|
Musicmystery -> RE: A Question for the Gun Folks (8/31/2009 4:24:34 PM)
|
quote:
ORIGINAL: ThatDamnedPanda
quote:
ORIGINAL: Musicmystery
I don't own a gun. I have backpacked often and have been visited by a few bears.
All I needed was simple common sense.
Sure, and far more often than not, that works fine. Except for a couple of years in Hawaii, I've spent my whole life in bear country, and I spend huge amounts of time in the backcountry. I've gotten within 20 yards of bears on a regular basis, without them knowing I'm there, and never felt any fear at all. In all those years, I have yet to be devoured, even a single time.
But shit still happens. People using common sense are sometimes attacked, too. As an example... I had a very close encounter with a bear a couple of months ago. I was camping in a national forest, and the dumpster was only about 40 yards from my tent. A bear decided to go dumpster diving, and I figured I didn't particularly want a garbage-eating bear roaming around my tent all night, and scared him away from a safe distance. After I bounced a few rocks off the side of the dumpster, he got the message, and I didn't hear from him again that night. All worked out fine; no problem.
But a few days later, when I got back to the Cities, I saw on the news that just 30 miles from where I was camping - and at pretty much the same moment that I was driving my bear away from the dumpster - a woman in Siren, Wisconsin was attacked by a bear while taking out the garbage. She just walked out into her yard in the twilight, and a bear came out of the woods between the house and the garage and pounced her. She survived by playing dead, but she was torn up a bit, and quite badly rattled by the event.
So you never know. Shit happens. They're wild animals. If you spend a lot of time in the area where they live, the chances that they're going to do some sort of wild-animal shit to you increases. Still extremely unlikely, but as long as there's a chance, why not take measures to improve your odds? You carry a poncho for when it rains, mosquito repellent for when it mosquitoes - why not a gun for when it bears? It's just a gun. I can't imagine any good reason for not taking one if you're in bear country.
Panda,
Because the risk is very small if proper precautions are taken.
Hell, I run a FAR greater risk from hypothermia or an accident (for which I also prepare, but yes, shit happens). If I started buying stuff just in case, I'd start with a cell phone and a GPS. A gun would just be one more thing to care for and to carry--not a mention potentially dangerous in its own right.
For even better safety? Stay home.
No thanks. I believe in safety and sensible precautions, but not fear over every conceivable possibility. As far as wildlife, a rapid raccoon would be far more dangerous.
I run a far greater risk of dying while driving to work each day.
Live well.
|
|
|
|
