The article made some good points and it is nice a group with the political clout and willingness to side step the grizzly hunt ban is doing something. I did a sheep hunt this year in Tahltan territory and could have killed three big grizzlies. Too bad I am not Tahltan, I could have made the hunt a profitable business. As far as the road blocks go, I think it was meant as a tactic to pressure the BC Provincial Government, more than an attack on non Tahltan hunters. Unfortunately the NDP and Green Party care less about resident hunters than just about any demographic, so they aren't likely to get the message. I think it was misguided and would have been more wise to get the resident hunters on their side, rather than blockade and alienate them. Every time I drove past a blocked road with my wife I had a bit of a rant. Each blocked road got me a little angry. Our politicians have created a situation where two groups who want the same thing are at each others throats, rather than cooperating. Tahltans and resident hunters want effective predator management and sustainable ungulate populations. If only we could cooperate and bring the fight to the urban politicians who are clueless when it comes to these topics.
As the article stated, "...it’s very inappropriate, if you don’t have any firsthand knowledge of what it’s like to live in that vastly different environment, to be telling the people that have been stewards of those lands in that environment for thousands of years what they should do and what they shouldn’t do."
I couldn't agree more. This applies to resident hunters as well. We need to get together with First Nations groups and push for responsible wildlife management. Resident hunters and First Nations people have to live together and with wildlife. We have the same goals and are more similar than different.