Hunter safety instructor removed after ordering 'liberals' from class

By RANDY KREHBIEL
Tulsa World Staff Writer
3/6/2009

Thirteen-year-old Lane Dunkley just wanted to go hunting with his grandfather.

What he got was a lecture on politics.

Dunkley and his father Daniel Reddy, who live in Tulsa, went to Broken Arrow Tuesday night for a hunter safety course normally required to get an Oklahoma hunting license.

The class was a reward of sorts. Dunkley, who wants to go hunting with his aging grandfather, was told he could only if he brought his grades up.

So he did - to a B-plus average.

But when father and son arrived at the lesson, the volunteer instructor, Kell Wolf, asked if any of the students voted for President Obama.

Reddy, a transplanted Californian - and ex-Marine - raised his hand.

According to Reddy and others in the room, Wolf called Obama “the next thing to the Anti-Christ” and ordered Reddy and Dunkley from the room. When Reddy refused, Wolf said he would not teach “liberals” and would cancel the course if Reddy didn’t leave.

So Reddy and Dunkley left, as did a few others.

Lance Meek, hunter education coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, said Wolf had been a volunteer instructor for “a long time, probably 15 years or more” and “from what we’ve heard and observed, had always done a great job. He worked with the kids really well.”

But when Meek received a call Wednesday morning - from someone other than the Reddys - he said he had no choice.

“I got the call at 8:30, and by 9 o’clock (Wolf) was no
longer a volunteer for us," Meek said.

Contacted Friday, Wolf had no comment on the matter. Meek said when he talked briefly to Wolf on Wednesday, Wolf did not deny ordering Reddy from the class or offer an explanation.

Stacy Reddy, Daniel Reddy’s wife and Lane Dunkley’s mother, said the family was surprised by how quickly the Wildlife Department acted.

“Lance Meek called and apologized up and down and wanted to know what they could do to make it right,” she said. “The only thing we really wanted was for my son to be able to take the hunter safety course, and there wasn’t another one in the Tulsa area with an opening for the rest of 2009.”

So Meek arranged for a private class.

Too bad. The instructor could have used the opportunity to further the pro gun cause but instead came off like a jerk.
Whether a volunteer or not, his job was to teach the course, not tout his brand of politics.

as a hunter safty instructor this kind of crap pisses me off.when i am in there teaching the safty course materials are what are tought unless someone asks for some advice.this is not how we were told to do the job.Good Luck

quote:

Too bad. The instructor could have used the opportunity to further the pro gun cause but instead came off like a jerk.
Whether a volunteer or not, his job was to teach the course, not tout his brand of politics.

+1 Very well said.

well guys what the hell do you think the regular liberal type teachers do in school every day??

quote:

well guys what the hell do you think the regular liberal type teachers do in school every day??

That's the truth. I battle that shit every day when the seven year old comes home and tells me what the bleeding hearts at school tried to teach her today.

While understandable it's just what we don't need...

This instructor was acting the like a liberal, like that teacher who was brow-beating students that didn't support Obama

Convince through logic.

the basis of virtually EVERY liberal arguement is "emotion", not "reason" and if we start doing the same as they do we've already lost.

we DO NOT need "our" people behaving like people who I'm sad to say must be considered our enemies.

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The "instructor" was a slack jawed, mouth breather.

I am a Hunter Ed istructor, and as much as I agree with the guy's opinion, it really has nothing to do with the subject. It's about educating kids in hunting safety, rules, regulations, and ethics. Politics doesn't belong there.

Odd that this guy is ranting about 'liberals' in a government funded hunter safety class.

Considering that the North American Wildlife Conservation Model was and is really quite a 'liberal progressive' concept. Socialism if we apply the current dialogue on the role of government.............

From The RMEF,

The time-tested North American Wildlife Conservation Model is the only one of its kind in the world. In the mid-1800s, hunters and anglers realized they needed to set limits in order to protect rapidly disappearing wildlife, and assume responsibility for managing wild habitats. Hunters and anglers were among the first to crusade for wildlife protection and remain some of today’s most important conservation leaders.

The model’s two basic principles—that our fish and wildlife belong to all North American citizens, and are to be managed in such a way that their populations will be sustained forever—are explained through a set of guidelines known as the “Seven Sisters for Conservation.” The “Seven Sisters” hold the key to wildlife conservation as we know it today.


Sister #1: The Public Trust
In North America, natural resources on public lands are managed by government agencies to ensure that we always have wildlife and wild places to enjoy.

In the United States and Canada, wildlife is not owned by individuals. Instead, federal, state and provincial governments are responsible for managing all wildlife, as well as their habitat on public lands. This public trust gives you and all citizens the opportunity to view, hunt, fish and otherwise enjoy these natural resources.

