Free: Contests & Raffles.
Before many of you ever heard of BHA I looked into the organization quite deeply, in fact there was a time I considered going to work for them because on the surface they seemed like a good group and at that time I could have used a little extra income, especially if it was made by promoting hunting for future generations. I sent a letter asking some questions about the creation and purpose of the organization, most of the questions were never answered and I received a phone call detailing how the group was created by Mitch Friedman as a front for Conservation Northwest to attract and involve hunters and anglers in their push to create more wilderness (one of CNW ultimate goals). I'm not going to throw anyone under the bus by saying who my source was and I cannot prove I was was being told facts, but when I asked BHA the hard questions they did not reply to them, that in itself raises questions in my mind. I will say the person seemed very knowledgeable about the inner workings of the top leadership of the group and detailed first hand knowledge regarding the creation, goals, and inner workings of BHA. From what I was told by that inside source I wanted nothing to do with BHA, and after finding the Green Decoys website it does not seem to be all conspiracy theory. Some of the BHA loyalists may attack me, I really don't care. I do agree with some of what BHA promotes and at some point in the future I hope i can agree more with BHA as they become more of their own group and hopefully driven by a more diverse group of hunters and anglers than by the wilderness crowd. What matters to me is that we as a state and as a nation conserve hunting, fishing, and outdoor opportunities for all citizens, regardless of age or physical ability, and not just conserve opportunities for the physically fit users who can hike miles into the wilderness and who seem to dislike most forms of motorized recreation popular with many enthusiasts.Conspiracy TheoriesI was one of the early supporters of Donald Trump and was ridiculed at times because many people claimed Trump was totally off-base and whacko. Now we have learned that Trump's policies are bringing jobs back and the economy is booming. Business is better than ever and employment for nearly all demographics is at record levels or close to it. We are also learning that agencies within our government conspired to stop Trump from becoming president and that Hillary is the one they were promoting and the one who actually had collusion with Russia. It turns out that most of the evening news channels are owned by and promote left leaning interests, we have learned that much of what they report actually is fake news! To top that off, now even Obama is trying to take credit for Trump's economy! So here's some food for thought, before you blanketly accept the notion that BHA is looking out for all hunters best interests or that some of these websites are whackadoodle web sites, you might want to think about where our government was a couple years ago and what we have learned about previous claims of tinfoil hat theories that have turned into actual facts. I guess what I'm saying is keep an open mind, read all you can from all sides, and base your conclusions on what you see actually happening, not what someone tells you is fact. Regarding limited access to public lands, I can tell you for a fact that it's a serious issue in Montana. There is a large amount of public lands with no public access. That my friends is a fact, so maybe considering that this article may not be entirely tinfoil hat whacko theory! Just sayin... look at the facts, in Montana this is a big issue already, and they are one of the stronghold states for BHA! Right now I don't have time to dissect the story and try to figure out if there is any factual basis involved or not, but remember, sometimes where there is smoke you will find fire, so I'm not going to figure it's all tinfoil crazy just because a few say it is!
Quote from: bearpaw on September 18, 2018, 08:59:44 AMBefore many of you ever heard of BHA I looked into the organization quite deeply, in fact there was a time I considered going to work for them because on the surface they seemed like a good group and at that time I could have used a little extra income, especially if it was made by promoting hunting for future generations. I sent a letter asking some questions about the creation and purpose of the organization, most of the questions were never answered and I received a phone call detailing how the group was created by Mitch Friedman as a front for Conservation Northwest to attract and involve hunters and anglers in their push to create more wilderness (one of CNW ultimate goals). I'm not going to throw anyone under the bus by saying who my source was and I cannot prove I was was being told facts, but when I asked BHA the hard questions they did not reply to them, that in itself raises questions in my mind. I will say the person seemed very knowledgeable about the inner workings of the top leadership of the group and detailed first hand knowledge regarding the creation, goals, and inner workings of BHA. From what I was told by that inside source I wanted nothing to do with BHA, and after finding the Green Decoys website it does not seem to be all conspiracy theory. Some of the BHA loyalists may attack me, I really don't care. I do agree with some of what BHA promotes and at some point in the future I hope i can agree more with BHA as they become more of their own group and hopefully driven by a more diverse group of hunters and anglers than by the wilderness crowd. What matters to me is that we as a state and as a nation conserve hunting, fishing, and outdoor opportunities for all citizens, regardless of age or physical ability, and not just conserve opportunities for the physically fit users who can hike miles into the wilderness and who seem to dislike most forms of motorized recreation popular with many enthusiasts.Conspiracy TheoriesI was one of the early supporters of Donald Trump and was ridiculed at times because many people claimed Trump was totally off-base and whacko. Now we have learned that Trump's policies are bringing jobs back and the economy is booming. Business is better than ever and employment for nearly all demographics is at record levels or close to it. We are also learning that agencies within our government conspired to stop Trump from becoming president and that Hillary is the one they were promoting and the one who actually had collusion with Russia. It turns out that most of the evening news channels are owned by and promote left leaning interests, we have learned that much of what they report actually is fake news! To top that off, now even Obama is trying to take credit for Trump's economy! So here's some food for thought, before you blanketly accept the notion that BHA is looking out for all hunters best interests or that some of these websites are whackadoodle web sites, you might want to think about where our government was a couple years ago and what we have learned about previous claims of tinfoil hat theories that have turned into actual facts. I guess what I'm saying is keep an open mind, read all you can from all sides, and base your conclusions on what you see actually happening, not what someone tells you is fact. Regarding limited access to public lands, I can tell you for a fact that it's a serious issue in Montana. There is a large amount of public lands with no public access. That my friends is a fact, so maybe considering that this article may not be entirely tinfoil hat whacko theory! Just sayin... look at the facts, in Montana this is a big issue already, and they are one of the stronghold states for BHA! Right now I don't have time to dissect the story and try to figure out if there is any factual basis involved or not, but remember, sometimes where there is smoke you will find fire, so I'm not going to figure it's all tinfoil crazy just because a few say it is!Are you referencing public land in Montana that is inaccessible due to surrounding private land? Or public land we are not allowed to set foot on?
