.
It’s a lie, There is not choice. Fix the health problem or people will not spend. Grandma is not booking flights until she feels safe. Im not going to Disney or a big game. Its a distraction. No short cuts, no lies will fix it.
A loss cannot be replaced, that is a terrible thing and I’m sorry to hear that. I’m sorry for all who have.
However, your statement about what you’d rather be is short sighted and doesn’t even really make sense. Having an economy that hasn’t collapsed doesn’t mean being rich, I’m not sure how that even has a relative point. While Mike may have oversimplified, he’s also correct. I invite you to look at places that have a collapsed or even near collapsed economy; the disease and death that accompany is far worse than what COVID-19 has brought on.
Everyone is affected, just to different degrees and in different ways, and are dealing with it in different ways. Who someone votes for probably doesn’t have much bearing, so I’m not sure what that has to do with it.
Sorry for your loss. Sucks. Dan lives out west – different perspective – different impact from COVID-19 on sparsely populated states. It’s just an opinion piece though. All comments are entitled and welcomed. Here’s a good quote to consider: “It is a narrow mind which cannot look at a subject from various points of view.”
― George Eliot, Middlemarch
Shame on you Dan with your bullshit propaganda and conspiracy theories and your political article! Trump is the one who downplayed this whole thing in the beginning any way and now he’s the one telling us this is very serious and we will see a hundred thousands deaths! You don’t know shit how about you go and take a tour of the hospitals in New Jersey or the morgue in NYC and let us know about how these are all just made up deaths! Keep your political BS to yourself! Man I actually liked your stuff before this now I despise you!
Reading comprehension is apparently not your strong suit. But don’t let that get in the way of a good internet rant.
Your the one full of it. Covid has a lower mortality then the common flu. You are a sheep.
This entire article was written in poor taste… peoples lives are being lost daily, no matter what the count is, one is to many…….This article SHOULD BE REMOVED….
One is too many? I sure hope you don’t drive, drink, eat processed food, or handle fire arms. After all one is one too many….
I agree this crap should be taken down! How dare Eastmans get into a politically driven article!
Do you live in a bubble where no one dies? Covid kills less then 10% of the flu. You should do some research other then the news. Mayo, Stanford, or watch this.
https://youtu.be/lGC5sGdz4kg
Typical liberal/communist response is to silence free speech. Cancel culture snowflakes can not stand for opposing views. They don’t like what Dan said so he must be silenced. Exactly the way the leftist socialist communist countries do it. First amendment is backbone of America.
Good by eastmans and your political bull shit. This bowhunter is a paramedic in ny and is seeing first hand what this is costing people in lives, family and finances.
Canceling my subscription and unsubscribing.
Good bye James, You will be missed. NOT.
The “mainstream media” dig and “fake news” assertion is really pathetic. Quit being part of the problem and parroting political talking points. I’m a lifelong hunter but this head-in-the-sand mentality is why I stopped subscribing to Eastmans’.
Jordan, for a cancelled subscriber you sure picked up on this article quickly. ;-). Dan P. Thanks for the article, I agree 100%
I’m with Paul. People are dying. And you are wrong that the number of deaths and illnesses being attributed to Covad-19 are overestimated. Because of the inadequate testing, we really don’t know how widespread it is in society. I know 9 people here in Missoula that got Covad-19, one of whom is an emergency room doctor who almost died, and not one of them were tested because tests were not available. Of the 9, two were very sick and the others ranged from feeling pretty bad to minor symptoms. All caught it on a back country ski trip that had guides that were asymptomatic at the time.
So if you don’t trust the mainstream media, do you trust the CDC? Or are you going to cry “deep state?” Or are you just going to trust Donald Trump who has lied and cheated his whole life on everything from Trump University to his charity fraud which got him and his family barred from every running a charity again? Not to mention the thousands of small business people he has refused to pay for their services. Even some people on Fox News are coming around to the mismanagement, ineptitude and incompetence of the administration’s response to this crisis.
You are interested in protecting the outfitting and guiding businesses. So am I. That’s why we have to strictly adhere to what the health professional say and not what someone who only cares for himself and his re-election.
Who do you trust Nancy peehosie
Words of advice;”Keep religion and politics out of your articles.” You are going to lose business with this blog post!
