Jim, ethical bowhunters are like ethical gun hunters. I well placed arrow,IMHO, can be every bit as humane as a well placed bullet. Unfortunately, there is no way to regulate the ethics of people. Like the guy who doesn't use enough gun or the guy who does use enough gun, but shoots past his capable range. I have been a bowhunter for over 30yrs. and I have become sickened by the whooping and hollaring of deer drives and the attitude, if "I can see'em, I am shooting at them". How in the heck can you place a bullet with a hunting attitude like that. How about all of the pickup trucks that circle a section and declare, anything that flies..dies. Or if it is brown, it is down. Of course we also have the hunters that buy a muzzleloader, shotgun, rifle, bow or crossbow on Fri. night, shoot a paper plate in the backyard and declare themselves ready to go hunting. Than loan the thing to a friend who doesn't even practice, but is in the woods anyhow, bragging the next day that they hit a deer, but since it didn't fall right away, it will be ok because it was "only" a doe. These idiots, think they are some kind of macho man, by hitting a deer, it doesn't matter that they were unable to tag it. Sometimes our very worse nightmare, is those who declare themselves "sportsman". You know, you just can't fix stupid. Even the very best of true sportsman, will blow a shot. At least though the real sportsman will take responsiblity for their sport by practicing, using the right amount of tools and becoming proficient in their tracking/game skills.