So groups that are trying to aquire private land to allow access too and from our public lands are a bad thing? I am a member of BHA and I haven't seen one thing in their body of work that has made me question their mission or question whether that mission is of benefit to us as sportsmen. I've gone through the Green Decoy site and they hang there claim on a portion of donation money coming from conservation, enviromental groups with a highlight on , dare I say, liberal money Big deal, I don't care if you have a lifesize Obama poster over your bed, if you love our public lands, our wildlife and our wild places, you're a friend of mine when it comes to the outdoors. Period.I just can't find evidence to substantiate a claim such as Green Decoy (and others) that these groups are fleecing hunters and anglers while slipping through the backdoor to end hunting and fishing.
Quote from: cbond3318 on September 18, 2018, 01:57:28 PMSo groups that are trying to aquire private land to allow access too and from our public lands are a bad thing? I am a member of BHA and I haven't seen one thing in their body of work that has made me question their mission or question whether that mission is of benefit to us as sportsmen. I've gone through the Green Decoy site and they hang there claim on a portion of donation money coming from conservation, enviromental groups with a highlight on , dare I say, liberal money Big deal, I don't care if you have a lifesize Obama poster over your bed, if you love our public lands, our wildlife and our wild places, you're a friend of mine when it comes to the outdoors. Period.I just can't find evidence to substantiate a claim such as Green Decoy (and others) that these groups are fleecing hunters and anglers while slipping through the backdoor to end hunting and fishing. My biggest complaint is their drive to take away multiple use access from the majority, which pushes more users into dwindling multiple use areas in order to create more wilderness for a minority. If BHA can purchase access easements or specific private property creating access to landlocked public lands, that seems like a win for the majority of users.
When looking at BHA’s funding sources, it’s easy to forget they have anything to do with hunting and fishing at all. All of its primary donors have extensive ties to environmental activist organizations.The largest donor is the Western Conservation Foundation, which gave $278,423 to BHA in 2011 and 2012 alone. WCF has given handsomely over the years to notorious environmentalists and animal rights activists, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Audubon Society, Earthjustice (the self-proclaimed “law firm of the environment”), and Climate Solutions, a major proponent of “global warming.” It has also contributed large sums to the Tides Center, funder of all things leftist. It’s hard to imagine Western Conservation Foundation would donate over a quarter of a million dollars to Backcountry Hunters and Anglers if it wasn’t an organization that shared those same ideological beliefs.
As was expected, Rehberg’s campaign office responded on its website, stating, “An environmental obstructionist front group calling itself ‘Montana Hunters and Anglers’ has spent nearly $250,000 from undisclosed sources running attack ads against Denny Rehberg. Leading that effort was the group’s President, Land Tawney, whom Tester also proudly declares to be an adviser to him in his official Senate duties. Tawney is an employee of the National Wildlife Federation.”
Quote from: bearpaw on September 18, 2018, 03:30:52 PMQuote from: cbond3318 on September 18, 2018, 01:57:28 PMSo groups that are trying to aquire private land to allow access too and from our public lands are a bad thing? I am a member of BHA and I haven't seen one thing in their body of work that has made me question their mission or question whether that mission is of benefit to us as sportsmen. I've gone through the Green Decoy site and they hang there claim on a portion of donation money coming from conservation, enviromental groups with a highlight on , dare I say, liberal money Big deal, I don't care if you have a lifesize Obama poster over your bed, if you love our public lands, our wildlife and our wild places, you're a friend of mine when it comes to the outdoors. Period.I just can't find evidence to substantiate a claim such as Green Decoy (and others) that these groups are fleecing hunters and anglers while slipping through the backdoor to end hunting and fishing. My biggest complaint is their drive to take away multiple use access from the majority, which pushes more users into dwindling multiple use areas in order to create more wilderness for a minority. If BHA can purchase access easements or specific private property creating access to landlocked public lands, that seems like a win for the majority of users. BHA is not against motorized access. Increases to Wilderness areas that we have supported are almost always within inventoried roadless areas that do not currently have legal motorized access. Lots of our members use mountain bikes, ATVs, and vehicles to access they're hunting sites. Also, I am 100% certain that you are mistaken about Mitch Friedman having anything to do with the formation of BHA. I would love to hear more about your inside "source"
I apologize for jacking the topic...