Very disappointed with Eastman’s getting into politics so much, especially when you seem to always push the Fox News side of the story. (By the way, fox news alone will rot your brain). I used to subscribe to your magazine but not any more because you are into politics so much! Are you really so selfish to think this only affects you and your industry? You really think anybody likes it? You really don’t think we’re not all in this together? Hey, I got an idea, just blame it all on the wolves and bears, cows were here before them anyway right! Those dastardly critters created by God that seem to think they have a right to exist with us! I would suggest you just be thankful you get to hunt and fish for a living and stay out of politics. I’m sure you all at Eastman’s will get your annual trophies!
Great analysis, this had been blown quit out of proportion!
ANOTHER poor taste article….. One thing is for sure, you can always count on eastmans to say something stupid and post articles like this when peoples lives are being lost daily… I to, am an outfitter (fishing and hunting) and my income is gone until this over, but I will ALWAYS put peoples lives first. I will find a way to make ends meet until this is over…. glad I am not a subscriber… way to go eastmans, keep up the good work..LOL…what a joke….. stay safe people, we will all be back outdoors safely, soon.
What an absolute travesty of an article. Total rubbish. First rule of writing is stay away from the bottle. Current numbers are over 24,000 people dead. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/us-map and US has the highest infection rate in the world. This isn’t fake news, these are people that are dead. Not going home, not being with family, not having a wake of more than 10 people.
I work in public health, and myself and colleagues are on the front line and it sucks. COVID is a nasty disease for the people that have it, and for those hospitalized its even worse. Dying alone in a room with a tube down your throat while you say you last goodbyes to family via a cell phone or Ipad. Not made up either.
I live for hunting and have been blessed to hunt out west, in Canada and across the ocean. Its is part of my DNA and something I look forward to every season. To see such an article written in something I enjoy reading as an escape is depressing. To think such an absolute moronic rant made it past the editor shows day drinking is alive and well at Eastman’s.
Perhaps the author would care to step up and volunteer at a hospital, work in a grocery store, change sheets in a nursing home, or transport sick patients.Promise you the view would be a whole lot different. Damn easy to sit behind a key board and type about something while living in a bubble. Perhaps getting news for information as opposed to affirmation is needed.
I’ll suck it up, social distance, do my job, and do what is asked of me a citizen of my country to help and heal those that are sick. If I did get covid, I would do what I have to not share it with others in my home state, with my hunting buddies, or in the small towns I visit every fall in Wyoming.
Apologies for the rant.
I just read Dan Pickar’s article regarding the impact on the Hunting/Guiding industry by the COVID-19 shutdown orders. I thought it was a thoughtful and well balanced article addressing the stated topic – the impact on the Hunting industry. I was surprised by the number of BLOG comments which responded to a couple of sentences (or a single name) in the article as if it was the total focus article – which it clearly wasn’t. Rereading the article I don’t see a single sentence which can be pointed as factually inaccurate. I appreciate the various articles addressing issues and concerns within the Hunting industry whether they address issues of predation, impacts of special interest groups interfering with science driven Fish and Wildlife policies, repercussions of changes to hunting draw regulations or other insights and perspectives. Thank you and please keep up the good work and the good fight advocating for this uniquely American activity of Public Land Hunting.
Dan, you really don’t get it, do you. Stick to hunting and skip the support of the Fox news sound bites. It’s this sort of commentary that aids the anti hunting community and based on the comments is hitting your readers the wrong way. Eastman, quit the sensationalism and stick to the facts, pretty sad piece of writing.
Dan,
I would suggest you focus on what you do best not turning this forum into a political choice. Let’s all focus on what we have in common. The love of the outdoors and hunting.
Wow do we have a bunch of lib hunters making this sound political? I read and re-read the article and didn’t see anything wrong with it. Sure, people are dying from the coronavirus, but a lot of people die every year from the flu. 48,000 die every year from suicide alone. Put this all in perspective and it’s not nearly as bad as a lot of people have made it out to be. They’re now saying the death rate is well under 1%, and could be far lower if the people with antibodies who were asymptomatic are counted. I volunteered for the NIH testing of people who have not tested positive for Covid-19 but haven’t heard a thing back. The good news in the article is that maybe I can actually hunt Colorado OTC elk this year without thousands of nonresident hunters chasing the elk into the wilderness backcountry and onto private land, and maybe I can even find a camping spot now. And maybe I can even draw a nonresident tag somewhere. COVID-19 will pass, and everything will get back to normal. Sorry for anyone who’s lost someone to this disease.
