Bush Plans New Year's Day Hunting Trip

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

CRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush plans to spend New Year's Day hunting in southern Texas with his father and U.S. envoy James A. Baker III, who has been circling the globe collecting commitments from nations to forgive Iraq's debt.

"He will have lunch and go on a quail hunt with his father, other family and friends," White House spokesman Trent Duffy said Wednesday. "This group is expected to include Mr. and Mrs. James A. Baker."

Duffy said he couldn't be sure whether Bush would talk to Baker about the former secretary of state's recent lobbying trip to Asia where Japan agreed on Monday to cut billions of dollars of Iraqi debts. China also said it would consider the idea.

<snip>

"This is a social event," Duffy said, adding that the president was not expected to make any public appearances during his trip to Falfurrias, Texas, about 60 miles southwest of Corpus Christi. "Secretary Baker is a long time family friend. We don't know what they're going to discuss."

More: http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/7608513.htm

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

2. I share your anger, arcane1, but you might consider

editing your post b4 it's misconstrued.

[arcane1]

4. too late

ah well, not my first misconstruing...

might I point out that I personally plan to never hurt anyone, ever. :)

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

5. Heh... I know. That was too easy a line with the subject matter.

[arcane1]

8. it's still early for me, I was weak!

:evilgrin:


I'm noticing that these BushCo thugs seem to enjoy killing, but it seems they only like killing these teeny-tiny little birds. What's up with that?

does shooting a canary w/a shotgun make one a man of some kind? :shrug:

[Skittles]

18. you nailed it

that shotgun is a pseudo-penis. It's pathetic.

[arcane1]

27. exactly

though I'll avoid the obvious, yet accurate, shock-and-awe/gang-bang comparisons...

[DoNotRefill]

35. Why don't you ask John Kerry?

[Just Me]

69. "The Birds",...remember that movie?

It scared the bee-geez-us out of me back then. It flashed through my mind (I won't go into the gory details) when I read this post. I am wrestling with the fact that, as a non-violent proponent,...I actually found quite pleasing the images that scrolled through my mind. I won't go into the gory details though.

[demnan]

3. Leave it to the Bushes

they just can't go a day without killing something or someone.

[daleo]

6. Has anyone warned Dan Quayle?

n/t

[54anickel]

12. HA! Just did a spit-take all over my monitor. Thanks. n/t

[Darwin2002]

7. Can't go a day without killing something, can we?

what fun would that be?

[drscm]

9. Is Baker going to fix the hunt? eom

eom

[DoYouEverWonder]

10. Daddy and Jimmie the Fixer

are going take Jr. out to the wood shed? I'd love to be a fly on the wall for that little talk. Jr's gonna get his butt whipped. :P

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

11. Quayle hunting requires you think and shoot fast...

You couldn't pay me enough to share a field with dim bulb.

[grasswire]

13. the bakers have a huge brood

I remember reading they have a huge number of kids -- eight or eleven or something like that. I wonder what all kinds of nasties they are inflicting on the world.

[pinto]

23. I usually use potatoes, patatos, puhtato's, potatos, ......

[xchrom]

14. the bush's will kill them

with baker hiding in the scrub opening cages filled with quail.
once in sevice to the bfee you can never get out.

[roguevalley]

15. he isn't happy unless he's killing something. I wonder if Dan Quayle

knows about this ...

[JPace]

16. Send him to Afganistan.....

where he can hunt for Osama!

[Skittles]

17. the sport of cowards

hunting as a "social event". Sickening.

[SwellGround]

37. All hunters are not cowards

Is your comment reserved for Bush or all hunters in general? Many people enjoy hunting including Democrats.

[murielm99]

43. My husband and daughter are hunters.

They are good Democrats, too. They don't really care if they come home with game, or not. They just like the idea of tramping around in the woods. They hunt on our own property.

Come on! We may need a few Dems who know how to use guns, if things get out of hand.

[blockhead]

78. thank you Swell

[blockhead]

79. i almost forgot

I really loved my 24 oz. porterhouse and shrimp last night

[RebelOne]

47. Sorry, dupe. I only clicked post message once but it posted twice.

[RebelOne]

48. I agree. I hate hunting.

[SwellGround]

72. Does your hatered of hunting make those that hunt cowards?

I'm guessing not.

