Imagine for a moment what this weekend would have represented were the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) have decided the Heller case differently. What if the SCOTUS decided that the right to keep and bear arms was not an individual right, but rather a corporate right - a right limited to Militias? Would your trip to the lake or state parks have been different?

I know that mine would have been. I would have spent my money at my local Sportsman’s Warehouse, stocking up on firearms before they were taken from the shelves.

Fortunately, we still live in a relatively free country and my families plans are limited only by the cost of fuel to put in our tank. But that’s a completely different topic altogether, isn’t it?

As we celebrate our nation’s birthday, let’s thank our Founding Fathers and our Heavenly Father that we live in a country where the right of the individual to keep and bear arms is intact and that for now, we are a free country.

The alarm goes off, we jump out of bed, grab our gear and we’re out the door to our favorite fishing locale or hunting honey hole.  For most of us, it doesn’t even require much thought - it just happens.

Not so for disabled hunters and anglers.  A couple months ago, the WILD Oklahoma crew headed to northeast Oklahoma to film a hunt with the Mid-America Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America and we got to witness first-hand how difficult it is for disabled hunters and anglers.

The PVA is an incredible organization whose desire it is to see men and women who have served this great nation get back into the swing of “normal” life after experiencing dramatic trauma.  Not all PVA members or participants are paralyzed as the PVA reaches out to many with disabilities.

The turkey hunt was successful for many of the PVA hunters and we got some incredible film and testimonies from the participants and to be honest, it was a life-affirming and life changing event for us.  We often take for granted hunting, angling and the shooting sports.  These men and women do not - they savor every moment of it.

August 23rd, in Oklahoma City, WILD Oklahoma is hosting a fundraising event for the Mid-America Chapter of the PVA.  We are going to have food, live music from the band Eagle Eye Annie, and a whole lot more.  If you’re interested in getting involved, let me know.

Want to be blessed?  Take a veteran hunting or fishing.

He came home with my uncle after a long hunting trip in the mountains of eastern Washington and there was something different about him.  I had seen the look on his face and the aura about him before, actually, one year before when he returned previously with my uncle on another hunting trip.

Every year, my father would go out with his brothers and spend a few days out in the woods and it didn’t really seem to matter just how stressful life had become, that one trip every year charged his emotional and spiritual batteries.

Though my father never took me hunting, we spent many a day out on the lake catching fish.  He and I didn’t see eye to eye on many issues but we both knew that there was and is something spiritual, primal if you will, about spending time out in the woods with friends, family and loved ones.

I’m doing my best to encourage my children to accompany me out in the woods and have actually taken my son and youngest daughter out, but sadly they are at an age where they just aren’t interested.  I love my father dearly, but have learned that now that I’m a father, I refuse to force my kids to participate in my angling and hunting adventures, but I will always make it available to them.

On this Father’s Day, my wish is that through my example, my kids will embrace the Constitution as I have - to fight to protect our 2nd Amendment rights and to preserve our hunting traditions for their children.

I think I’m making progress because during a conversation between my wife and my son, he mentioned to her that he needed to take some video software classes (he’s 12) because if something happened to me, “someone must carry on WILD Oklahoma.”

Perhaps my Father’s Day wish has already been granted…

In Oklahoma, we’ve experienced some of the most bizarre and often horrendous weather and over that past 5 years, the biggest concern has been drought conditions.  Well, we needn’t worry about that right now because we have been overcome with rain.

Some hunters, however, have expressed a great deal of angst over the fact that we have seen flood conditions throughout much of the state but the WILD Oklahoma crew are much more optimistic.  While it is true that spring turkey season presented some unique challenges, the overall kill numbers weren’t terrifically down.  That being said, fall turkey looks to be very, very enticing.

No, I’m not a biologist, but I have watched deer patterns in some of our favorite “honey holes” and what I have noticed is some big, fat deer as a result of the overwhelming food plot growth thus far this spring.  We have a bout of rainfall followed by a couple weeks of sunshine and the plant material takes off like crazy.

Coupled with the fact that the deer kill counts were down 20% last year, we fully expect the fall 2008 season to be wonderful.

That is, if we can afford to gas up and head out to deer camp…

But that’s a different topic altogether.

Imagine for a moment you and a friend are taking your hunting dogs out on public land for a training session. The dogs head out, you mount your horses and then, in the distance, you hear gunshots. As you get to where the shots came from, you see your two dogs lying dead and the man who shot them is smiling at you. The police are contacted, reports filed and the District Attorney decides not to file charges.

What do you do?

Well, you notify the alternative media because there isn’t a whole lot else you can do. The story can be found here, and it is up to you in the blogosphere to create problems for the District Attorney in Logan County, Oklahoma. Don’t think that because you’re not in Oklahoma that you cannot make a difference - you can. Read this story and send it to all your friends and families.  Below, is the District Attorney who has decided to bury his head in the sand.