Your right – A ton of Libby’s – Wow!
Would love to see the libs stay in their states instead of traveling all over the other states doing whatever it is, they do.
Dan’s article was his opinion- his view point. He’s entitled to that just like you are.
Why don’t you libs focus your anger where it’s due- China.
Dan, what exactly do see as “fake news” in all this? I live near a big city. People are dying who don’t even know how they were infected. You want them to bring that to you?
The only FAKE NEWS is the crap we hear each night from the Rose Garden about how well the response to the pandemic is going. I live to hunt and fish, and the biggest threat to access unpolluted, un-mined, un-drilled public land for everyone is the regime that is running this country. Wake up folks, and stop watching FOX (fake) News. It makes you your own worst enemy.
Terrible article Dan. Tough to see you are this uneducated. Sad.
What a ridiculous article. 1. Cases are not going down. 2. Mainstream media is the real media. 3. Many who died at home had the virus. Cannot tell because there is not enough testing 4. Trump cannot lift the restrictions, (QUIT WATCHING FOX) 5. The effects of the virus are seen every day in DEATHS. 6.Life must go on, if business is to go on. I’ll never watch a Pickar article again
Mainstream media is the real media? Yeah, that’s the problem.
“…he (Trump) could actually control exactly what people think – and that is our job.” – MSNBC anchor Mika Brzezinski
Dan, while I sympathize with everyone in the outdoor industry, as my November elk hunting trip is at risk for cancellation as well, I am disappointed in your comment about false Covid-19 deaths claims. No doubt some deaths attributed to Covid-19 have been misdiagnosed. But far more deaths have not been attributed to Covid-19, that should have been, because testing did not occur or autopsies not performed (New York in particular).
Lastly, neither Donald Trump or our Governor’s should open up hunting and fishing areas too soon in fear that if done prematurely, a second, third or fourth wave of this virus could return. That could completely wipe out the fishing and hunting industry for good.
This was a decent article until the last paragraph. I have wondered numerous times what this will do to my fall plans and have even changed my application strategy because of it. Yes, I am one of the lucky ones that lives in a less populated area of the country so I can worry about my fall hunting plans because this disease has not hit close to home yet. I was interested to get someone else’s opinion on the topic.
This article ended with a political rant making it very clear what side of the political aisle the author sits on. I am not sure how you can claim that this pandemic is made up. 95% of the country is on lock down and cases are still increasing.
Love the hunting stories but i can do without your political propaganda. Keep the politics out or your articles.
A very well written article Dan. With great respect for the COVID-19 I honestly don’t think people and local governments are taking this seriously in the West. Seeing my local WallyMart in Helena attests to this. The place stays packed. A trip up into the Elkhorns this weekend and we couldn’t see the sign of another soul. The government needs to open up the outdoor industry- and continue practicing social distancing. That may mean that clients no longer fish packed in a drift boat. They may have to take their rental car and follow the guide to a wade fishing spot. Same for a spring bear hunt. Yes, this is all new to everyone, but life will have to go on. Keeping the government shut down may have a greater impact on life than opening it. Be smart, stay healthy.
When at least 1/2 of the people watch real news and don’t buy into the propaganda, they are afraid to go out. It’s pretty common knowledge that until we feel safe we are not flying or going to eat or a sporting event. I really hoped you Trump heads new the bullshit was bullshit. The leadership blames the media to stay in power and be unchecked. It’s easy to lie to rural old white people about gays, Mexicans, blacks, and the rich, but when grandma and aunt Mary die, its hard to keep the lies going. Turn FOX off, in fact, try Russian being shut down, China, Europe, Asia. The whole world agrees. Use your google machine and look at pictures if you can’t read. I don’t want this political shit when I hear it all the time. Thanks for taking the fun out of hunting and a magazine I loved until I read this shit. I knew right away when it said “signed by Trumps.” Gullible red America should not be in a leadership role..
Yeah -your libtard leaders do such a great job! Wake up!
Right on Eastman’s.
