Mentor Hunting??

Some of you guys act like having a kid kill something before
they are 12 is a sin, why? I don't know why some of you even
hunt but the goal for me when I hunt is to kill the game I
am after. I mentored my two nephews and teach them alot
about the woods, the animals, gun safety, and how to hunt.
I don't make it all about the kill but see no problem with a
kid shooting something before the age of 12. The kill is a
part of the hunt and don't think it's a bad thing for them
to experience. NO they don't have to kill something to like
it but if they are responsible enough to hunt before age 12
they should have the right to do so. I would be fine with an
age limit or just a lower starting age such as 10 not 12. I
do believe that the kids that are gonna be hunters will do
it no matter what but for some they don't know how they will
feel about actually killing something until they do it. The
mentor program gives these kids and their parents a chance
to see if the kid will want to be a hunter or not, why
should that have to wait until 12? Kids fish for free until
16 to see if they like it, why not find out about hunting
at an earlier age to?

No, it isn't a sin, but allowing a 5 or 6 year old to hunt is more about the adults bragging rights than recruitment. It is preposterous. There is no requirements to be a mentor, other than being an adult. There are plenty of adults running around with hunting licenses who can't even control their own actions in the field let alone the actions of a child whose only information regarding the rights and wrongs and the dos and don't will come from them. Bad habbits and attitudes are passed along to children as well as good ones and with no requirement for a hunter education class prior to hunting these kids will not have a base line to build on prior to going afield with a gun. Only time will tell but I do not believe the high hopes of recruitment stemming from the mentoring program will be realized and I believe that putting the cart before the horse will cause many of those that started at an extremely young age to to become bored and disenchanted and quit when they are not successful every year because allowing them to harvest game at a young age puts the result of hunting before the mechanics of hunting. I believe the mentoring program is a well intentioned mistake and I cannot support it. I would rather see kids be prepared to succeed before they encounter success because they will have a more realistic view about what hunting is. It would have been much more sensible to lower the age to buy and use a license and have thm complete a hunter education class prior to hunting so at least they would have the basics to use as a gauge against what the mentor is telling them.

Who said it was a sin?
Sometimes teaching a kid that somethings are worth waiting or is a good thing. It seems a though most of the country is now of the opinion that they must have it right now. I guess it is silly to think that hunting should be above that.
Many or most teenagers that I talk to say they won't hunt if they can't text and have cell phone reception.

We need to do all we can to attract the folks who want all things at all times, and don't make me wait or I'll get bored and I won't hunt at all, and I better be able to kill something, and it better have a big rack, and I better be able to get there on my four wheeler, and the tower stand better be warm, and there better be bait there, and someone better be there to video tape my great hunt and.................

Excuse me. I seem to have drifted off into a discription of the future of hunting.

Hunting has changed.