[Ilsa]

19. I wonder which ranch they are going to...

Maybe the King Ranch, but there are some other very large and active ranches down there, including an estate owned in part by an old friend. I hope she isn't tied up with the Bushes or Bakers.

[SOS]

20. Is it a canned hunt?

The tiny birds will probably have their wings broken first so Shrubby can can blast 70 of them. Just like Uncle Dick.

[Ilsa]

21. That is pretty rugged territory, very brushy.

Lots of rattlesnakes, and maybe some feral hogs and javelinas (which are in season, BTW). I don't know of any hunting clubs in that area like Cheney went to. My guess is they are going quail and dove hunting, which can be quite good there. Turkey hunting is in season in Brooks County, as is white-tailed deer.

[DoYouEverWonder]

24. Especially if you seed the fields

which is illegal in Florida. I don't know about Texas?

[MaineDem]

25. I was wondering the same thing

I detest the idea of those canned hunts.

I don't think I'd go anywhere near * with a weapon. Yikes!

[theHandpuppet]

49. It's Canned Idiocy -- Check This Out!

Do you remember when, during Dumbya's run against Ann Richards for Gov of Texas, GWB participated in a canned hunt in which he shot an endangered species of Killdeer -- having mistaken it for a mourning dove?

Well, this lunacy is piled a lot deeper than most realize. The Bush administration has strong ties to/received awards from a group called Safari Club International.

Check out this article from the Humane Society of the United States: http://www.hsus.org/ace/20186 and also the link to Safari Club International.

[leftchick]

53. the safari club should be banned from existence!

fucking figures they are in cahoots with the killers of people, the BFEE!.... :grr:

[NickB79]

58. While I strongly disagree with canned hunts

There are many members of the Safari Club that do have morals, and don't participate in them. The vast majority of the game they hunt are not even threatened or endangered. They pump huge amounts of money into local village economies when they hunt the land surrounding the village, and usually give the meat of the killed animals to the villagers. Without this cash incentive to keep these animals around and tolerate their predation of crops and livestock, I would wager that there would be far less big game on the African continent today. If the choice is between hunting a few percent of a species or allowing the land to be cleared and developed into fields and housing, I would go for hunting any day.

[theHandpuppet]

77. Let's call it for what it really is.

Ah yes, the SCI is just a beneficent international charity society involving a lot of rich white men dedicated to helping the local economies of third world nations. Rather than extrapolate on that notion (I'm afraid I could get into a rather ugly argument here and I'm not in the mood) I will only respond with this snippet from http://www.hsus.org/ace/20054

Gerald & Buff Corsi, California Academy of Science By Michael Satchell

What weighs 21 pounds, contains 2,560 pages, and lists thousands of names and numbers? It's not the New York City telephone directory, but here's a hint: Its listings run from Addax to Zebra.

The answer is Safari Club International's three-volume compendium of trophy hunters who are immortalized in this record book for doing nothing more than killing animals—an entire alphabet of animals—to win SCI awards competitions. The catalog is a macabre scorecard detailing who shot what animal, where and when. Thousands and thousands of animals, covering more than 1,100 species, are figuratively buried between the covers here.

<snipping>

With its photographs of grinning hunters posing with lifeless animals and its meticulous rankings for the biggest tusks, horns, antlers, skulls and bodies, the SCI record book perfectly encapsulates what trophy hunting is all about: killing for killing's sake. The book lays bare the hunters' obsessions: a craving to shoot the largest animal, a desire to kill the most animals and rack up SCI awards, or a fetish to bring home the animal's head and hang it on the wall.

The mother of all these obsessions, though, is the awards competition. SCI members shoot prescribed lists of animals to win so-called Grand Slam and Inner Circle titles. There’s the Africa Big Five, (leopard, elephant, lion, rhino, and buffalo); the North American Twenty Nine (all species of bear, bison, sheep, moose, caribou, and deer); and the Antlered Game of the Americas, among many other contests.

More...

[Piperay]

22. Go out and slaughter a living creature

what a "great" way to start the New Year, that f*cking a$$shole! :puke: :grr: :mad: :grr:

[latebloomer]

26. Right, Happy New Year, let the killing begin!!

We'll start with tiny birds to whet our appetites, then progress. . .

[SwellGround]

38. Many hunters go out on the first to hunt

I don't get all the anger against hunting. Would you attempt to make hunting illegal if given the power?