Two hundred years ago, American colonists appreciated this unfettered access to the continent’s abundant wildlife. Back in Europe in many cases, only nobility and the very wealthy were allowed to hunt. In 1842, the U.S. Supreme Court set a legal precedent by supporting the American ideal that wildlife belongs to everyone.


Sister #2: Prohibition on Commerce of Dead Wildlife
Conservation laws and their strong enforcement in the United States and Canada saved wildlife from slaughter.

Because we all own wildlife, it is illegal in North America to sell the meat of any wild animal. In some cases the hides, teeth, antlers and horns of game animals and the hides of a select few furbearers may be sold.

However, buying and selling meat, hides, feathers and other wild animal parts was a huge business in the latter half of the 1800s. Excessive hunting severely depleted bison, egrets and elk, and drove other species, such as the passenger pigeon, to extinction. Strong laws written at the turn of the 20th century restricted market hunting and the buying and selling of some wild animals, which allowed many threatened wildlife species to rebound and thrive.


Sister #3: Democratic Rule of Law
You can help make laws to regulate hunting and fishing and conserve wildlife.

Every citizen of the United States and Canadian has the right to help create laws to conserve and manage wild animals and their habitats. Government agencies that manage our natural resources provide citizens with public forums to share ideas and opinions about wildlife and habitat. Citizens can also vote for or against ballot measures that impact wildlife.

Although early 20th-century conservationists wanted to protect wildlife, many still wanted to hunt, fish and enjoy wild places. They established laws that regulated those activities. Today, federal, state and provincial game wardens check hunting licenses and tags to make sure people are hunting in permitted areas and only taking the quarry allowed by law.


Sister #4: Hunting Opportunity for All
Every citizen has an opportunity, under the law, to hunt and fish in the United States and Canada.

Regardless of your social status, race, creed, religion or gender, you have the right to legally hunt and fish on most public lands in North America.

Hunters and anglers led the crusade for wildlife protection a century ago. For instance, before Theodore Roosevelt became president, he helped found the Boone and Crockett Club. The club’s Fair Chase Statement was the first document outlining a code of conduct and ethics for hunters and anglers. It became a cornerstone of our game laws.


Sister #5: Non-frivolous Use
In North America, we can legally kill certain wild animals under strict guidelines for food and fur, self-defense and property protection.

Laws restrict us from casually killing wildlife. We cannot kill wildlife merely for antlers, horns or feathers or to use only a small portion of the meat. Laws also help ensure that we show respect for and avoid mistreating wildlife and the land, and when hunting, make maximum use of every animal for food and other purposes.

Most hunters make good use of an elk. Besides feasting on the meat, hunters often keep the antlers as a memento of the hunt. Hides also make sturdy buckskin coats, chaps and gloves. Many hunters also enjoy sharing wild meat with family and friends. In this way, hunting’s rewards benefit everyone—not just the hunters themselves.


Sister #6: International Resources
Wildlife and fish migrate freely across boundaries between states, provinces and countries.

Working together, the United States and Canada jointly manage land and wildlife to make sure that wildlife can safely cross borders and that no country, state or province will take more than its share of a common resource.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 demonstrates this cooperation between countries to protect wildlife. The Act made it illegal to capture or kill migratory birds, except as allowed by specific hunting regulations. Treaties now exist between the United States, Canada, Mexico and Russia to protect birds migrating between these countries. The Act has restored our waterfowl, including ducks, geese and cranes, which travel great distances and cross several countries between their wintering and nesting areas.


Sister #7: Scientific Management
The right information helps us make good decisions and become better stewards of wildlife.

Scientific research—and applying that research--is essential to managing and sustaining North America’s wildlife and habitats. For example, researchers put radio collars on elk to track the animals’ movements. They use the data to answer questions such as: Where do elk cows calve? How will bulls react to motor vehicles driving on forest roads?

Throughout human history, we’ve been fascinated by nature. From Sir Francis Drake to Lewis and Clark, early explorers enthusiastically observed North America’s wildlife, carefully recording their behavior and habits. Today, many hunters and anglers are just as interested in observing our natural world—and protecting those resources for future generations.

quote:

Originally posted by Skinner.:
However, buying and selling meat, hides, feathers and other wild animal parts was a huge business in the latter half of the 1800s. Excessive hunting severely depleted bison,

While Bison were commercially hunted for both meat and hides the real blow was an intentional act of the US government as an act of war to deprive the plains indians of their major source of supply.

Orchestrated by the likes of Phil Sheridan
and W.T.Sherman.

The basic strategy worked against the confederacy and the plains indians.

"Hunting" commercial and otherwise hurt the bison, but not like the program of intentional extermination that left the animals to rot where they fell.

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