Carter's W.A.R.

This is, I agree, a great series. Have watched both episodes. They were clearly created, however, with something like NatGeo as the eventual channel. Stylistically rather like "River Monsters" and it's ilk. Nothing wrong with that, and certainly nothing wrong with broadening the appeal of an investment to a larger audience. It is particularly good to shine a light on the good work being done by the all too view park rangers, vets, and security teams trying to hold the line against poachers.

I wish that he could find a means to work the positive role of hunting into the conservation/preservation effort. The main message an uniformed viewer could take from the first two episodes is that if an animal steps out of the protection of Kruger, it's toast. Which is partially true except for the neighboring conservancies which are working pretty hard to preserve and grow their own game populations. This is particularly true of the rhino.

Again, an uninformed viewer could pretty easily draw the inference that hunting and poaching are pretty much the same thing. And I, no doubt, am becoming over sensitive with regard to my sport. And to Ivan's credit he does identify himself as a "hunter" at the start of each episode.

And Ivan, should you read this, I am probably over thinking your very important message.

I tend to frame the hunting debate through the lens of my twenty something niece - A University of Oregon grad living in New York City - you get the picture. It is an interesting and slippery ethical discussion comparing, let's say, the elephant episode and my own experiences in the Caprivi where most buffalo and elephant are taken transiting conservancies between parks or international borders. Clearly, I am hunting legally, and not armed with a Kalishnikov, but to the lay "environmentalist" it is a tough difference to articulate - particularly from the buff's point of view :-(

Look forward to the rest of the season and hoping to see how hunting may fit positively into the conservation message. Very best wishes for a highly successful program.

I think "trophy" hunting has gotten such a bad rap, that it's going to take many, many years to repair the damage already done. I'm not sure we can ever turn the tables and make hunting sound positive to the general public in the coming years ahead.

The show might need some refinement after feedback, but that is okay.

I am with Red Leg, and my earlier comments. I too enjoy the show, but especially in this one, I wonder how hard it would have been to weave in the fact that elephants are over-populated in some areas, and that elephants can have outsized (!) impacts on rural people, and finally, that hunting is a useful and productive way to manage these issues.

In this episode, more than in the Rhino espisode, I think it is easy to confuse well-regulated hunting with poaching.

I sure would not emphasize any hunting at the park boundary, it makes hunters look very bad, even if its legal.

enysse said:

I sure would not emphasize any hunting at the park boundary, it makes hunters look very bad, even if its legal.

Click to expand...

Wouldn't it be great, though, if people understood that hunting areas serve as buffers around national parks, and actually protect animals fron unregulated hunting (aka poaching)?

I hunted in a park in RSA last year. You drove through the photo area, past some Authorised people only signs, and there it was. The hunting camp that paid for the whole thing.

I'm not sure anyone but a hunter would understand that concept Hank2211 .

enysse said:

I'm not sure anyone but a hunter would understand that concept Hank2211 .

Click to expand...

Can't or won't?

I think you would have to show proper management: habitat, age structure, people problems, both good and bad management, etc and maybe the science will open some eyes.

Just got done watching the show. I thought it was good......I mean I throughly enjoyed watching Ivan hunt with clients after dangerous game. I just think the anti hunting nuts just don't watch the outdoor channel, maybe for fishing shows and that might be a stretch. So who are we really reaching here? Hunters. Do we really need to be educated about the problem of poaching? No I don't think so. We know about the enormous effort by some very dedicated people trying to fight back in a very difficult war. Underfunded, under staffed, and fighting cultures that still seem not to care about how they obtain animal horn and other parts, or the decimation of theses beautiful creatures.

Until foreign governments REALLY put forth very stringent laws with very tough penalties this will continue I'm afraid. I commend Mr. Carter and Mr.Shockey for this type of show and I believe they mean to entertain and educate. But as I've said many times the fight needs to be brought before the antis where they live, on social media. The fight must be well organized and thought out. And certainly brought to public attention like never before.

I think we do need to educate hunters also. There are some "meat hunters" that don't get the trophy hunting. They think it's a waste. They too don't know the whole story.

ScottG said:

I think we do need to educate hunters also. There are some "meat hunters" that don't get the trophy hunting. They think it's a waste. They too don't know the whole story.

Click to expand...

