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Justice Scalia on Hunting
A New York kid who competed on his school's rifle team as a teen, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia used to ride the subway between his Queen's home and the Manhattan school with his .22 carbine.
"Could you imagine doing that today in New York City?" he told the crowd gathered at an awards banquet during this weekend's NWTF Convention in Nashville.
Scalia was the weekend's keynote speaker at an event that drew what may be record attendance if the final totals put it near the 40,000 mark. Believe me, for anybody attempting to walk the exhibit hall floor on Saturday, it felt like all 40,000 were crammed into that one room. I haven't seen so much camo and sweat in one place since my last big Labor Day dove shoot in South Carolina three years ago.
During Scalia's brief address before taking off with his wife for an Alan Jackson concert, the Justice drove home several key points that brought the crowd to their feet. With hunting and gun rights under what seems constant attack, it's a great comfort to know that we have one of us serving in that big house of judgment inside the Beltway.
He told outdoorsmen that the best thing they can do for their sport is to fight back against the stereotype that guns are only used for bad purposes.
"The attitude of people associating guns with nothing but crime, that is what needs to be changed," he said. "People need to understand that guns are used for more good than bad."
Scalia, an avid turkey, deer and duck hunter, said he really caught the hunting bug while serving as a circuit court judge in a circuit that covered Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. He praised the crowd for their conservation work and offered this insight into what is needed to ensure hunting's future.
"I hope (our hunting culture) can be preserved...the hunting culture, of course, begins with a culture that does not have a hostile attitude toward firearms," he said.
Justice Scalia is a sportsman, and can view sporting issues from a practical base of knowledge. A large majority of judges appear to lack common sense, which is caused by the "ivory tower" environment in which they were raised and live. Justice Scalia is an exception to the rule.
Posted by: Dan Wilson | March 03, 2006 at 10:56 AM
How refreshing that Justice Scalia is an avid hunter, and so well spoken. It feels so good to have an advocate because we don`t usually have that.
Understand that what he said is right, that attitudes must be changed. It kills our cause for people to have a hostile attitude towards firearms. And those of us on the front lines must be as good an ambassador as Justice Scalia is. We are the one’s the everyday people see on our way to and from hunting trips or events, and it`s we who will shape people’s impressions of guns, and gun owners. It takes time and commitment , but if it`s important to us, we’ll make the time.
Posted by: Greg Russell | March 03, 2006 at 02:42 PM