Looks like the libs got together to attack Eastman’s. Carry on Dan
There’s really no good options here. No matter how things go, many folks are going to suffer. Simply in unchartered waters. Not preaching gloom & doom, just the reality of uncertainty. I would however caution anyone about rural vs metropolitan stereotypes on this disease. Iowa, where I live, isn’t quite the west, but we are rural and sparsely populated. This thing must spread fast and furious: a small town 90min south of here had an explosive outbreak at a meat processing plant. Its real. Its not fake news. In a matter of a few days, its inching up to one to be one of worst hit spots in the state. Let’s hope effective treatments emerge, smarter ideas on protecting high risk folks, patience, and sensibility prevails.
Mr. Pickar,
I support Eastmans’s and I your tremendous hunting capabilities. However, you sir, are 100% out of your element on this. I really don’t care what your politics are and neither do other readers. It would be one thing if you were a “someone” in the political arena… but, as you are well aware, you’re not much different than anyone else in that while you can hunt like a champ your political view points are limp and lacking tact especially when other’s loved ones and friends of mine in harms way as first responders are seeing people die. I’ve had to close my business since 3/16 as a result of this “fake news” you spouting off about… can you guarantee that I won’t contract the virus and then subsequently infect potentially hundreds of others or my family? No, you can’t. Please keep your articles to what you know my young friend… hunting.
Regards,
Erik DeRoche
Hi Mr DeRoche,
I will address you because I can tell you have some class and are a professional. I base my opinion on FACTS. I watch mainstream media, independent media groups and do my own studying before forming an opinion. So here we go! Did you know that more than 122,000 people die a year in NY? Thats 336 a day on average. 45,000 from heart disease, 34,000 from cancer and so on. Thats from the CDC in 2017. There’s some days in NY its been higher because of covid but still the point is the loss of life in NYC is tremendous every year. They’ve published now they are counting EVERY death, anywhere, in hospitals as covid deaths, even if they aren’t testing the deceased. The number can’t NOT be inflated with that going on. I would also like to point out Sweden. No shutting down the economy, no stay at home orders, they believe in herd immunity. Seems to be working, their death rate is in the middle of the pack for Europe. One day Dr. Fauci says there’ll be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from covid-19, the next day he says 60,000 tops.
In addition, I read today that the overall death rate will be 1% because here in the states we are testing more than any other country and exposing that 40% of people are asymptomatic. You’re more likely to die from heart disease and from cancer than covid alone and covid has similar odds to dying of the flu. Do I have sympathy for families of people that died? ABSOLUTELY. Whether its from covid because of heart disease or cancer or diabetes or hypertension or any reason!
Do we have a pandemic on our hands? Heck yeah. Where was this repsonse with H1N1 in 2009? There wasn’t one! They is a lot of fake news out there but also some real news. But the one thing I don’t rely on to become educated is the mainstream media.
Good luck and good hunting this fall,
Dan
Well said dan!
Dan, you are absolutely correct on all your points. I could even amplify on some, if you will permit me. The “over-estimation” of the covid19 mortality rate you refer to was confirmed when Dr. Birx admitted that when someone dies “WITH” covid19, their death is tallied under the column of having died BECAUSE OF covid19. I heard the audio clip replayed on Rush Limbaugh’s radio program. Now, I’m pretty sure (I HOPE!) that if somebody dies of some acute condition such as a car crash where they bled out in 5 minutes, that IF they are determined to test positive for covid, that the “cause of death” will still be reported as “Car crash fatality,” but what if the “underlying condition” is advanced lung cancer, and the patient has been told that they had 3 months to live, but “because” they tested positive for covid, their death is tallied under the covid column? Who’s to say they would have actually lived another 90 days (plus or minus 1 day)? Maybe their other complications would have caused them to die when they did anyway, and JUST MAYBE covid did not advance their departure date after all. If a doctor gives you 90 days to live, that is just an estimate, its not a guarantee of another 90 days, with the possibility of their survivors suing for malpractice if you only live another 88 days! Here is another point: I’ve heard on the radio several times now that if a hospital reports an admission for a covid-positive patient, they get reimbursed 13,000 for expenses, but if a patient dies because of covid (or is only “with” covid) they get reimbursed $39,000! Now, if you are a hospital administrator, well, as the old saying goes, “follow the money.” My second point: The covid19 mortality rate is not like