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Jo6pak · February 19, 2012, 12:41 PM

I find it amusing that threads like these always devolve into, "I killed a charging rhino with a .17HMR" type of stories. OK, I've seen my great uncle dispatch 400 pound pigs with a single shot from his .22 revolver, but he could walk up behind them and put a bullet directly into the brainstem. But this is more clsely related to turning off a light switch than it is to hunting.

It's not about what has been done, it's about using the correct tool for the job. I can use a butterknife to tighten a loose screw or a crescent wrench to hammer a nail, but is it the proper tool for the job?

Yes, in the stone age, bison were killed with sharpened sticks. But in the stone age no one cared if the animal was killed humanely, they only cared about the meat on the spit. WE, on the other hand, can go to a supermarket and buy our protein, thus we must be held to an ethical standard when hunting. That standard is to use the best possible way to kill an animal quickly and humanely.
If you need many caveats in defending ones choice for caliber/gun combinations, (ie. "If the range is kept short", "If the shots are precisely placed", etc.). Then maybe you should rethinkk your choices.

There will be many opinions on this subject, but it always comes back to using the proper tool for the job.

February 19, 2012, 12:41 PM	#42
Jo6pak Senior Member Join Date: August 5, 2010 Location: West Coast...of WI Posts: 1,663	I find it amusing that threads like these always devolve into, "I killed a charging rhino with a .17HMR" type of stories. OK, I've seen my great uncle dispatch 400 pound pigs with a single shot from his .22 revolver, but he could walk up behind them and put a bullet directly into the brainstem. But this is more clsely related to turning off a light switch than it is to hunting. It's not about what has been done, it's about using the correct tool for the job. I can use a butterknife to tighten a loose screw or a crescent wrench to hammer a nail, but is it the proper tool for the job? Yes, in the stone age, bison were killed with sharpened sticks. But in the stone age no one cared if the animal was killed humanely, they only cared about the meat on the spit. WE, on the other hand, can go to a supermarket and buy our protein, thus we must be held to an ethical standard when hunting. That standard is to use the best possible way to kill an animal quickly and humanely. If you need many caveats in defending ones choice for caliber/gun combinations, (ie. "If the range is kept short", "If the shots are precisely placed", etc.). Then maybe you should rethinkk your choices. There will be many opinions on this subject, but it always comes back to using the proper tool for the job. __________________ NRA Life Member, SAF contributor. Last edited by Jo6pak; February 19, 2012 at 01:14 PM.