Old School I am Not

Lately I have been exposed to a set of attitudes that really sort set me back on my heels. I guess these attitudes have been out there for quite a while. I just had not seen them. I don't get off my ridge that much. For want of a better term I will call these "Old School" turkey hunting attitudes. The general gist of this is that only certain turkey hunting practices are okay, and that these practices are a subset of what is legal in most states.

I really did not know what I was being called last year when somebody called me "Old School." At that time, the epithet was meant derisively. I had come out against the new $5/load ammo. I really did not know what the fellow was saying. The fellow lumped me in with a bunch of guys who only use one call, and only hunt with exposed hammers on their shotguns. At the time, I did not know there really was a school of thought like this. Frankly, I'm just a cheap bastard, and all these new alloys and such kind of grate on my penurious heart. Lead does me just fine. My point wasn't that Hevi-Shot was unethical, it was just expensive.

As I understand it, the core belief of the Old School is basically defined by what the adherents don't do:

1) No decoys can be used
2) No ambushes can be undertaken
3) No jakes can be taken
4) Blinds are not to be used

In the past year I have run into more rabid aspirants who espose:
5) No shells greater than . . . It differs, but it seems to settle on 2 3/4" 12 GA
6) No calls can be used that are younger than a certain decade (it varies). . .
7) . . . especially no mouth calls
8) No camo can be worn
9) No turkeys under 3 seasons of age
10) No Fall seasons -- that is not REAL turkey hunting
11) No Spring Seasons -- only in the Fall are you REALLY hunting turkey

The list does go on. Some day I expect that I will see somebody crowing that they shot a turkey with their eyes shut and their hands behind their back, using a stick in their teeth to accuate the trigger. This is an argument that has nothing to do with Fair Chase. It has nothing to do with ethics. It has little if anything to do with tradition. It has so much to do with regional bigotry and personal taste.

For those areas of the country with lots of public land, an historically large population of turkeys, and warm Springs, it is understandable that folks might be a bit parochial in their tastes. When you get into a state like my native Ohio, which only recently expanded its turkey hunting out of its core counties and allowed the taking of more than one bird-- I can remember when seeing a turkey during season was a challenge, let alone getting one in your sights.

It is not like there is even an organized "Old School Turkey Hunters Association." It seems that everyone has a different idea of which tennets to include. If you selectively take the 11 "Shall-nots" I just put up. That means that there are 39,916,800 possible variants. That is right there is in the same range as of all the turkey hunters in the country.

The Old Schoolers need to stop the madness and embrace their fellow hunters. For those who do not like to use decoys, that is fine. Your perseverance in the old ways is noted. Thank you for your concern. However, if turkey hunting has become so intricate that you cannot recognize a mouth call as a Fair Chase method, it is time to have your doctor review your dosage.