a mathematical constant (like “pi”) that you can look up in a textbook. It is a ratio that is in the form m=d/p, where “d” is the deaths DUE TO covid (not just “with” covid), and “p” is the population of infected persons. I just finished outlining the problems with statistical sampling bias in the measured determination of “d” – biased high due to inclusion of all deaths “with” covid and not necessarily “due to” covid (at least, primarily) . Now, as for “p” – well you pointed out yourself that our population has not exactly been sampled completely (there are 330 million of us in this country). The more antibody tests that are being conducted now show that the actual number of people who have been infected (and subsequently recovered without even knowing they were infected with covid, but just thought they had a bad cold of some kind), is MUCH higher than previously thought. Some studies have shown a higher prior infection in the population by a factor of between 50-85! That means the “p” parameter (the denominator) should be at least a factor of 50 higher. This alone would drive the “m” parameter (the mortality rate) down to the common annual flu (which is about 0.1%, with maybe 20-30% fluctuation year-by-year). Finally, yes, old age and “underlying conditions” can cause the mortality rate to be much higher, but these same factors can “push people over the edge” if they suddenly get the flu or pneumonia, in addition to their other “prior conditions.” Much discussion has been had with regard to Fauci and Birx’s “models” also. What is a “model?” Its a differential equation (or set of coupled differential equations) intended to behave in a way similar to some physical phenomenon in order to make predictions of future behavior. My field is Nuclear Engineering (PhD, UW, ’96) and I did my dissertation in modeling severe reactor transients/accidents. I’m not familiar with epidemiological dynamics, but I assume it must be in the form of net growth rate = infection rate – recover rate, with a lot of detail going into spatial transport (like people traveling), random-walk-like spread (modeled as diffusion), etc. The total “death toll” they talk about would then be the area under the predicted curve. My point is that some things can be modeled with more certainty than others. For example, astronomical models can predict what the night sky will look like (positions of all the planets) 10,000 years into the future, but weather forecasting is never accurate beyond about 2 weeks or so. Why? The technical answer is that planetary motion is not a “chaotic system” but weather is. It has to do with a lot of variables, not just physical (initial and boundary conditions), but also the spatial mesh and time steps used. What are they actual terms in the model, and how can their fidelity to reality be proven (that is, what is the validation for the model). Lastly, what are the coefficients that go into the model, and how are they justified? I assume the “R-nought” value being discussed (which is the rate of infection, or in other words, each infected person infects how many others in the chain?) is a direct input to the model. They say that R-nought for the common cold is around 2-3, but 4-5 for covid19 (and the measles is 18! – yes indeed, very contagious!). We, the People of this country have justifiable suspicion that our government’s reaction to this pandemic is fraught with uncertainty, and fear prevails where there is uncertainty.
I’ve never heard so many intolerant outdoorsmen then in several of the responses above. Apparently the same folks who:
a) think of themselves as being more educated than the next guy (prideful vs. humble).
b) believe mainstream media is wholly unbiased (hint: its not just the news outlet you disagree with that can be biased)
c) are from the “city” and feel the need to tell everyone that and what you know.
d) all of the above.
I especially disagree with the responders here who misrepresented Dan Pickar’s words and decided to make personal derogatory attacks on him (and Eastmans) in attempt to belittle him. I welcome respectful difference of opinions and the discussion of viewpoints in my hunting camp, but that type of close-minded hateful attitude would get you the boot.
I am an emergency physician (and outdoorsman) on the frontlines of this fight. Covid-19 is not some propaganda, or some ‘fake news’, made up by the liberal media. This is absolutely real life s- -t, going on in most of the country. If you don’t believe it, I’ll happily show you what it looks like. If you think it can’t happen in your neck of the woods – literally – you are wrong. And if it happens, your neck of the woods will be ill-prepared to handle it, unfortunately. Think of all your neighbors, however spread out you may be, trying to use the same hospital in an epidemic – the hospital simply won’t have the resources to help everyone. I love to hunt and fish as much as anyone reading this reply, but I can tell you, just as sure as the sun coming up in the east and setting in the west, this pandemic is the real thing. I’m looking at scheduling an elk-hunting trip in CO, but there are so many variables in this pandemic for my line of work, I’m not sure I’ll be able to.