[MaineDem]

51. Hunting for food is one thing

Hunting for the blood sport is another.

Do you think Laura will dress and cook the birds for dinner later today? I think not.

[SwellGround]

73. I don't know nor do I care.

I eat what I hunt but I don't NEED to do it.

[amazona]

63. i agree it's a very old tradition

There was also a tradition of going out on Dec. 26 to hunt. I wonder if it goes back to pagan times and the cycle of the seasons. The Horned God was lord of the hunt, after all.

The greatest threat to our wildlife in the U.S. is habitat loss and the &*^%^(!!!! over-development. If hunting gives the communities an economic reason to save habitat, it saves more than it kills -- even if the hunter doesn't eat his kill. (Although I'd be surprised if the quail weren't consumed. They are good eating.)

Hunters have donated money and lobbying power far in excess of their numbers to preserve our wildlife and our environment. There is an important link to our past which should not be lost.

If non-consumptive users want to be politically powerful, we need to step up to the bat and contribute with money and time as hunters have. In Louisiana, we do have a stamp for people who don't hunt or fish but who bird public lands. How many people buy that stamp? 20 years down the line and I would guess that most people in the state are even unaware that it exists. So most of non-consumptive users like birders are not even chipping in our $5 a year while the hunters and fishers are chipping in quite a bit more for their licenses....

In Texas there is a great deal of awareness of the value of non-consumptive uses, and they are a pioneer in preserving bird habitat. The Texas Gulf Coast Birding Trail attracts tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars from birders from around the world, especially Europe, every year. Yet I somehow suspect that * is clueless of this heritage....


Well too much champagne rambling...but I think we can honor the hunters in our society and in our past and still point out that certain GOPers are pure slobs.

[gulliver]

28. Gated, private hunting land no doubt.

It's good to be in the Republican elite. Other hunters have to go out and find their own hunting spots. More and more all of the good spots have No Trespassing signs on them (or strip mines). Give it twenty more years and the only people who will be able to hunt will be daddy's boy Republicans like Junior.

[Ilsa]

29. This is very true!

A Texas game magazine did an article on that about ten years ago. It is getting to where, in Texas, there is no place to hunt anymore, unless you have contacts at big ranches or are willing to pay a huge price for a lease. In other states (Arkansas comes to mind), you can hunt on public property during season. I can remember driving through and seeing hunters and their sons (usually) in orange vests, crossing the interstate to head out to the next patch of woods for game.

My father's hunting experiences with my brother are not likely to be repeated very often in future generations.

[amazona]

64. agreed it's getting scary

Already in many areas you have to get into a lottery to win a chance at hunting at all.

Are we going back to the Robin Hood days when hunting was only for the rich man and the poor man had no opportunity other than poaching?

It is hard to see what the answer is. We just have too many people...too little good land.

[leetrisck]

30. Has anyone ever heard of bush going

hunting before? Is this supposed to be something for his "swagger image" or does he really and truly hunt?

[DoYouEverWonder]

31. He'll probably pee his pants

the first time he shots a rifle.

[Buns_of_Fire]

41. Let a feral hog get anywhere near him

and wet pants will be the least of his problems. Those suckers have even less of a sense of humor than the SS...

[DoYouEverWonder]

57. I've seen wild hogs

out in the Everglades. That is one big nasty animal but they sure do taste good. I can't imagine what W would do if he ever came across one of those. He probably go ballistic mistaking the darn thing for Saddam.

[Ilsa]

33. Since he's with his dad, he's

probably talking about pu$$y, and on one of those hunts.

[amazona]

62. no he hunts but...

...he sounds like a slob hunter. As another poster documented, he has been fined for killing a Killdeer -- one of the most recognizable and visible of birds in Louisiana/Texas -- while on another hunt in days gone by.

There are people who are genuine hunters who want to preserve this important link to our past, and there are people who primarily hunt to get drunk and blast away at whatever. Sadly, our Glorious Leader appears to be in the latter category.

[revcarol]

32. He's neglecting the nation.

At a minimum, he should at least go out for mad-cow burgers.

[shanti]

34. gonna make that 100 pheasants, chimpy?

gotta one-up the big dick!

