Ron West’s letter to the editor on Steve Meyer’s bird hunting story asks if Mr. Meyer doesn’t “get it.” I did not read the story by Steve Meyer, because over time I have come to understand that I already know what he is going to say from the headline alone. He writes on hunting, an activity that is a big part of his life. ADN carries Mr. Meyer’s column because many Alaskans enjoy it. His readers get it.
It is Mr. West who doesn’t get it. Hunting is an activity that keeps one in sync with the world.
The hunter is companionably enjoying the outdoors, physically working, studying nature, the weather, hunting methods, equipment, ballistics and so on. The details of the hobby provideendless intellectual studies.
If Mr. Meyer laments the decline in hunter participation, it is because he recognizes the loss to people, in general, of an enriching endeavor.
Mr. West’s letter is a good reminder that I should study up before commenting on things withwhich I have no familiarity. But I guess that is what makes for engaging opinions.
Eric Jensen
Wasilla
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