After reading the article a second time I am reminded of a quote from Mark Twain
“It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt”
Amen brother
Very irresponsible article. Tens of thousands of people are dying and many more will die needlessly if restrictions are lifted willinilly. Our country doesn’t need more political rhetoric like this article. We need adequate testing neccesary to strategically lift restrictions and a vaccine to allow us to get back to somthing that resembles normal. You lost me Eastmans…shame on you for pushing conspiracy theories that are and will continue to kill Americans.
You live in a bubble in WY and you better be careful what you wish for. you live in a state with the lowest population. You don’t need what is happening here in NY to come to your state. And it will if we don’t stop this first. I live In Rochester NY and even with social distancing the rate of infection has stayed the same for over a week and that is around 45 to 50 new cases a day 57 dead. So I don’t see anytime soon going back to normal. Better Broaden where you get your news Information from there is real tragedy out there. and everything is not a conspiracy to get Donald Trump out of office. But he is only worried about himself he doesn’t show concern for the people who are dying. Have you been watching him on these briefings. To put it in Donald Trump speak SAD…….. VERY SAD……
You’ve done it again, more crap from Eastman’s. I’ve always enjoyed watching Dan’s hunting, but he lost a lot of credit here. I used to be a magazine subscriber, lost me due to poor editing, bullshit opinion pieces, and serious errors in the MRS. If this kind of garbage keeps getting published you will eventually go out of business. Sorry to see a publication that once was the hunting authority in western big-game hunting go to the bottom of the barrel. What does Mike think of all this? To clarify, I am not a lib from the east-coast, I am a Wyoming native and professional guide for several outfitters in western Wyoming. Good luck Eastman’s!
Well put James. They lost me for the same reasons!
Disappointing but not surprising if you’ve been paying attention to the Eastmans over the last few years. Once considered hunting gods of public land…until social media came along and they opened their mouths. Their posts, articles and videos on social media and their own lame and repetitive podcast has sadly revealed a lot about them and it’s not flattering. Shocking to hear them and their guests denigrate and label people who offer different opinions and ideas. Stuck in the 1950’s time has passed them by and they are way out of their depth.
Thanks for the insight Dan. No problem with your thoughts in my world but it seems that some readers are struck with a bad case of TDS.
These comments are a more interesting read than the article is. -G
I agree with Guy on the comments about the article. Interesting stuff!
Dan & Guy to Wit:
“To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead”. Thomas Paine
Sadly-as many in this thread make plain-the biggest threat to the Cultural Tradition of Hunting is ‘the enemy within’…
Dan, please educate yourself on the factual and scientific data!
We have.
O P.O. See my response above to Mr. DeRoche
What a great read Dan. Do I think there is a pandemic. Yes. Do I think people are dying yes. Do I get my information from a news source. Hell NO! I get if from doctors who are personal friends of mine, from nurses who are on the frontline. From fireman and EMT’s. I really don’t see the point in thrashing Eastman’s. Sadly and unfortunately we aren’t ALL guides or outfitters. This is more than just a blog written about outfitters losing a livelihood or people loosing lives. What I’m SEEING is people taking personal shots at an industry leader in hunting that does it old school?! That writes from their heart and is passionate about being on the forefront of supporting hunting, fare chase, guides, Do It Yourself. Since when it is bourgeois to support an administration that is supporting all small businesses. Why is Dan a bad guy for thinking that 50 states are being put on the same level, when clearly western states are NOT at as much risk as highly populated areas and states? It’s common sense people!! The media has absolutely twisted this to create fear! Who runs the media???? Mmmmm. The Liberal elite in this country. Anti-gun, Anti-Hunting, Pro Wolf, Pro Grizzly, Pro Greater Yellowstone Coalition and 100 other groups. Wake up people. Fred Bear said it best, “IF YOU ARE NOT WORKING TO PROTECT HUNTING, THEN YOU ARE WORKING TO DESETROY IT!!!!!” I really don’t see Trump trying to destroy a multi-billion dollar industry I see him try to save it. With that I will end with this. “IT IS NO COICIDENCE THAT THE AMERICAN HUNTER IS THE MOST PATRIOTIC OF ALL OUT CITIZENS. WHO CARES MORE FOR THIS LAND’S BEAUTIES THAN HE?” STOP BEING PETTY. COME TOGETHER AND SUPPORT THE CAUSE. HUNTING!!
