Hunter's Coup at the NY Times?

My spouse tells me at the brunch table the NY Times has three stories on hunting. The not so slow food movement, or slow after they're shot. Heirloom veggies not enough to soothe the inner man?

A Winged Symbol, but With More Than One Meaning

...coo-Hoo, coo-coo-Coo.

In Iowa, that is officially the call of a songbird, and the mourning dove is protected. In Michigan the hunting of mourning doves was banned, reinstated for a single season, then banned again after a statewide referendum. But hunters in 41 other states — including Wisconsin, where the bird is the officially designated symbol of peace — have made the mourning dove the most popular game bird in the United States.

“You need a gun, a box of shells, the necessary permits and, if you want to get really fancy, a five-gallon bucket to sit on,” said John H. Schulz, a wildlife research biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation. “It’s inexpensive, it’s easy and it’s a great gateway to hunting.”

Though I've never had 'em, I hear they're good eats. And it's a way to put food on the table.

Hunting Losing Battle for Youth’s Attention

Like Great-Great-Great-(Etc.)-Grandpa Did It

Oops, four. Working to Keep a Heritage Relevant:

Mr. Frampton serves on a new federal advisory board intended “to help promote and preserve America’s hunting heritage for future generations,” in part by drawing in more youths and women.

While declining interest and shrinking wildlife habitat may be the main threats to the pastime, hunting and gun groups are worried by the occasional efforts to restrict it, like the ban on mourning dove hunting in Michigan that was promoted by animal rights advocates.

South Carolina is one of four states, along with Arizona, Arkansas and Tennessee, that will vote this fall on adding the right to hunt and fish to their constitutions. Ten states already have such provisions, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Has the NY Times been taken over by the Tea Party movement?

I think they're really worried about what they consider sin tax revenue, though.

...and perhaps a glimmer as to why Dems are headed to stinging defeat this fall with their president who calls us bitter clingers.

P.S. Politico: Democrats fear Midwestern meltdown. Including Illinois. A harbinger of 2012.

P.P.S. The latest on Black Swans. Not in the gunsights.