One more reason hunters have to be united. I know, broken record time, but this is a continuum - antis are not only against trophy hunting, they are against all killing of animals. And if and when they win the public over to the anti-trophy hunting side, make no mistake, they will come after the meat hunters.

Alright, here is how this works. As a high school biology teacher I am going to show Ivan Carter's War to my Biology Classes. This show is done in such a way that I can work it into my environmental curriculum and if I have any PETA parents it will be hard for them to complain. I can then work the concept of sustainable conservation into into both the environmental curriculum and scientific method curriculum. It's in the scientific method that I can bring in the role of hunting and compare the conservation models of Kenya and Namibia. This is a great show with great possibilities. Yes, there are more biology teachers like me than you would think

Jfet said:

Alright, here is how this works. As a high school biology teacher I am going to show Ivan Carter's War to my Biology Classes. This show is done in such a way that I can work it into my environmental curriculum and if I have any PETA parents it will be hard for them to complain. I can then work the concept of sustainable conservation into into both the environmental curriculum and scientific method curriculum. It's in the scientific method that I can bring in the role of hunting and compare the conservation models of Kenya and Namibia. This is a great show with great possibilities. Yes, there are more biology teachers like me than you would think

Click to expand...

You are now in my personal Valhala of heroes!

I liked the Huffington post article the best. These are all positive steps though, IMO. And maybe, just maybe show what we need to do to turn the tide. What we as hunters have been doing to get our point across hasn't been working, but perhaps this show is?

And all without showing a single fired shot. Something to think about.... does out overall presentation of our sport need to change? I don't know the answer but I'm asking myself that question.

A couple of the articles do have comment sections. Lets go make some positive comments and help the cause!


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david...tml?utm_hp_ref=entertainment&ir=Entertainment

http://www.seat42f.com/tca-winter-2...n-outdoor-channel-and-uptv-presentations.html

http://www.multichannel.com/news/content/tca16-veteran-actors-tv-golden-age-not-all-bright/396285

Oh and if you didn't watch episode three with the croc you need to see it. I thought it was the best so far and really showed the human/wildlife conflict, and who will always win if not controlled. ... hint it ain't the wildlife.....

Royal27 said:

I liked the Huffington post article the best. These are all positive steps though, IMO. And maybe, just maybe show what we need to do to turn the tide. What we as hunters have been doing to get our point across hasn't been working, but perhaps this show is?

And all without showing a single fired shot. Something to think about.... does out overall presentation of our sport need to change? I don't know the answer but I'm asking myself that question.

A couple of the articles do have comment sections. Lets go make some positive comments and help the cause!


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david...tml?utm_hp_ref=entertainment&ir=Entertainment

http://www.seat42f.com/tca-winter-2...n-outdoor-channel-and-uptv-presentations.html

http://www.multichannel.com/news/content/tca16-veteran-actors-tv-golden-age-not-all-bright/396285

Click to expand...

Thanks for posting the link Royal.

I am particularly impressed by the Huffington Post article - I would never have expected this kind of balance out of them. I particularly like Ivan's comment "I'm not asking you to hunt . . ." but rather to understand the facts. And there seem to be a goodly number of reasoned, rational responses to the wackos who have posted comments.

It may well be that the antis get far more publicity than their actual numbers warrant . . . . he said hopefully!

Kinda shows the method to his madness doesn't it? Ivan is hunting all right and it is DG for sure. He's going after the press and attempting to tame them, and gasp, have them report the fair and balanced truth!

If he keeps getting good press like he has, this could go places....

Red Leg said:

I wish that he could find a means to work the positive role of hunting into the conservation/preservation effort. The main message an uniformed viewer could take from the first two episodes is that if an animal steps out of the protection of Kruger, it's toast. Which is partially true except for the neighboring conservancies which are working pretty hard to preserve and grow their own game populations. This is particularly true of the rhino.

Click to expand...

@Red Leg

I will be curious to see if you think this was accomplished to some degree in this week's crocodile episode. Maybe not exactly how you're thinking, but a start?

Yes, this was well done. And I appreciate the articles as well. Was able to have a bit of a chat with Jim Shockey at the show (he is producing Carter's War). I think their thought is that "Uncharted" represents a hunter's broader perspective of his sport and its challenges to a closely adjacent audience. Carter's War was conceived as a program which would reach a much broader viewership. I wish him every success.