Dignity And Respect

By John McLaurin, SCI President

Originally published in the 2024 September Edition of Safari Times.

“Dignity and respect.” What the heck is the SCI President talking about?

Of course, got to be elections. And no, not SCI elections: U.S. national elections!

With a new player now in the mix, things are even hotter and heavier, even at the local level. But everything starts from the top, and that especially includes the Freedom to Hunt and Sustainable Use Wildlife Conservation.

Of course, that includes hunters, the heart and soul of our hunting heritage and wildlife conservation. Never forget that hunters literally and figuratively pay for wildlife conservation — whether through taxes, purchases, travel, lodging, direct monetary donations or sweat equity. Much more, too, no doubt! You name it, hunter-conservationists have done it and are doing it.

Yet hunters are so often villainized, disparaged and mischaracterized as the lowest of the low in the mass media in order ostensibly to make a dollar for any number of people and organizations, none of the content of which has anything to do with reality and certainly wildlife conservation. Isn’t it about time for some, if not a lot of, dignity and respect for hunters, hunting and sustainable use wildlife conservation? Darned right it is!

But if we don’t elect the right leader of the country, it is not going to happen! I’ve said it before: regardless of the empty rhetoric and the grandiose hyperbole, look at the established track records of both candidates. You don’t have to decide what they will do. You know what they will do. And you also know whether they will give you the dignity and respect you deserve.

Who do you think will stand up and support you with the facts, the science and the validated studies in the halls of Congress, the courtrooms and in front of the media? And who do you think will kowtow to the anti-hunters and the animal rightists? Hunters have long been thought not to want to make waves for fear of drawing unwanted attention and fear of somehow losing what they have. That is not SCI Advocacy today. We stand up for what is right. We stand up for hunters and wildlife.

We need to elect someone who will do the same — nationally and locally!

Hunters, in general, are also thought to be so reticent about speaking out and actively participating in politics and elections for the same reasons. That is not SCI Advocacy today! And even assuming that it is true in general, it just has to change if we don’t want to lose the freedom to hunt and wildlife. I said it in last month’s editorial: vote and vote early!

But that is not enough. Do everything you can to ensure other hunters and true supporters of wildlife (millions of them) vote to ensure the future that we all want. Individually and as chapters, we need to do everything we can. If we do that, we’ll get the dignity and respect hunters and wildlife deserve!

IT’S HUNTING SEASON

Hunting seasons are starting now in the Northern Hemisphere! All the hard work, scouting, building and repairing blinds and stands and taking care of wildlife is about to pay off! Yes, I know not all of us will be as successful as we might like to be, but that is the nature of hunting. But it is nature, and the personal enjoyment of that very nature that we all contribute our time and resources to maintaining and improving, is irreplaceable!

Enjoy all nature has to offer! Don’t forget that SCI’s Record Book and World Hunting Awards programs have something for everyone. For those who are not already active in those programs, I invite you to enter your trophies in the Record Book and take advantage of the WHA categories for game taken anywhere in the world.

The SCI Record Book is one of the best taxonomic resources of game animals in the world and will continue to be THE authority in such things as members keep entering their animals in it, year after year. The WHA program opens a world of recognition for animals taken on hunts. For example, when using the Record Book and WHA criteria, members can chart their hunting careers in ways that expand horizons while exposing them to places and people they could never have imagined.

SCI’s Record Book and WHA programs truly are tremendous member benefits that are available nowhere else on earth. I enthusiastically invite all members to participate in both Record Book and WHA. You will be glad you did, and you will be helping SCI realize its mission simultaneously. It is a win-win situation all around.

There are a great many SCI Official Measurers who will be pleased to help you. If you were able to attend one of the Texas Trophy Hunting Extravaganzas in August, you would have seen the new software Trophy Scan, which can electronically measure your trophy for you. This prototype was used to measure the deer entered in the TTHA trophy contest. It will also be on display at the Nashville Convention. Something new and innovative is always going on in SCI, including all the new award winners, like the newly announced Diana — Ms. Claudia Ricci. Read about her in the September edition of Safari Times!

NASHVILLE 2025

And, of course, the best place to arrange for hunts anywhere in the world is at the annual SCI Convention in Nashville. Plan to attend the Convention Jan. 22-25, 2025.

If you have not already done so, now is the right time to book hotel rooms and make travel plans for the Convention. Hotels will book solid soon, so arrange for lodging now and be ready for the best and biggest Convention ever! Come see what is new! Visit showsci.org for the details.

LIFE MEMBERSHIP

And speaking about new! Wow! For all three-year membership holders, if you have ever thought about becoming a Life member, you need to really think about it now! I am sure you know purchasers of Life memberships receive — in addition to being a Life member of the best pro-hunting, pro-freedom to hunt and pro-sustainable use wildlife conservation organization with the biggest, best Convention, Record Book and advocacy program — two four-day passes to the Nashville Convention, AND now a $150 credit on your purchase of a Life membership. That’s a real bargain, and you can use those passes in a future year, not just in 2025! That offer disappears on Dec. 25. 

Take advantage of it, and I look forward to seeing everyone at the Convention.

Meanwhile, good hunting and don’t forget to enter animals taken in the Record Book and World Hunting Awards Programs.

And VOTE!