PAYNE COUNTY COURTHOUSE
606 S. Husband, Room. 213
Stillwater, Oklahoma  74074
(405)372-4883
FAX: (405) 372-4590

LOGAN COUNTY COURTHOUSE
301 E. Harrison
Guthrie, Oklahoma  73044
(405) 282-0655
FAX: 405-282-8159

Elitists hate us.

You can find them hanging out at the rowing club, at the country club and at all the finest events where the “beautiful people” spend time together. They see us as bottom feeders, as the unenlightened in our ever-increasingly sophisticated culture. They find our pick up trucks to be laughable, our desire for the off road experience to be offensive and damaging to our environment. As they gather around their luncheon table wearing watches more expensive than our homes, we become the topic of conversation. The effete women with their finely coiffed hair and expertly treated nails sneer outwardly and furrow their brow at the possibility of being seen in public with us. But deep down inside they know that their ire is spawned from the desire to be us, to be with us, to taste the sweet nectar of freedom we experience every time we let loose our arrows and drop our target.

We’ve all seen them and have at one point or another been confronted by them only to find after a very short period of time that they really desire to be us. Sure, their watches and European sports cars are of more value than most everything we own combined, but you can feel it - you can sense that they are missing something in their lives that nothing can fill. Except the hunt.

I remember doing a radio remote at a local KFC in Oklahoma City on the day that PETA decided to protest. There were no more than 8 or 9 PETA protesters, most female, and they were clearly outnumbered and realized that Oklahoma City was probably not a good choice of locale for their protest. This particular KFC experienced their busiest day in the store’s history and was pleased to see us there. One young lady who was relatively attractive (except for the 15 pounds of metal she had hanging from various body parts) was exceptionally angry with me. First, for having the audacity to broadcast live from a location where PETA was simply trying to get out their propaganda. Secondly, she hated the fact that every syllable out of her mouth was so easily refuted. Third, she hated that I drove a 4WD truck designed to go off road and carry plenty of animal carcasses in the back. Lastly, she hated the freedom I experience and the joy of the hunt.

This young lady looked deep into my eyes and struggled to hide her envy. Being considerably shorter than me, I crouched down a little bit and smiled a genuine smile and whispered to her, “I know what you want and more importantly, I know what you need.” She was taken aback by my concern for her and I could sense her softening a bit. She smiled, tipped her head back and to the side, looked down her nose and attempted to be fierce. “What do I need?” she asked. I responded, “All you need is a weekend with a meat-eating man…he’ll make you see God.”

Her smile disappeared for a moment, lowered her head so I couldn’t see her blushing and walked away, taking with her the rest of her PETA clan.

Yes, it is an uncomfortable truth for those who hate us. The truth is that jealousy is an ugly emotion. They despise us but at the same time, want to be us.

Ron

The National Rifle Association wraps up its event this past weekend and already the emails and messages have flooded the WILD Oklahoma email boxes regarding the upcoming presidential election.  Gun owners are fearful of the looming demise of what everyone is speculating will be the Republican Party.

But be not afraid -there are Blue Dog Democrats that have become a bee in the bonnet of Speaker Pelosi.

Gun rights, in many states, transcend party lines and that is the case in Oklahoma and other Southern States.  Hunting rights often equate to gun rights and the two should not be divorced as some presume.  Hunters and shooters have had a love/hate relationship for many years, the upland game bird hunters sparring with the deer hunters and the coon hunters bickering with the pheasant hunters and in the background, IPSC members have been dueling with hog hunters.  And all of it to the detriment of law-abiding citizens who simply want to protect their homes and families from bad guys.

Blue Dog Democrats and conservative Republicans embrace the shooting sports and most of both are hunters and anglers.  This is where there exists strength in numbers.  If we unite under the same banner of 2nd Amendment support, the nation wins.  You see, there is nothing more frightening to the criminal element than an armed citizenry.  And having a few dead critters hung up in your garage can be an amazing deterrent to would-be trouble makers.

Many are concerned about whether or not the next election cycle will create problems for 2nd Amendment supporters with two of the three candidates talking about implementation of a new and improved so-called assault weapons ban.  BUT, never forget that there are still three branches of government and without the consent of the legislative branch, the White House cannot implement such a ban and can even be found outside of the bounds of the Constitution.

The upcoming decision by the Supreme Court will set the stage for the future, but in the meantime, the WILD Oklahoma crew highly recommends you go out and purchase the ammo and firearms today rather than simply waiting to see what happens.

And by the way, here is a good story to read as well.

Ron

As most of you have already surmised, I am the founder of WILD Oklahoma Media, LLC - a radio, television and Internet celebration of the great Oklahoma outdoors. But our involvement and support of the outdoors transcends merely the great state of Oklahoma. We support everyone who participates in the shooting sports, in archery, angling and our hunting rights.

What I hope to provide here is information with a twist - a support of the outdoors, but with a unique perspective that hopefully will result in helping you defend the 2nd Amendment, get involved on a local level, or take your family out in the woods.

America is at a crossroads right now and we all have to make difficult decisions as to where we spend our discretionary income . As for me and my family, I will spend it celebrating the amazing traditions of hunting and fishing.

Welcome and if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me here !