[KalicoKitty]

36. Hunting makes Smirky feel so macho!

[Bridget Burke]

39. He is, indeed, a mighty hunter....

Back in 1994, when he was running for Governor against Ann Richards, both candidates went hunting on the first day of dove season. Good photo op!

Unfortunately, George shot a killdeer--a protected species, defintely not in season. Can YOU tell the difference?

Killdeer:


Mourning Dove:

[amazona]

65. it's even worse than that

When a Killdeer flushes, it shows a red rump.

When a Mourning Dove flushes, its wings make a whistling cry that is very distinctive. And no red rump!!!!! You know it's a Mourning Dove even if you don't see it from the sound.

Optical illusions do occur but realistically I have to ask myself what his blood alcohol level was when he shot the Killdeer.

[moondust]

40. A Bush kill will be staged.

Quail are much too fast for a dim-witted boob.

[pinniped]

42. I didn't know PIGS hunt quail with shotguns.

[AlFrankenFan]

44. Dear God

"Compassionate conservativism" apparently means killing innocent animals for fun.

[DoNotRefill]

46. And how is this different...

than when Democratic candidates go on well-publicized hunting trips?

Do you REALLY want to drive ALL hunters out of the Democratic party?

Who does that leave to run against Bush? Kucinich, Mosely-Braun, and Sharpton? THAT's going to go over well....

[theHandpuppet]

50. THIS is how it's different...

... in the case of the Bushreich. An article from the Humane Society of the United States: http://www.hsus.org/ace/20186 Make sure to click on the link to Safari Club International while you're perusing the article.

True hunters don't do themselves any credit by defending the idiots within their midst.

[DoNotRefill]

60. Ummm....

Hate to tell you this, but it's not like politicians of ANY stripe go out hunting "for real" as a photo op. The hordes of camera crews tagging along aren't condusive to "sneaking up" on game. "Real" hunting is an "iffy" proposition at best, and they'd look stupid if they wasted a day "hunting" and didn't get anything. Consequently, canned hunts are the norm for politicians.


Seriously....picture a politician deer-hunting for real. There the politician is, 30 feet up in a tree stand, with 15 reporters at the foot of the tree waiting with cameras and lights for the shot. How many wild deer do you think would be wandering by that tree-stand?

[theHandpuppet]

76. You misunderstood my point.

I was not comparing *politicians* who are true hunters to those who participate in cannned hunts. My remarks were aimed at hunters in general.

There are many genuine, skilled hunters in this country who put food on the table for their families. I live in a rural area where such hunting is often a necessity. At one time I myself kept a hunting rifle in my home, as we once lived in an isolated area of the Blue Ridge where rabid animals, wild dog packs and bears were more than a nuisance -- they were a real danger.

Having said that, I do not consider ANYONE who would participate in a canned hunt just for a photo op or the opportunity to blast something to smithereens a true hunter, politician or not. Those who would defend the obviously fragile machismo of such idiots do genuine hunting no service by blindly circling the wagons any time criticism is aimed at these bozos.

[amazona]

68. you are correct and it should be emphasized

One of the reasons that Blanco won the governor's election over Jindal in Louisiana involved ads that showed her hunting and talking about her heritage.

Apparently Jindal tried to run similar ads (I didn't actually see them) but all they raised was a chuckle of disbelief.

I think we should have more races where it is clear that the Democrat is a "real" person who has links to the past and to heritage -- including our hunting heritage -- and the Republican is laughed off as a "wonk."

[leftofthedial]

45. statistics

in 2000 there were 51 serious hunting accidents in Texas, including seven that resulted in fatalities.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

52. I keep visualising Mel Brooks in History of the World: Part 1 during

the "peasant" hunt. "Pull!"


"It's great to be the King."

[DoYouEverWonder]

54. Here's a pic of Georgie all hungover

on his way to get his butt whipped by Daddy and Jimmy the fixer.





President Bush waves as he boards Air Force One at the TSTC airfield in Waco Texas Thursday Jan. 1, 2004. Bush was enroute to meet his father George Bush in South Texas for a day of hunting before returning to his ranch near Crawford, Texas.


I don't think I've ever seen W look as bad as this before. And this is after having almost 2 full weeks off from everything. He hasn't even attended any fundraisers. Funny, he looked almost as bad last summer at the end of his annual month long summer vacation. Must be something in the water down in Crawford?

[MaineDem]

56. Air Force One to go hunting???

The 747 version? (I know any plane he's on is AF1.)