Bravo Sheepdog, BRAVO !!!
I have truly never seen or heard such a bunch of pussies that claim to be men, hunters, outdoorsmen and protectors. I’m glad that you won’t be sharing a fox hole with me to protect this great nation. The majority of you are afraid of a virus that will kill less than 1% of the population. Imagine the men who made this country great and have their lives in WWII where 99% of the entire first wave of the front line were killed, 97% of the 2nd, and 75% of the 3rd. Thousands of brave warriors stood up to a tyrannical government so your your whinney little pussy ass can crawl under the porch or under your wife’s skirt and seek refuge. You sacrifice your liberties your grandfather fought so hard for because you are a coward.
Grow a set balls, stand up for your rights, protect your loved ones, and be smart about this situation, but quit being a pussy.
Dan, and now with Guy backing you up above, you two could not be further from the reality of this pandemic. Just a few short months in and now 33,000 plus deaths in just the U.S. and you just have to allow people to get back together. A few more weeks of wise social distancing and mass testing of people to see who is infected and spreading the virus might save some of the hunters and their families you want to court or see getting back to work. Did you not notice right next door in S. Dakota they just had 518 infected and 126 more people connected to them infected with Covid-19 at a single pork plant. Wham Bam, 644 human lives smacked at one business.You think this is just a bad case of the common flu worldwide? Do you think this is just FAKE NEWS? If this contagious virus swept through your business and your families or your readers and their families maybe many would rethink the situation. We’re not Repubs and Dems out here, we’re all humans. Eastman’s should never venture into politics and religion (there is absolutely no reason to ever piss off 50% of your readers) and stick to what you know best, the hunting business. Pull up your ponies for a bit boys, business will come back quickly when there is a handle on this deadly contagious disease.
Lives matter more than dollars! Or at least they should!
I love how all the people who have offered a different opinion from Dan’s are met with angry name calling. I disagree with Dan so I must be a pussy, unpatriotic, pro wolf, liberal, pro grizzly, anti-hunter, a coward. I’m none of these! Congrats…the divide sweeping the country has now infected the hunting community. I (a fanatical mule deer bow hunter) no longer feel welcome at Eastmans. Is that your new business model? A political platform for the aggrieved and all others be damned? Sound familiar? Get out of politics, stop foaming at the mouth, cut the foul language on your podcasts, stop denigrating and name calling those who disagree. Get back to your roots or face unsubscribe and unfollow, how’s that for a business model!
You can’t fix stupid unfortunately. We unfortunately have allot of stupid and ignorant people in this country where only their feelings and thoughts matter. Dan is correct this country is being destroyed by the demwits and socialist liberals and their propaganda. Yes people are dying because liberals own the big pharma and charging people extreme costs for their meds. The taxes are constantly being raised to fill the demwits coffers as the elderly lose their homes, health and livelihoods. Liberals want open borders so more disease and drugs can come into this country for free. Free healthcare housing and all the other free shit the demwits want to give them for a vote. These illegals kill what they want to eat…to feed their own. They but no licenses or tags. They pay no fines for poaching they just move to their next hunting and fishing area. Talk about a travesty. Drugs and alcohol kill far more but is legal in almost all states. Medicine price gouging is also legal killer. Morons leaders on the east coast were the ones that said no worry business as usual. They never took the step to close their areas down quick enough so they lost some souls and trying to blame everyone else for their lack of intelligence. You China loving liberal demwit pukes got more issues coming and they to will eventually have you working in their wet markets. Those that that do not own land should have no voice. Mother fucking wolves just killed something they are howling. Day after day i watch the elk herd disappear to a city dwelling idiots choice to bring a 160lb fucking killing machine into the eco. If you don’t like what happens in a shithole city like NY go live somewhere else. You yourself is the only person you should judge. You are not god and pretty sure most from this blog will be going that way in the first place by their comments. It is so sad I lost a grandfather his brothers, my dad his brother and my brother in wars to protect some of you idiots. Stupid is as stupid does. Stay the fuck off my mountain!
