Young kids may hunt alone...wtf?

[Rachmaninoff]

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, I don't have anything against hunting, however reading this article here does have me wondering about some parents and why the hell they'd drop their kids off to hunt by themselves.

[URL="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31952727/ns/us_news-life/?GT1=43001"][U]In many states, young kids may hunt alone[/U][/URL]

Upon reading it, I agree with the sentiment that if we don't trust kids to drive at that age, why the hell are we handing them guns they couldn't even purchase on their own and dropping them off to go hunting?

Based on what little I know, I'm tentatively in favor of a minimum age requirement for hunters without adult supervision. Unless I read something else that convinces me it's smart for some parent to decide their 14 or even 10 year old is safe with a gun on their own, I can't agree with that at all.

What do the rest of you think?

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]It's lunacy. While I will be the first to admit that there is always a precious youngster who is more than capable of handling himself or herself alone and with a gun, I wouldn't really trust anyone else out there alone.

A well trained kid in the forest on a day hike with a pack and a map? Yes. Any kid, however well trained in the forest with a loaded gun? Hell no. Haven't any of you ever read Lord of the Flies?[/FONT][/COLOR]

[chibi-master]

Heck no! I know that many of the people in my age group are more likely to shoot their own foot than anything else! Not to mention that most teenagers and pre-teens would panic if something were to go wrong. Ex. Land slide, branch falls on someone, bitten by snake, accidentally shot, mauled by bear... Adults should always be present when a minor has a gun with them. It says so in every safety book FOR A REASON.

[Akieen Cloud]

[COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]I agree 100% with Chibi on this one.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="RoyalBlue"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]I have to admit that I'm surprised that [I]any[/I] state allows minors to run around, unsupervised with a loaded gun. Sure they might be hunting, but I also question [I]any[/I] adult who honestly thinks a young teen is mature enough for that. o_O They're considered minors for a reason after all. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[Nathan]

[FONT="Arial"]Interesting, they can't drive, can't legally buy a gun, but their parents can just drop them off in the woods and say... have fun. o_O

[I]*shakes head*[/I]

I'm with Beth on this one. I question [I]any[/I] adult who drops their kids off to go hunting by themselves. Supervised yes, on their own... No way in hell. [/FONT]

[Nony]

... I'm shocked to hear that my own state allows this kind of crap. I had no idea it was even going on, it just seems natural that you wouldn't let a kid go out and do that.

Honestly, if you're not even old enough to buy the damn gun yourself, then you shouldn't be using it. Especially unattended, my gosh. That's just the dumbest crap. If an adult or two is with them, that's better; but... damn.

[Sabrina]

[FONT="Tahoma"]I find the idea of allowing young teenagers to go hunting by themselves a bit surprising. We already require them to be older for driving a car and other things, so it just doesn't make any sense to let them go hunting on their own. I am not into hunting myself, but if I had kids, I wouldn't be comfortable with that. I'd prefer it if they had an adult with them. [/FONT]