Gimme a break!

[Miramar]

71. Looks like he is really putting on the weight!

Probably since he can't run anymore with his bum knee. I hope he really goes to pot before the next election.

[DoYouEverWonder]

74. I wish he'd go to pot too

maybe he would mellow out and stop killing people?

[Lisa]

81. calling his wife "lumpy", indeed!

He's one to talk! I noticed that he seemed a bit pudgier (and his collars look tighter) since the summer.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

55. Further reports on the "hunt." (Link)

http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040101/APA/401010640

President Bush began the new year before dawn flying to southern Texas to hunt quail.

"Happy new year to you," he said as he greeted a few people at Brooks County Airport, 60 miles south of Corpus Christi.

Those were the first words Bush has spoken in public since Dec. 22, when he talked about the terror alert following a Hanukkah menorah candle lighting ceremony at the White House.

His hunting trip with his father, George H.W. Bush, along with U.S. envoy James A. Baker, staff and friends was running behind schedule. Rain and foggy weather forced the president to drive from his ranch in Crawford, where he spent New Year's Eve, to an airport near Waco, where he boarded a small corporate jet serving as Air Force One.
<snip>

[NickB79]

59. If its a real hunting trip, I have no problem with it

If he goes out into the range, does not shoot farm-raised, pen-released birds, and obeys all the game regulations (such as bag limits, unlike Cheney's 70-bird slaughter) I have no problem with this. Dean and Kerry are both hunters, yet I see no one calling them bloodthirsty killers of the innocent when they go out hunting. I also wonder how many people who reacted so harshly to this hunting trip have eaten any meat or eggs in the last day or two? I can hardly see the sense in giving Bush heat for hunting (assuming it is a legitimate hunt) and at the same time eat flesh from a dead animal. But if Bush pulls a Cheney-style canned hunt, then I will have a serious problem with this hunting trip.

[peterh]

61. Rumor has it, they actually went snipe hunting…

And the little twit is still out there with his flashlight and gunny sack :silly:

[mbperrin]

66. Or how about a REAL sport?

Issue 45s to raccoons!

[54anickel]

67. Doesn't he have, like a job to do? Another vacation while the color of

the day is orange. He could at least make it LOOK as though he had some concern.
:eyes:

[Lisa]

70. remember what happened last time? He shot the wrong species ...

He was supposed to be shooting doves, but hit a killdeer (plover) instead.

Ofelia the cow had better get under cover!

[Malva Zebrina]

75. am I the only one sitting back and trying to make sense out of this

the president of our nation, is going qualil hunting--in a dispplay of male prowess--but the hunted are released in order to please the hunter. We saw this with the great white hunter, Cheney, who shot more than seventy birds, while never ever engaging an enemy or participating in any war the US has demanded it's citizens participate in as warriors. Nope, not Cheney--he was too busy, and not Bush, nope, he was AWOL actualluy missing in action from a war time effort.

Now we have the both to them out there hunting little birds! and does anyone but me see the comedy in this? The birds were released to please them--so that they may look good, like REAL men on the "hunt" !!! Cheney will carry home his trophies to Lynn,who may or may not be there, and George will carry home his trophies to the lump-o-frump in the bed who does not care as long as she can sip her nightcap and smoke her last cigarette for the day.

Does anyone else see the humor in all of this? Two impotent, evil men, going on a "hunt" that is, actually, manufactured?

These are big grown ups trying to play as if thery are really, really great big hunters and great big men! Meanwhile, everything is a set up, including the game, which is released in order that they have somnehitng shoot at, and what they have to shoot at is hundred and hundreds of "released" game.!! These phonies are really laughable. I would love to get a look at what they do in the bedroom. I bet it is nothing, ergo the desire for all of this "manliness" display--in shooting hundreds of little birds who were "released" so that these impotent bastards can lo0i like real men.

[Lisa]

80. I wonder if it's ritualistic ...

as in the ancient Celtic ritual of "The Hunting of the Wren" ...

http://www.old-glory.co.uk/cutty.html


The dark time of the year brings out weird things in people ... hence the whole suite of festivities surrounding Christmas, I suppose!

Maybe W is groping for some way to express himself, since he's now aware that the flight suit and turkey photo-ops didn't show him conquering the dark powers to his satisfaction!