Erroll Southers, the still-to-be-approved head of the TSA has shown by his past and present actions he is unethical and should not be approved by the Senate. Let me try and teach you something about ethics.
Many of my readers know I am a volunteer California Hunter Safety Instructor (HSI). One of the things the HSI’s try to teach is hunter ethics. I say “try to teach” because ethics is something you either have or do not have. You can teach people how they should act which the HISs admirably do (pat oneself on the back here) but you cannot be sure if people will act ethically.
For instance: Let’s say the number of birds you may have in your possession is ten. You have a week hunting trip and due to superior shooting and a lot of luck you harvest ten birds the first day. You would have six days of sitting around with your partners waiting for them to fill their limits.
Since the law states you may have a maximum of ten birds “in possession”, you decide to freeze the ten birds and overnight them to your neighbor with a note to put them in their freezer. Now you technically have no birds in possession and can get another ten birds, freeze them and overnight them to your other neighbor.
Finally, you take another ten birds, eat five with your buddies for dinner at the hunting lodge and then shoot another five on the morning of the last day. You have harvested thirty-five birds and are technically within the law.
Would it have been ethical for you to have done this? The answer is a resounding no. Also, since your hunting partners are there with you, you would undoubtedly stop at the first ten birds and play cards the rest of the week. While this is ethical behavior, I venture to say that it is not a good example of ethics.
I know, I know, I hear you saying “Fred, what is all this doubletalk? You say ethical behavior is not a good example of ethics!”
Let’s have another example: Your limit of a particular bird is five. You have harvested four so far this season and are set to take your fifth. Your dog flushes a bunch of birds out of the bushes, you see a good size one and you firmly pull the trigger of your shotgun; two birds fall from the sky.
Your hunting partners are at the other side of the field and did not see your last shot. You have shot six birds. What should you do?
A. Field dress them and stick them in your cooler.
B. Take the sixth bird to the nearest game warden and explain why you shot six birds.
C. Take five birds and leave the sixth in the field.
If you answered A, and a warden or another hunter found out, you would be fined and probably lose your hunting license.
If you answered B, you would be correct.
What about answer C? The extra bird was accidental and since you did not take it you should be OK, right? I mean no one saw what happened and no one can prove you unintentionally shot the extra bird.
Answer C would show unethical behavior and be unethical. Answer A is totally illegal. Answer B is ethical behavior and is a great example of ethics.
Confused? What is the difference between answer B and the previous example of taking just ten birds?
Answer B is what you did when no one was watching! That is ethics.
[Read Part 1]
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