There is an old adage that says if you drop a frog into boiling water it will
immediately jump out, but if you put that same frog into a pot of cool water then
slowly raise the water temperature to boiling, the frog will likely be boiled. The
gist of the proverb is that we will instantly react to sudden changes around us, but
if those changes come slowly and subtly, it may be too late to properly react once
we notice.
House Concurrent Resolution 5008 just now starting its journey through the
Kansas legislature would amend the state constitution to guarantee Kansas
residents the right to hunt, fish and trap wildlife here in our state. My first
reaction was “Do we really need this?” Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to
become like the frog in the pot and eventually lose my hunting, fishing and
trapping rights after years of slow and subtle attacks on those rights by the likes
of PETA and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS.) But this is Kansas
after all, and I really don’t worry much about us Kansans being out-muscled nor
out-witted by that sort of thinking. I also know that federal law still trumps state
law, so we can pass all the laws and resolutions we want here in KS, but if
something contrary gets passed at the federal level, it’s all for naught. I could only
hope that the bills coauthors Adam Lusker from Fontenac and Travis Couture-
Lovelady from Palco had some reasoning in mind that I was missing.
I spoke with Rep. Lusker on the phone and here are some points they hope to
make with this proposed constitutional amendment. First, they want its passage
to show groups like PETA and HSUS just how seriously we Kansans value our right
to hunt, fish and trap, making them think twice about trying to force their
agendas here in Kansas; sort of the ounce-of-prevention-is-worth-a-pound-of-
cure principle.
Secondly they want to show Kansas sportsmen and women that our state leaders
take our hunting, fishing and trapping rights seriously enough to do whatever
they have to do to protect them. Also by doing this they want sportsmen across
the country to take notice that Kansas also wants their business as well.
If ratified by two-thirds of the house and two-thirds of the senate, House
Concurrent Resolution 5008 will appear on the ballet in the next regular election
year, 2016. If passed by the voters in Kansas, that should add even more teeth to
its intent. I’m still not sure we need an amendment to our state constitution to
guarantee our right to hunt, fish and trap here in the state of Kansas, but things
take awhile to grow on me. I have to say that the points presented to me by Rep.
Lusker were very valid and thought-provoking. In the mean time, let’s all exercise
those rights to the fullest and Explore Kansas Outdoors.
Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected]