Wow, Mike, you are right. There’s a lot of snarling folks above, who with every little perceived slight, resort to name calling. “Pussy”, “socialist liberal”, “coward”, and the list goes on…just because of a difference in opinion. As I said above, anyone who thinks Covid-19 isn’t coming to their mountaintop is unfortunately wrong. And when it does, it ain’t gonna be pretty. I live in, and work in, a rural region of the Midwest as an emergency physician. I was also in the Marine Corps, so I don’t need anyone lecturing me about being a pussy or a coward. I’m on the frontlines with this virus, with very little PPE to protect me, my fellow professionals, or my family. The virus doesn’t care about state borders, elites, conservatives, or anything else. All it desires is a warm body, and anyone, anywhere will do just fine. Unfortunately, it exacts its’ greatest toll on the elderly, who are more likely to live in rural areas, and tend to have, because of age, more health issues. Add to that that inadequate health infrastructure (now/few ICU beds, no/few ventilators) in rural hospitals, and the picture gets pretty ugly pretty quickly. I’m hoping for everyones’ safety, but good god, stop the ugly f- – -ing name-calling. Just remember…there are damn ugly libs AND conservatives, just as there are good libs and good conservatives. I’ve seen and cared for both types from both camps. Ugly people are ugly people. It has nothing to do with politics. Period.
Reading everything from Dan’s post to all of the comments and replies has been the most entertaining thing I’ve read in years and I read everything outdoor I can get my hands on. Some of the comments made me laugh out loud hysterically while I’m sure it wasn’t the writer’s intent. Other comments made me sad as I never had any idea that there is so much division amongst hunters and outdoors people. Well, I’ll not jump into the fire other than to say good luck everybody.
WOW, this has become an entire s&^t show now has’nt it. While we do live in a republic and free country, anyone can put out an opinion piece, and anyone can comment as to the relevance of whatever, BUT that doesnt mean they should. Some should stick to what they know and shut the hell up about stuff that has not effected them or have experienced first hand. But hey, this is the internet, and everyone has to express their opinion. Opinions are like butt holes, everyone has one, and butt holes have opinions. My opinion for the day, is the writer of this article sure learned a valuable lesson today.
Wow ! Most robust response on this blog ever ! Polarizing to some. Interesting to me that those engrossed in natural pursuits are biased against such a natural occurrence. Not the first time not the last biology will impact the human race. Persons complain about global warming – human caused, pollution human caused, over crowded hunting units with no chance of drawing tags, urban sprawl, massively uncontrolled immigration etc etc. Our Mother Nature / Earth tries to solve all these problems and she faces resistance when she jams a perfect solution down our throat ! You are and your massive overpopulation are the ill, as she speaks thru us our perfect Mother Earth.
A 1/3 reduction in whiteman means more jobs, less pollution, overcrowding, and a 100% solution to all these problems that are ALL due to massive human density ! Is 4 billion humans enough how about 20 billion to what end.
Embrace it, accept it and appreciate it, she’s trying to control carrying capacity you idiot ! She’s trying to make a difference and help herself ! You took our land gave us diseased blankets but no one cared about that infection !
Great article. I just became a subscriber to Eastman’s.
As a small business owner, I get your article Dan. I’ve spent many sleepless nights for the past month worried about my business, my customers, my employees and their families, and my family. Completely shutting down the economy has and is having repercussions. Guides, motel owners, fly-shops, outfitters, cooks, maids, mom and pop stores, etc. are hurting. Now throw oil & gas companies filing bankruptcy and we may be witnessing the complete destruction of small town USA. The livelihood of many small western communities are being crushed before our eyes. This is real, people’s lives are being crushed physically and financially. I didn’t take away any lack of sensitivity to people who have died from Covid-19. I took this as your perspective based on what you’re experiencing and believe is the right thing to do, which is also real. God bless us all to get through this.
I am writing this and then unsubscribing. I enjoy reading and watching quality hunting articles, shows, etc. I get enough political BS in all other aspects of life I do not need it in my outdoor leisure reading/watching unless it is fighting for conservation, wild places, etc. This article is irresponsible, tasteless, and political. It minimizes the sacrifices of so many small businesses and health care workers. If you are looking for a quality replacement for information on public land hunting and great information about the outdoors move over to Randy Newburg’s various platforms. Eastman’s should apologize for this article and admit 10 minutes of internet research is not adequate to write such an irresponsible article. I do not know what the answer is but give me 10 minutes and I will be back…now how do I unsubscribe.